With Fairbanks Democrat Rep. Maxine Dibert in the hospital for a serious lung condition, Alaska’s House of Representatives has a fragile Democrat-led majority. That is a behind-the-scenes issue buzzing around the Capitol, and it became clear that in House Education Committee, there is no actual Democrat majority without her. The Democrats’ plans were being stymied due to one member missing.
Thus, on Wednesday, the Democrats took to the House floor to force their education funding bill out of the committee, where it was languishing.
House Bill 69 is one of the Democrats’ priorities, a massive increase to the formula funding for schools. It’s being pushed by unions, the National Education Association, and school districts. There is no accountability measure tied to the legislation to improve Alaska’s dismal school performance.
Rep. Mike Prax, a North Pole Republican broke with his fellow Republicans voted with the Democrats to force the bill out of House Education and into House Finance Committee.
He later explained it as a voting error. Although he asked for a reconsideration vote, the Democrats denied him the opportunity for a do-over.
HB 69 would increase the per-pupil funding by $1,000 in this fall, and another $400 per pupil for 2026 and again in 2027. The bill would tie the hands of future legislatures, and the funding source will almost certainly come out of the Permanent Fund dividend that Alaskans expect to get in October.
The cost of the bill in FY26 is expected to be $356 million, and by 2027 it would be more than $500 million, with no other funding source than Alaskans’ bank accounts.
