The capital budget finally showed up in House Finance Committee today, but it came in the form of a committee substitute that baffled committee members, since few, if any of them had seen it before.
Even the Senate Finance majority members had not seen the Wilson House Committee Substitute.
Rep. Tammie Wilson, co-chair of House Finance in charge of shepherding the capital budget along, put $10 million more toward addiction treatment, $4 million toward the Interior Energy Project. In another move sure to surprise, she used $16 million from the Power Cost Equalization monies to open up the Palmer prison. That’s money that belongs to rural Alaska.
Wilson also swapped out the General Fund monies and replaced them with a new funding source: The Constitutional Budget Reserve Fund, which requires a 3/4 vote to tap into. It’s a poison pill for the Capital budget, and is not likely to get friendly treatment in the Senate.
Wilson has taken a fairly uncontroversial capital budget and made it so controversial that the floor session schedule for earlier today has been cancelled. It appears that she has irritated the Democrat-led House Majority, where she enjoys a leadership position.
Observers in the Capitol said that the chaos the committee substitute has caused will likely result in no capital budget being passed before session ends on June 15. That would mean another special session would have to be called to pass the capital budget and Permanent Fund dividend bill.
[Read the Committee Substitute for the Capital Budget here]
This story is developing.
The worm has turned again. Wilson seems to think everything revolves around her, not her constituents. Shame. Another “politician” that thinks she knows better than the citizens who elected her. Not only that, she betrays the betrayal of being a rino. Real piece of work there. Turns out, even her “new” dim compatriots have tasted a large dose of her betrayal. Will “political” wonders never cease? Her misrepresenting her stated political goals seems to have become a common practice for her. The next election (or recall) should take care of her persuasion that she’s the top of the political “food chain”. How much will that extra “special session” cost Alaskans, again? Remember, Alaskans, remember.
“Politics have no relation to morals”. Machiavelli.
The problem with stupid is that you tell someone what they’re doing is stupid, and they won’t get it – because that’s what stupid is all about.
More games sure to destroy any credibility these legislators once enjoyed.
This is pathetic.
If I were The governor I don’t think I call another special session .
I think I’d just shut the state government down and declare no PFD for anybody let our state legislature wallowing their stupidity for a while.
Duanne, I kinda like what you wrote… It’s not the governor at fault, but individuals in the house and Senate….
Disgusting!
Dyane ,I like your statement too but in the end it’s the people that would pay for their wrong doings.
I agree with Duane – no further sessions! Let our legislators swing in the breeze! I’m so fed up that I’ll put up with no budget, no dividend, no school, no everything – just to let them see where their personal agendas will always end up at.
I worked hard to free my income from depending on state – the PFD is the only thing the state offers me now. I’m almost all federal, except for my Native corp, and stock investments. My stock investments are no brag. They’re all underwater for the moment. Oh well!
Is it possible she did this purposely to create chaos and force another special session? If the house and senate finish a capitol budget could we be left without a Dividend?
Duane: See JOSEPHDJ’s first comment in application to your initial post.
Legislators believe they have outsmarted the fellow we elected last November. They think that passing a huge operating budget – the Walker-Mallott budget prepared one year ago – and leaving the PFD and the capital budget until last has boxed in the Governor. It’s too transparent, too simple, and too un-Alaskan. The lobbyists and interest groups in Juneau think they have won. They think that because Walker was simple and Mallott couldn’t keep his fly zipped they can also deliver Dunleavy to their clients. They rolled T. Wilson, created a bastardized House Majority, and somehow traded something to the Senate co-chairs and Senate President. It’s the Alaska economy that is stuck in the mud of over-spending and too much government. It’s Dunleavy we elected to fix this. He will.
Boy that was quite the collection of disconnects you’ve got there, Kayak. Nobody else knows how this gets fixed (but you) however, I suspect, that things are still shaking out in the House and we’ll soon see the results. And Alaska’s economy (you say is stuck in the mud of over-spending and too much government) seems to be finally coming out of it’s three-year recession-that’s according to State labor economist Dan Robinson.
Tammie Wilson deliberately let the budget of the legislature stand at the time of questioning, without removing any significant amount of money for the legislature. Tammie Wilson had this planned with others before it happened. The budget for the legislature is almost intact and being used up as planned. Tammie Wilson was at the help of that. So, here is another “felon” in disguise. Too bad she never had a real job.
Budgeting is not difficult: start by closing the door to your office and get real about cutting. Cutting the budget will hurt – and that hurt should be spread to EVERYONE to be “fair”. For every expenditure there is a constituency that will fight to keep it. The PFD is not the State’s money and is not a good alternative for spreading the pain to everyone. Step two: FILL THE PIPE – 1/2M barrels/day through the pipeline is not enough, we should be running at least twice that. Step three: reduce regulation, especially those that inhibit mineral & oil extraction. Step four: make Alaska oil competitive – find ways to help reduce oil companies’ costs – surely they have somebody who understands economics enough to tell us what they need to fill the pipe and increase the State’s revenue enough to balance a pared-down budget. My two cents… and I’m NOT running for statewide office.
These people belong in Spring Creek Detention Facility.
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