Borough budget is sign of good work

As always, it was a lot of work. But as always, it got done.

The Mat-Su Borough Assembly approved the borough budget for fiscal year 2006 Thursday night after two sessions last week and countless hours of research, number crunching and public testimony prior to that. The end result is a $234.1 million spending plan, which includes $38 million for the school district.

School officials were guarded in their optimism about the figure. It represented $2 million less than had been requested, but it was $2 million more than it looked like the district might get a few weeks back.

Instrumental in bringing the budget together down the stretch was the passage of a tobacco tax, which is expected to add more than $4 million to borough coffers over the next year. In addition to what the tax means to the school district budget, it also will contribute to a decrease in property taxes.

Despite skepticism from some about whether tax relief would be possible, the assembly, with an assist from Borough Mayor Tim Anderson's cut of .6 percent to all department budgets, was able to bring about a decrease of nearly 1 mill in the property-tax rate. The .92 mill reduction to 10.88 mills will mean a savings of $92 on every $100,000 of assessed property value.

The assembly deserves a lot of credit for coming to agreement on a responsible budget that addresses needs without going overboard.

State government also wrapped up business last week, although in a much less satisfactory manner. Amid the usual back-slapping and self-congratulatory remarks that attended the close of yet another legislative special session, lawmakers and the governor tried to put as positive a spin on their work as they could.

Without a doubt, the state budgets hold much promise for citizens, who will benefit greatly from capital projects funded. The rush to spend, though, in a time of high oil prices and the increase in revenue they bring, conveniently ignores the still unaddressed problem of genuine long-term fiscal health for Alaska and Alaskans.

The highly partisan nature of goings-on in the Capitol, along with an increasingly hostile divide between the Senate and House, are real additional problems that demand real solutions.

Summer is short, and there is much fun to be had. But by taking a few minutes to phone, write or e-mail those who represent you to let them know how you feel, the seeds of a better legislative session in January might be planted.