Candidate responds to criticisms

It gave me pleasure to read Todd Smolden’s Spectrum Piece on November 6th, and as a local candidate, I believe it is part of the job to be able to respond publicly to criticisms. I have been talking about the issues that I believe in for a long time and would have loved to have had several discussions about them publicly with my opponent, David Eastman. It is unfortunate, however, that he has only recently begun attending candidate events and forums; but he only speaks in circles around the questions. I am often left with uncertainty about his positions on anything, except that he will say “yes” to special interests, both in and out of the state.

On $15/hour Minimum Wage

Todd is correct when he says I support a minimum wage of $15/hour. He is wrong, however, about the results of this proposal on small businesses, as well its ability to affect the economy and the quality of life for our people. With regard to small businesses, areas which have advanced the $15 minimum wage also have often created exemptions for businesses with under 500 people. Also, I believe we need common-sense regulations so that small and local businesses can effectively compete with multi-billion dollar out-of-state corporations. In order to have reasonable dialog about this, we need to leave behind much of the inflammatory rhetoric and have a discussion.

It is a reality today that many Alaskans are working for inadequate wages. No person who is working a full-time job should have to live in poverty. The current federal minimum wage is a starvation wage and must become a living wage if we are to hold together the fabric of our society. Alaska is above the federal minimum wage already because the cost of living is so much higher here to begin with - although it is important to point out that minors, university students, agricultural and domestic staff are all exempt from this. We need to work towards raising that to $15/hour in the next few years and index it to inflation. This will not happen overnight and it should be transitioned in. This is good for our people and good for economy. People who barely make enough to survive don’t spend money on services or goods, the sale of which is necessary for the survival of small businesses.

Seattle is in the process of its transition to $15/h, and despite all of the same criticism, economic growth in the city has been nearly triple what we have seen nationally. What we saw was counter to everything we were told would happen. Unemployment went down, local businesses thrived with less competition, food stamp usage decreased, and the difference in price was negligible. A 2.5% price hike on food, for example, meant that your Big Mac became just 10 cents more expensive. Worth it to know that those on the other side of the counter could save for their future? I say yes.

California; New York City, NY; Missoula, MT; San Marcos, TX; Pittsburgh, PA; and Massachusetts have all made the leap to higher minimum wages and are not struggling, they are thriving.

There persists a myth about who exactly earns minimum wage in this country. Far from just the unskilled students and those without experience, it's people trying to make ends meet and working sometimes two or three jobs to keep themselves and family in housed, clothed and with food on the table.

On “Big Oil”

Our legislature has been ruled by one party for way too long -- and their super-majority has not gotten anything done. When either party holds a super-majority it is not good for society as a whole. We need balance and for our legislature to understand how to have adult conversations about the tough issues that face Alaska.

The current crowd singing the anthem of small government and cuts, like my opponent, are not in it for Alaskans who want viable public schools and decency for our citizens. They do not support those of us who recognize that satellite university campuses, like Mat-Su College, are not something “nice” to have, but are necessities for our future and are job creators in their own right. My opponent stated at the Mat-Su College Candidate Forum that he would consider closing Mat-Su College to balance the budget. Many voters in our district got their education at Mat-Su College and have built their careers here as a result.

Todd has asserted that I fail to understand the role and benefit of the oil industry in Alaska.

I, and most Alaskans, understand it all too well. Todd is however quite correct when he states that I believe big oil is not paying its fair share, especially after SB21 was passed. In 2012, before SB 21, we were taxing oil net revenue at 35%. Now remember this is the amount of profit the oil companies self-declare that they have made AFTER taking 55,000 lines of deductions which the State of Alaska has never audited. In 2015, after SB 21 passed, that oil net revenue tax rate fell to 8%. In addition, SB 21 included a provision where they will not pay any tax on new oil produced until the price of oil goes above $70/barrel. Let that sink in. They will pay no tax on new oil produced until oil gets over $70/barrel. Oil has been under $55/barrel since July 2015. I don’t know where oil companies can produce with the kinds of governmental subsidies and tax breaks that they get here. I think people are tired of it -- big oil has not significantly increased the oil production nor the number of in-state jobs that were promised before SB 21 was passed. This has played a large role in our current budget deficit.

My opponent’s only comment in a recent debate on KTNA about what to do to lower the cost of energy in our state was that we should attack EPA regulations and give the multinational oil industry more leeway in environmental matters related to refineries. I think there are more than a few people who don’t want that. More than a few who remember the result of the Exxon Valdez spill and how the oil company there dragged that out for decades while many of the originally injured plaintiffs died. And in interior Alaska the sulfolane spill at the Flint Hills refinery resulted in the contamination of well water for many residents of North Pole with no hope of the spill being cleaned up or contained. I think people are tired of that too.

We need to begin a transition to new sources of energy and the new economies and jobs that will come with it. We cannot make this transition by electing tea party loyalists backed by big oil and outside interests like ALEC and the Koch Brothers to our legislature.

We have basically given big oil everything they have wanted for years. Too many in our state legislature are already their puppets, and we as Alaskans can’t afford this any more. We need to elect people with the best interests of our people at heart not huge multinational corporations. We need to elect people who will support infrastructure and education and transform our energy grid to community-scaled renewables. That’s investment in our people. That’s investment in our state. We need that investment now more than ever. We need to develop business and industry in all of district 10. We must diversify so that we are not wholly dependent on big oil’s boom and bust cycle for the wellbeing of our state.

On Unions

On the subject of working people, it is far too easy to forget the role of unions in the history of working rights in this country and in this state. Unions were there for us when we needed to fight for things like taking weekends off, vacation time, or creating a 40 hour work week. I could not imagine anything more quintessentially American than being able to work together to improve the wellbeing of our lives. As we move forward there will undoubtedly be other quality of life and human rights issues that we need to fight for in the workplace. The ability of workers to organize is an important mechanism to achieve these victories.

Now, more than ever, we need people in office who are known quantities, who are clear on the issues and that are willing to speak truth to power. That said, if elected my job will be to seek out and reflect the will of the people in District 10 -- all of them. I welcome questions, constructive criticism, critique, and debate. These are the fundamental issues that must be addressed and dealt with -- we can’t continue to shy away from conversations like this. As we move forward reasonable people from both major parties must be able to work together. If elected, I look forward to this kind of collaboration in the best interest of District 10.