Governor pushes new funding for public safety, infrastructure in budget released last week

More state troopers, more village public safety officers, more state criminal prosecutors and more equipment for law enforcement officers. It’s all part of Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposed state budget for next year.

The governor released his spending plan last Wednesday, Dec. 15, that puts dollars in a major new state public safety initiative also announced last week. Dunleavy also proposes a large Permanent Fund Dividend in 2022.

With the state’s coffers flush with higher oil revenues and federal aid, Dunleavy is proposing, for public safety, $2.9 million for more village public safety officers; $5.1 million for new police equipment; $1 million for additional prison guards and support, and $1.8 million for the state court system to resume a five-day work week and audio-visual equipment for jury trials.

There’s also $1.4 million to expand capacity at Hiland Correctional Center in Eagle River.

Although overall crime is down certain offenses like sexual assaults and abuse are up, and the governor wants that stopped particularly in rural Alaska. Dunleavy’s budget has $6.3 million for domestic violence and sexual assault prevention programs.

The governor also laid out an ambitious program for infrastructure. As he did last year the governor is proposing a large capital projects bond program. It would total $310 million as proposed including $175 million for Knik Arm port improvements.

However, it isn’t yet clear which, or possibly both, of two ports on Knik Arm would receive the money, the Port MacKenzie port in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough or the Port of Anchorage.

Both ports sit on Knik Arm across from each other. Both need money, Port MacKenzie for expansion and the Port of Anchorage for badly-needed reconstruction.

The proposed bond issue also includes $25 million to restart the “Juneau Access Project,” a plan for a road connecting the capital city with a proposed terminal on upper Lynn Canal that could shuttle vehicles to nearby Haines and Skagway. Both communities have year-around highway access.

The full list of projects to be in the bond proposal has not yet been released but it will undergo substantial changes in the Legislature, as happened to the governor’s capital projetcs bond plan put forth in the 2021 legislative session.

In the end the Legislature opted not to bond for projects and instead funded several with conventional capital appropriations. Some of this was vetoed by Dunleavy, however.

Funding for badly-needed repairs to student dormitories at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the university’s top capital priority, was red-lined by the governor. It is back this year at $18.5 million as part of the bond package.

The governor is also proposing funding of a list of rural school capital and major maintenance projects and $54.9 million to replace the Napakiak school, which is threated by erosion from the Kuskokwim River.

Among Mat-Su projects, the regular capital spending plan includes $6.9 million for maintenance at the Palmer wastewater treatment plant while the bond package includes $6.5 million for taxiway construction at Palmer’s municipal airport.

State support for school districts through the school foundation program are also maintained by the governor, although there is no provision to offset inflation that is now eating into school budgets.

Full funding for school bond debt reimbursement is also included. This would benefit municipal school districts, like in Mat-Su, where bonds were issued to build new schools. In recent years these have only been partly-funded.

The rural Power Cost Equalization program, which supports residential electric service in small communities, is fully funded. The budget also has $17 million for upgrades of rural utility power systems and $5.5 million for upgrades of bulk fuel plants, which are mainly in small communities.

The governor’s plan also includes $2.5 million to the state’s Alaska Energy Authority to improve power transmission and system reliability along the Interior-Southcentral “railbelt” grid.

As expected, the spending includes large Permanent Fund Dividends both for 2022 and a supplemental payment for the 2022 PFD, with a combined cost of $2.495 billion. Dunleavy, who is running for reelection, hopes to persuade the Legislature to fund the larger dividends this year after having been unsuccessful last year.

In total, the plan would spend $10.88 billion in combined state and federal funds in Fiscal Year 2022, which begins next July, according to figures from the state Office of Management and Budget. This is down from $12.64 billion in all funds being spent in the current budget year, FY 2021, which ends next June 30.

“The budget is more than a collection of numbers and financial data, it reflects both the values and aspirations of the Alaskans it was created for,” he said.

“Keeping Alaskans safe, educating our children for the challenges ahead, developing infrastructure and creating jobs are the policy goals built into the spending plan,” Dunleavy said in a statement.