Houston candidates share their views

HOUSTON -- With no incumbent to campaign against, the focus of the candidates during a Frontiersman-sponsored candidate forum held Thursday at Houston High School was primarily on Mark Neuman, the only candidate affiliated with a political party on the ballot for that district.

Although Independent candidate Myrl Thompson and petition-nominated candidate Doyle Holmes often teamed up against Neuman in giving their answers, there were a few points on which all three candidates agreed.

The candidates were unanimously against the governor's proposed Percent of Market Value method of handling the permanent fund. Neuman said he did not support the proposal when he was at the Conference of Alaskans, held this spring in Fairbanks.

"I do not support spending the PFD on government spending," Neuman said.

Holmes said he believes the POMV plan is "a rip-off," which would put the permanent fund in jeopardy.

"Leaving that money in the hands of the legislature is not a good idea at all," Holmes said.

Thompson said he, too, believes the PFD should be protected and preserved for future Alaskans -- it's a boost to the economy, he said.

When asked to discuss ways to solve the fiscal gap, however, the candidates had differing views. While Holmes and Neuman disagreed that the state had a fiscal problem, Thompson proposed a number of changes. An adjustment to ELF, or the economic limit factor formula used to determine the amount of severance tax the state should receive from oil production, is one change Thompson suggested, and moving forward on the natural gas pipeline was another. Neither, he said, would be immediate fixes for the state's economy.

Neuman said he doesn't believe the state is facing a fiscal gap -- there are plenty of factors working in the state's favor, he said, including the recent record-high oil prices.

"Our state does not face a fiscal gap -- we're doing okay," Neuman said.

Holmes said he, too, saw no fiscal problems in the state.

"This fiscal gap thing is a paper myth that the Daily News figured out," Holmes said. "We've been bankrupt for the last 18 years, according to the Daily News. I don't believe we have a fiscal problem."

Holmes said he believes the higher oil prices over the past several months will generate $3 billion for the state's economy. He'd like to see it go into paying off state debts, he said.

Su-Valley High School students Evan Turstidge and Des Besgrove, who participated as panel members at the forum, followed with a more pointed question.

"If the state has more money from higher oil prices, why have some schools had their budgets cut in half?" Besgrove asked.

"The revenue-sharing program has been reduced to nothing," Neuman said, adding that the reduction means more money for schools must come from property taxes generated by local governments -- governments that don't get royalties from oil production. Until revenue-sharing is restored, funding schools will be difficult.

"I don't believe the local school budgets have been cut in half," Holmes said. While on the assembly, he said, he saw budgetary increases from the school district each year. The problem with the school budget, he said, is that education spending is not currently given to districts in an allocated form, with a certain amount to go for books and supplies and another set amount for salaries or retirement.

Thompson said the funding difficulty is attributable to growth, and from a disparity in the amount it costs to send a student to school versus the amount a family pays in property taxes toward education. More money must be generated to offset that disparity, Thompson said.

All three candidates expressed support for the Knik-Arm Bridge, and said it would boost other economic development projects within the borough. But another issue where candidates expressed their differences was in discussing their opinion of Proposition 2, an initiative to decriminalize and regulate marijuana.

Holmes said he supports the initiative -- he said he's tired of seeing families disrupted by pot-related offenses, and believes other lawbreakers, such as murderers and rapists, are more deserving of time behind bars.

"It's not about pot -- it's not about any of that," Holmes said. "It's about the fact that the issue has destroyed a lot of people's lives … If you read the initiative, it doesn't make it legal. It removes the penalties. I think it's time we change the way we deal with pot."

Thompson initially said it was a matter for the voters to decide, but later said he, personally, would like to see it decriminalized, for reasons similar to Holmes'. Neuman said "No way."

"I do not support Proposition 2 -- I think the people who grow marijuana are not going to register with the government so they can be taxed on it," Neuman said.

Perhaps the biggest battle among the three candidates, however, came down to where they got their support. While Thompson and Holmes challenged Neuman's list of campaign donors, Neuman fought back with claims their lack of a party affiliation would mean their representation would be ineffectual. Each candidate listed reasons his opponent's claims were unfounded.

"In a 19-20 split [between the Republican and Democrat members of the House], with me being the odd man in or out, I'd be in one of the most powerful seats in Juneau," Thompson said.

Holmes said his experience would carry him through.

"I would write [legislation] and I would try to make sure it was fair -- and I would talk on it till my jaw wore out," Holmes said of his tenure on the assembly. In the Legislature, he said, he'd take a similar approach. "I'd play 'Let's Make a Deal,' as long as it benefits the public, and not special interest groups."

Neuman said he's the candidate in the best position to represent the district.

"I'm the person who has the connections to get committee assignments," Neuman said. "The committee chairman has control over which legislation gets voted on or even introduced -- if that law never gets a reading … you're never going to vote on it."

Contact Rindi White at rindi.white@frontiersman.com.