Spectrum

Since leaving the leadership in the House I have hoped to see some changes. While I can report there are some within the leadership caucus who are looking more seriously at a conservative direction, there are others who seem determined to run the Republican wagon over the cliff.

The same elected officials who designed and then pushed to spend part of the PFD plan through the Legislature last session, are back with a new, but just as flawed plan (HB-411) that intends to freeze the permanent fund dividend, change the management of the permanent fund to reflect earnings based on market, instead of a five-year average, and hot-wire permanent fund earnings around the people and the Legislature directly into the general fund on a formula basis.

Hearings on that plan, sponsored by Reps. Gail Phillips, R-Homer, and Bill Hudson, R-Juneau, were taking place recently in House State Affairs, which is chaired by Rep. Jeannette James, R-North Pole.

Another plan advanced by Sen. Jerry Mackie (in SJR-33) would pay out $25,000 to Alaskans for the right to spend the remaining windfall on government. This amounts to asking Alaskans to sell their childrens inheritance for 50 cents on the dollar.

In other words if the fund were liquidated, all Alaskans would receive approximately $50,000. Sen. Mackies plan offers only half the amount, or $25,000. It is bad for both the old and the young.

Hearings on the Mackie plan were in progress earlier this week in the House Judiciary Committee, which is chaired by Rep. Pete Kott, R-Eagle River.

Recently our new conservative Republican caucus, invited Gov. [Jay] Hammond and Oral Freeman to speak to us about the permanent fund. Both unequivocally affirmed that the fears of the Fund founders have now come to pass, that is, some in the Legislature leadership now consider the PFD theirs to tinker with.

Both Gov. Hammond and former Rep. Freeman also emphasized that until the leadership reestablishes the public trust that has been broken, any discussion about its use for government is political suicide.

I totally agree. Without public trust there can be no budget solution. The bills that our conservative caucus and Sen. [Lyda] Green introduced to prevent legislative raids on the PFD, HJR-59 & SJR-28, are a first in reestablishing that trust.

Needless to say, those who want to have access to your PFD are doing their best to kill the measures. Mr. Freeman stressed that such protection could help to bring about greater trust.

That brings me to the question, why is the House leadership still allowing the two or three legislators who designed a ballot question that suffered the worst public defeat in history at the polls still being allowed to champion tampering again with the fund and now talking an income tax?

I am sorry to say I do know. But I can guarantee you that as long as they are directing the choir in the House caucus, I will not be singing.

Rep. Scott Ogan is a Palmer Republican who represents District 27 in the Alaska House of Representatives.