The legislature of all symbol and no substance

Frontiersman Editorial Board

The 2003 Alaska Legislature may be remembered as the No Deal government. Democrats wouldn't let go of their demand to constitutionally protect the Permanent Fund, and Republicans resorted to some money shuffling to skate around the rule that requires a three-quarters majority vote to dip into the budget reserve to pay for state government.

Legislators left much on the table this session and, in doing so, handed Gov. Frank Murkowski the budget-cutting machete.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing about this year's session was the remarkable rash of symbolic bills and resolutions passed at the eleventh hour. This session had more symbols than an international percussion festival. One resolution that received loud hurrahs from the chamber was centered on taking pesky meddlers like California's Senator Barbara Boxer to task. Boxer has expended much energy to block oil exploration in Alaska. Our legislature responded by drafting a resolution that recommends returning ethanol-producing corn fields in the Lower 48 to their natural state. California is a leading ethanol producer. That'll teach Boxer. Of course, it won't help solve Alaska's economic woes.

In a bold move that even drew praise from the Alaska Civil Liberties Union, the legislature bravely passed another resolution that tells the federal government what it can do with its USA Patriot act. The resolution, like many others that have been drafted around the country, basically forbids Alaska law enforcement officials from enforcing parts of the federal act that infringe upon individual rights. It's a powerful message, we suppose. Of course, budget constraints have reduced our law enforcement forces to the point that they're barely able to keep up with the real laws, so it's not likely Alaska police were going to spend a lot of time spying on people, anyway. Of course, we should also remember that federal law trumps state and local law.

In a legislature that didn't have the courage or the wherewithal to tackle the budget crisis in a meaningful way, these meaningless chest-thumping resolutions should be the source of great embarrassment rather than pride. The legislature failed to present a plan to grow revenue and cut expenses, and they've now left the dirty deed to a governor who will be only too happy to slice away at programs that he deems non-essential.

Murkowski will end up taking much heat for the trimming he'll do, but the legislature should not be let off the hook. No doubt many legislators are already thinking about ways to blame one another for the consequences of their inaction. They'll take the governor to task, as well. But, we shouldn't forget that they had their chance, and they left it on the table under the governor's knife.