Politics

Parnell, Walker tangle over how to trim Alaska's budget

With the state facing a massive deficit as oil prices have dropped, the leading gubernatorial candidates offered areas for possible savings on Wednesday night, with independent Bill Walker saying he'd start by hunting for reductions in the Department of Natural Resources.

Meanwhile, Republican Gov. Sean Parnell said he would introduce a budget next year that is hundreds of millions of dollars lower than this year's, and that spending on Medicaid needs to be reined in.

Parnell said the Medicaid Reform Advisory Group he created -- it met Wednesday in Anchorage -- is working to find reductions to make the program more sustainable.

Asked where he'd seek cuts, Walker said at the Alaska Public Media debate he'd first first look at DNR, which seems to have "grown exponentially" over recent years.

The agency may have regulatory functions that are duplicated elsewhere in state government, offering a possible chance to consolidate services, he said.

Parnell pointed out that he had put more people into DNR to make sure backlogged permits can be processed more quickly so companies don't need to wait years to begin projects.

Walker also said he'd look for reductions in some of the high wages at the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. The agency is working on two gas line projects, a smaller-volume line and the mega-LNG project that combines the state, three major oil companies and pipeline builder TransCanada.

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Parnell said he'd focus on two areas if he's elected and has the chance to make another State of the State speech early next year: getting a gas line built and providing career and technical education for young people so they can be ready for what he said would be 125,000 new jobs that Alaska can expect to see in the next eight years.

Walker said he's an optimistic person, but that he'd discuss the deficit if he's the one delivering the State of the State, because not doing so leads to wasteful spending. He said he'd also talk about how the state will build its way out of that deficit.

One area where the two candidates agreed was in obtaining additional drug-sniffing dogs to help stop the flow of methamphetamine, black tar heroin and other illegal substances into Alaska communities.

Alex DeMarban

Alex DeMarban is a longtime Alaska journalist who covers business, the oil and gas industries and general assignments. Reach him at 907-257-4317 or alex@adn.com.

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