Photos: Conference on Alaska's future

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Attendees at Building a Sustainable Future: Conversations with Alaskans applaud after opening remarks by Gov. Bill Walker at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Wood Center on Friday, June 5, 2015.

FAIRBANKS -- For 35 years, former state Sen. Rick Halford said, Alaskans haven't worried much about how to pay for state government.

But that has to change, he told more than 200 Alaskans who gathered at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Friday night at the opening of a three-day event to discuss how Alaska can deal with a new era of reduced revenue brought on by long-term oil production declines and a more drastic drop in oil prices since last fall.

"We've spent the last 35 years often ordering at wonderful restaurants with no prices on the menu," said Halford, who co-chaired the transition team for Gov. Bill Walker and Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott with Ana Hoffman. "Today, we're not just asking people what do they want, but we have to ask, 'What are you willing to pay for?'"

"That's obviously where we're going," he said.

Read more: State leaders convene dialogue on Alaska's future in Fairbanks