In the upcoming state legislative session in Juneau, Mayor Ethan Berkowitz and members of the Anchorage Assembly plan to push almost exclusively for changes in state law rather than money for local construction projects — an ongoing strategic shift that comes as the state grapples with a huge budget deficit.
The proposals by Berkowitz, a former legislator himself, were presented to the Assembly in a Friday meeting. They range from lifting a cap on the amount the city can collect as a surcharge on 911 calls to a new program for sharing the state's oil wealth with local governments.
Assembly members said they were working on their own suggestions. Assemblyman Bill Evans said Friday he plans to petition for a change in state law that would help encourage ride-booking companies like Uber to operate in Anchorage.
Requests for money, meanwhile, were unchanged, with the Port of Anchorage listed for the second year in a row as the only capital project needing state assistance. Since he took office, Berkowitz has said the city should take more responsibility for paying for local projects.
Anchorage's mayor and Assembly typically submit an annual "wish list" of funding requests to the Legislature. In the past, it's been dominated by construction projects, such as money for a Midtown transit center. In Mayor Dan Sullivan's last year in office, the packet numbered more than 60 pages, mostly dedicated to construction projects. Three pages were dedicated to requests for legislation.
Under Berkowitz, the document is spare, balanced equally between funding requests and legislative concerns. Officials want $298 million for what they say are urgent repairs to the port and its corroding docks that are unlikely to survive a big earthquake. State spending is justified, they said, because the entire state benefits from the port.
Assembly members said Friday they wanted to push for a statewide general obligation bond package for the 2018 ballot that would finance construction projects.
"It's the only way to save the construction industry in this state," Assemblyman Eric Croft said Friday.
Beyond that, Berkowitz and the Assembly will mainly be seeking legislation to favor Anchorage, or local government more broadly.
Here are some of the other "asks" to the Legislature this year:
* A new "community dividend" program to take the place of state revenue sharing, the trickle down of oil money to local governments. Payments to local governments have dropped sharply with the decline in oil prices.
* An amendment to the state's criminal justice reform bill, Senate Bill 91, to allow local governments to set traffic fines. Anchorage officials say the passage of the bill has forced the city to lower some fines to align with the state.
* An agreement that the city and the state will share information about marijuana taxes. That's already the case with tobacco and rental vehicle taxes, and helps with enforcement, city officials say.
* A change in state law to allow the city to publish its real estate foreclosure list online rather than in a newspaper. Officials say the change would save money and allow documents to be listed in one place.
* State law changes to allow the city more local control over managing property tax exemptions.
Some proposals that weren't successful last year are appearing again:
* New incentives for community development, such as a tax incentive program modeled after one in Tacoma, Washington, that gives tax exemptions to multi-family housing projects.
* The removal of a state requirement for the city to offer property tax exemptions for buildings with sprinklers, which city officials have pointed out is already legally required.
By next week, Assembly members planned to submit other proposals related to property tax exemptions and the 2016 criminal justice reform bill.
Evans said he would work on a request to grant Uber and other ride-booking companies an exemption that treats drivers as independent contractors, a key element of Uber's business model. Taxi companies already have the exemption, Evans said, allowing them to avoid paying benefits like health insurance to drivers. Evans is a proponent of deregulating the local cab industry and paving the way for companies like Uber to operate.
There was also talk among Assembly members and city attorney Bill Falsey about a looming gap in police coverage for a stretch of the Seward Highway, but no consensus about what to do. The Alaska State Troopers plan to draw down patrols of the area starting in early 2017, which could lead to extensive highway closures after big accidents.
Just before the meeting adjourned, Assemblyman Pete Petersen relayed a question he'd received from the Scenic Foothills Community Council about the city pushing for $298 million for the Port of Anchorage as its top legislative priority.
Someone at the meeting asked, "The chances of that happening are really slim, so what's the backup plan?" Petersen said.
Assemblyman Forrest Dunbar said it's not on the city to come up with a contingency plan. He repeated an argument made by city officials that the health of the Port of Anchorage is a statewide issue.
Ona Brause, Berkowitz's deputy chief of staff, told the Assembly members the city wasn't relying solely on the legislative request.
"We're turning over every rock we can to find money wherever it's available," Brause said. "It's not the only hope out there."
Port officials said Friday that federal grant funding is also being sought in case the state money doesn't come through.