When it comes to Gov. Bill Walker's proposal to use the Permanent Fund as an endowment to fund government, we, the public, cannot just offer the typical knee-jerk reaction, "Don't touch the PFD." We must now use the wealth the state has accumulated to stabilize our future, avoid an immediate out-migration and a deep recession. We must let our elected leaders know we won't kill them at the polls (in the not too distant election) if they venture in, thoroughly vet the proposal, and bring this idea to fruition. It is time.
We need courageous leadership this legislative session to move forward to fiscal stability. Just because an election is coming up is no excuse to kick the can down the road, stick one's head in a hole and avoid doing something big. Think big.
I hope to see a robust discussion on the governor's endowment proposal -- and all other potential revenue streams and budget cuts this session. I hope other Alaskans will join me in tuning in to the televised sessions. I will be watching to see if our elected leaders stand up for Alaskans and face this crisis.
I can say Gov. Bill Walker has reached out in many forums to engage the public in the fiscal discussion, and I think his endowment proposal is brilliant. Now, the ball is in the legislative court.
To address the future, we must get some answers in review of the recent past and ask, "Alaska has been flush with money for years. What happened?"
Three bad things have happened: (1) the 2013 passage of Senate Bill 21, (2) the $14 million defeat of its repeal in 2014 and (3) the crash of oil prices.
Two good things have happened: (1) the defeat of a too-friendly-with-the-oilies Gov. Sean Parnell, 2) the election of a true Alaskan, Gov. Walker. But these only got the problem halfway fixed; now we must watch the incumbents in Alaska's House and Senate this session and see if they act in the state's best interests before discussion of the next election.
At the very least, the public deserves some discussion on the passage of SB21. It must be asked of incumbents who voted 'yes' on SB21: What were you thinking? Why were you so generous with the oil industry? Why weren't you willing to just amend ACES? And most importantly, what are you going to do differently to fix things? A 'yes' on SB21 in and of itself does not make any incumbent a bad leader. But their answers to the question "What were you thinking?" are important.
Alaskans, get an explanation, and move on.
Right now, as we head into Session 29, we can observe and hope for leadership to emerge. Will glowing leadership emerge and rise to the occasion? Will our elected officials work in earnest with the governor on the divisive fiscal issues facing us? Or, will the GOP majority choose to obstruct and ignore the governor -- like they did last session with Medicaid expansion? Will they simply table any real work and drag their feet to avoid the hard issues because of the upcoming election? Will others in the body stand about quietly, putting up with this kind of arrogant political gamesmanship? Only time will tell. I'll take good notes.
If small minds and personal political agendas are allowed to prevail in the upcoming session, the loud sucking sound of a leadership vacuum will only get louder.
It's a leadership challenge. Stay tuned, Session 29 promises to be a good one.
Tara Jollie is a retired deputy commissioner of the Alaska Department of Labor, director of Division of Community and Regional Affairs, Department of Commerce and a longtime state employee. She is now retired and blogs on current affairs under the nickname "LeadDog" at LeaddogAlaska.net, where this commentary first appeared.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, e-mail commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com