Alaska Legislature forms conference committee for final budget negotiations
The committee is charged with working out differences between the House and Senate versions of the budget.
Members of the committee include Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel; Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka; Sen. James Kaufman, R-Anchorage; Rep. Calvin Schrage, I-Anchorage; Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage; and Rep. DeLena Johnson, R-Palmer.
Josephson was named chair of the conference committee during its first meeting Tuesday afternoon, which lasted only a few minutes. Hoffman was named vice chair. The committee is expected to meet regularly until a final budget draft is completed.
"We have a little less than 400 differences to work out," Stedman said. "So we're going to work those out, and the prediction is we will have balanced budget on adjournment night."
Among the differences is the size of the Permanent Fund dividend. The House last month adopted a plan that includes a $1,400 payment to every eligible Alaskan and a $450 million deficit over two fiscal years. The Senate, in an effort to avoid the massive deficit, then reduced the dividend size to $1,000 and made significant cuts to agency spending.
Stedman said the concerns to be addressed by the conference committee include an effort to ensure that the budget includes funds for fire risk mitigation.
"We'd like to have funds available for the emergencies that come up," said Stedman.
Many of the differences between the House and Senate budget meetings are "small," Stedman said, after lawmakers pared down the budget in the face of limited revenue, leaving little room for projects and additions outside status-quo agency operations.
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