Conference Committee Formed to Negotiate Alaska State Budget
On January 23, 2025, Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage, was appointed chair of a newly formed conference committee responsible for finalizing Alaska’s state budget ahead of the legislative session’s conclusion next week. The committee consists of six members: 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. The first meeting, held Tuesday afternoon, lasted only a few minutes, setting the stage for ongoing negotiations. Hoffman will serve as vice chair.
The committee’s main goal is to address the nearly 400 discrepancies between the House and Senate’s budget proposals. Stedman indicated that the aim is to produce a balanced budget by adjournment night. One primary point of contention is the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend. The House’s plan proposes a $1,400 payment to all eligible Alaskans, resulting in a projected $450 million deficit over two fiscal years. Conversely, the Senate’s version reduces the dividend to $1,000 and incorporates significant cuts to agency spending in an attempt to mitigate the deficit.
In addition to the dividend debate, Stedman emphasized the necessity of including funds for fire risk mitigation in the budget. “We’d like to have funds available for the emergencies that come up,” he noted. Many of the differences between the House and Senate proposals are minor, reflecting the effort to streamline the budget in light of limited revenue, which has constrained the ability to fund projects beyond basic agency operations.
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