Juneau – The Democrats in the Alaska House of Representatives will meet as soon as possible to deliberate on Governor Walker’s choice of Ivy Spohnholz to replace the late Representative Max Gruenberg as the Representative for House District 16.
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Juneau – Today, Representatives Chris Tuck (D-Anchorage) and Adam Wool (D-Fairbanks) called on the Alaska Legislative Council to get approval from the full Alaska Legislature before continuing to fund the failed lawsuit challenging the expansion of healthcare options for thousands of Alaskans.
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Juneau – Today, the Alaska House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 23 by a vote of 36-0. The bill, sponsored by Senator Johnny Ellis (D-Anchorage), passed the Alaska Senate last year by a vote of 19-1.
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Juneau - Today, Superior Court Judge Frank Pfiffner issued a ruling in the case brought by the Alaska Legislative Council against Alaska Governor Bill Walker over his decision last year to expand Medicaid without legislative approval. Judge Pfiffner found that the Social Security Act requires Medicaid expansion, and that existing state law required Governor Walker to provide Medicaid to the group of Alaskans eligible for expansion. In his 26-page ruling, Judge Pfiffner granted the Governor’s motion for summary judgement and dismissed the case brought by the Alaska Legislative Council, which is made up of ten members of the Alaska Legislature.
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I was disappointed that on Wednesday, my colleagues, with the exception of Rep. Andy Josephson, on the University budget subcommittee voted for devastating cuts to the University of Alaska budget. These cuts could cost hundreds of jobs and have a drastic effect on our economy. I supported an amendment from my colleague Rep. Josephson to bring funding back to the governor’s requested level and I introduced amendments to restore funding for research, the Museum of the North, and the University Fire Department. Unfortunately Rep. Josephson and I were outvoted on all these amendments. I also spoke about how in tough economic times, it’s especially important to make sure we are supporting our University.
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