Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I encourage everyone to join me downtown today for the Inauguration of our new Mayor, Ethan Berkowitz. The Inauguration will be at the Anchorage Towne Square (544 W 5th Ave) from 4pm to 7pm. I look forward to working with the new Municipal Administration on issues effecting Anchorage, specifically the Turnagain, Spenard, and Sand Lake communities.

Supreme Court Decisions

I am sure many of you have read about the recent Supreme Court rulings. Three of these rulings directly impact Alaska.

Affordable Care Act:

Last Thursday, the Supreme Court upheld a key part of the Affordable Care Act that provides health insurance subsidies to qualifying Americans. In considering the health-care law, the Court was asked to interpret a passage that authorized tax credits for those who buy insurance on marketplaces that are “established by the state.” The Affordable Care Act also authorized federal exchanges for states, like Alaska, that did not set up their own marketplaces. The Court ruling means that thousands of Alaskans who receive tax credits from the federal government and have health insurance through the federal marketplace will continue to receive subsidies and continue to receive access to affordable healthcare. The Court’s decision provides further support for Governor Walker to accept Medicaid expansion.

Same-Sex Marriage:

On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled that “same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry in all states.” Before this ruling, individuals were treated differently depending on how a particular state defined marriage. For example, before the Supreme Court ruling, a same-sex marriage recognized in Alaska would not be recognized in Texas and those individuals were not protected equally. The concluding paragraph from the Supreme Court’s written reflects the law of the land regarding same-sex marriage:

“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.” 

Environmental Protection Agency:

On Monday, the Supreme Court struck down an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation meant to limit emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from coal-fired power plants. The Clean Air Act required the regulation to be “appropriate and necessary.” Industry groups and 20 states, including Alaska, challenged the EPA regulation because it did not require the EPA to include a cost-benefit analysis. The Supreme Court decided “It is not rational, never mind ‘appropriate,’ to impose billions of dollars in economic costs in return for a few dollars in health or environmental benefits.” The decision now requires the EPA to perform a cost-benefit analysis when it proposes air quality regulations for power plants.

All three decisions will have impacts in Alaska and throughout our great Nation.

Summer Activities

As always, please let us know if you have suggestions or concerns.

    Rep. Matt Claman

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