Rep. Mike Doogan in Juneau - Legislative Newsletter

A heady brew of fear, philosophy and political pressure carried Gov. Sean Parnell’s oil tax giveaway bill, HB 110, to a narrow 22-16 victory in the state House on Thursday.

No one was less surprised than me.

The fear comes mainly from people who make money from the oil patch. Even though there are more oil jobs than there were before the current tax system began, people say they are convinced that tax system is squeezing them. They have no proof. Just fear.

The philosophy is what Parnell, pressed for proof that the giveback would do anything but enrich certain oil companies, called “common sense.” Apparently, it is “common sense” to hand out a couple of billion dollars a year without any guarantee that the money will do anything but fatten the oil companies’ bank accounts.

The political pressure comes from the oil patch and what would have been called, in a more colorful time, their running dogs. They stuffed my email box with cookie cutter messages, rallied in various very public places and generally behaved like a pressure group should.

Thursday, it worked.

I voted against the bill. Why?

Here’s what I said before the vote on the House floor:

“This bill takes a lot of money—and I mean a LOT of money—from the state treasury and gives it to the oil industry. It does NOT require the oil industry to do anything in return. And it goes on forever. I cannot vote for this bill. I will not vote for this bill.”

The bill now moves to the Senate, which has been acting more like people who want proof before passing a couple of billion a year to the oil companies.

But that could change in a heartbeat.

Now that the House of Representatives has sent HB 110 on its merry way to be worked on (or not) by the Senate, you may be asking yourself—well now what are you doing? On Day 74 of the legislative session, that’s a good question. (Especially since the legislature has collectively passed only one bill so far this year that the governor has signed into law.)

In the House Finance Committee, it’s full speed ahead with a bunch of bills that stacked up during the three weeks of hearings on HB 110. Here’s a list of what we had on our plate this week, in no particular order:

· HB 8 – Federal Regulations & Executive Orders

· HB 10 – Non-commercial Trailer Registration Fee

· HB 64 – Permanent Motor Vehicle Registration

· HB 105 – Southeast State Forest

· HB 140 – Appropriation: Community Quota Loan Fund

· HB 141 – Loans to Community Quota Entities/Permits

· HB 164 – Insurance: Health Care and Other

· HB 103 – Power Project: Alaska Energy Authority

· HB 104 – Alaska Performance Scholarships

· HB 120 – AIDEA: New Markets Tax Credit Program

· HB 121 – Loan Funds: Charters/Mariculture/Microloan

· HB 125 – Alcoholic Beverage Control Board

· HB 150 – Protection of Vulnerable Adults/Minors

· HB 78 – Incentives for Certain Medical Providers

· HB 127 – Crimes Involving Minors/Stalking/Info

· HB 175 – Court Appearances: Arson, Infractions

· HB 203 – In-State Natural Gas Pipeline Fund

Next week we’ll have a whole new slate of bills—good, bad and ugly—on the schedule. So, if you need me sometime in the next 16 days, you’ll most likely find me in Room 519 of the Capitol studying bills and their fiscal impacts—it is the Finance Committee, after all. Hopefully by April 17, we’ll have something to show for our time here in Juneau.

Or, at least, maybe we’ll leave here without doing too much damage.

If you saw me walking around the Capitol on Wednesday morning you might have wondered why I had that confused expression on my face. Don’t worry, I didn’t walk into a door. I was just trying to process an experience I’m not too familiar with – one of my bills moved out of a committee. Now I don’t offer a ton of bills, so that reduces my odds a bit, but you might also be surprised to hear that Democratic bills aren’t normally fast-tracked through the House.

HB 15 has a few things going for it, though. For one, it will help keep kids from getting serious brain injuries while playing sports. For another, it won’t cost the state a dime. If it actually becomes law, the bill will simply make sure parents, coaches and student athletes understand what a concussion is and what you ought to do if you get one. It will require that kids with suspected concussions be taken out of the game, and that they won’t return until a qualified health care professional says it’s safe. The NFL, the Alaska Brain Injury Network, the Alaska School Activities Association and pretty much everybody else I’ve talked think it’s a great idea.

I have to admit, that could be because I didn’t think it up all by myself. The doctor who opened up my head in Seattle a few months back worked on a similar bill in Washington, and convinced me to do it here.

In any case, we’re hoping to get through at least one more committee and then hopefully out of the House of Representatives this year. If you see that confused look on my face again, it’ll mean the news is good.

If you happen to be a registered voter in the Municipality of Anchorage, next Tuesday, April 5, is Election Day. Seats on the Anchorage Assembly and the School Board, as well as several bonds and propositions, are on the ballot. Spring election turnout in Anchorage is usually around 20 percent or lower, so take a break for democracy’s sake on Tuesday and head on down to your polling place.

If you’re leaving town before April 5, early voting has already started at City Hall and the Loussac Library. If you have any questions about voting or need assistance, call the Municipal Clerk’s office at 563-VOTE (8683).

And—as you’re perusing your choices and pulling that lever on Tuesday—remember, to paraphrase Winston Churchill, democracy is the worst form of government—except for all the others.