Fiscal forum and special session

Dear Neighbors,

I hope this finds you well and enjoying the transition to fall – remember to drive safely and watch out for kids on their way to school. Here’s a quick update of some of the recent happenings around and the district and our state.

Juneau fiscal forum, Centennial Hall, Sept. 30, 6-9pm

This summer has been filled with various forums around the state dealing with our tenuous fiscal future.  Next Wednesday, Sept. 30, at Centennial Hall from 6-9pm, there will be a forum on Alaska’s fiscal future taking place as part of Governor Walker’s initiative, “Building a Sustainable Future: Conversations with Alaskans.” The Juneau forum is part of the administration’s efforts to “tap the wisdom, knowledge and commitment of Alaskans to meet our current challenges and ensure we have a prosperous future.” I will be participating in the final panel of the evening, discussing how we move our state forward.  Please consider joining me at this event.  For resources and presentations along with facts, figures, and other important background information check out this link.

September 10: Opening of the UAA Engineering & Industry Building. I was honored to be inducted into the Alumni Hall of Fame.

LNG Special Session

Yesterday, Governor Bill Walker called the Legislature back for a special session on Oct. 24th in Juneau. I applaud the Governor for calling special session in Juneau, Alaska’s capital city.  Capitol Building construction for 2015 will be mostly complete when the session starts, and the House and Senate Chambers will be fully functioning and available, most committee rooms will be ready for use, and there will only be a few legislative offices that will need a little additional time to get ready.  We have been assured that the building will be useable for the session by October 24thand will be ready for complete occupancy by November 15th.  During this Special Session, the Legislature will be considering both an appropriation to buy out Transcanada on the Natural Gas Pipeline as well as a tax on natural gas reserves. The official announcement came on Thursday afternoon, and I expect more information to come. Follow me on Twitter and Facebook to for continuing updates as details emerge. 

September 19: Celebrating the opening of the new Porcupine Lodge at Eaglecrest. Bring on winter!

Shout outs and heads up

• Traveling by ferry? Sign up for GovDelivery notices to be alerted on schedule changes and other updates at the following link: https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/AKDOT/subscriber/new. You can opt-in for updates on a variety of topics from the Department of Transportation, including ferries, airports, and roads.
   
• PFD announced: this year’s dividend came in at $2,072. There are a couple firsts this year: first, $2,072 (without adjusting for inflation) is the highest payout in the fund’s history; second, this year the earnings from the Permanent Fund exceeded the earnings from oil.

September 21: Shania Sommer, a 7th-grade student at Palmer Junior Middle School, announced the 2015 PFD amount.

• Congratulations to Joe Jacobson, Sheila Kleinschmidt, and Jan Hill on their election to the Southeast Conference Board. Thank you for your service.

I look forward to seeing you out and about. Please be in touch if I can be of service.

With Regards,

Sam Kito III