Democrats’ Resolution Calls on Governor to Opt-Out of No Child Left Behind
“The federal program has never worked for Alaska. It’s time we set our own standards”
JUNEAU – Today, Rep. Bob Miller and three other Democrats in the Alaska House of Representatives introduced a resolution (HJR 39) calling on the state of Alaska to opt-out of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) program and to develop its own Alaska-appropriate education standards.
“No Child Left Behind was a federal mandate that never worked for Alaska,” said Rep. Miller. “It’s time we develop our own Alaska-appropriate standards and get out from under this federal program that set too many of our schools up to fail.”
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Protecting Public Access To Alaska’s Fishing Streams: HB144 Moves Out of Committee
Today Representative Les Gara’s legislation to ensure future public access to Alaska’s fishing streams, House Bill 144, moved from the Senate Resources Committee. The bill passed the House last year with a vote of 38 Yeas, and tonight passed the Senate Resources Committee.
“We hope the next step is a vote on the Senate Floor, and believe the bill has the support to pass,” said Rep. Les Gara. House Bill 144 will inexpensively promote access to important fishing streams by encouraging voluntary land trades or purchases with willing landowners.
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Democrats Call on Governor to Make Stronger Commitment to Education
Keeping up with inflation allows schools to focus on where to improve, not where to cut
JUNEAU – Today, House Democrats called on the governor to join them in an effort to prevent Alaska’s school districts from having to make more cuts in the classroom due to inflation. The legislators sent a letter to the governor earlier today requesting that he be open to meeting school district needs by increasing the per-student allocation enough to cover the costs of inflation.
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House Bill 272 “Student Loan Interest Reductions”
Currently Alaskans pay interest rates of roughly 7% and 8% for outstanding and new student loans. In contrast, used car loans are currently being issued by some lenders at 3% and less. Many Alaskans are struggling and Alaska has a history of losing those who obtain higher education degrees and job training to jobs outside of Alaska…
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House Bill 244 “Corporations Not ‘Persons’ in Elections”
“An Act providing that for-profit corporations and limited liability companies organized in this state are not persons for purposes of influencing the outcomes of public office elections, initiatives, referendums, or recalls.”
House Bill 244 will prohibit corporations from contributing to elections. This bill will amend state law that allows corporations to be recognized as persons and therefore contribute to campaigns with unlimited financial contributions…
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Democrats Work to End Unlimited Campaign Spending
Legislation would make Alaska a leader in national effort to rein in big-money politics
(JUNEAU) – Today, 13 House and Senate Democrats introduced legislation aimed at scaling back rules allowing corporations, wealthy donors, and unions to spend unlimited amounts of money, sometimes in the millions, to get candidates elected. Companion resolutions (HJR 33 and SJR 13) introduced today in the Alaska House and Senate call for a federal constitutional amendment to reverse the Citizens United case that opened the corporate and union campaign spending floodgates. A separate House bill would return Alaska’s right to limit corporate contributions by making corporations not considered “persons” for purposes of Alaska election law.
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