Rep. Mina at the ribbon cutting of the new Russian Jack Springs Park singletrack mountain bike trail with Steve Cleary, executive director of Alaska Trails, Assemblymember George Martinez, Assemblymember Karen Bronga, Rep. Donna Mears, Sen. Forrest Dunbar, and other community leaders and bike advocates. (Photo credit to Alaska Public Media)

Sincerely,

Rep. Mina at the Mountain View Clean-Up with Sen. Forrest Dunbar, Mountain View Community Council board members, and neighborhood advocates.

Rep. Mina presenting a legislative citation to James Muller, Professor Emeritus of UAA Political Science and internationally-recognized Winston Churchill scholar during the annual Fourth of July ceremony.

Rep. Mina at the ribbon cutting for Shiloh Community Resource Center's furniture bank, with executive director Shenee Williams, board members Daniel George and Ed Wesley, Assemblymember George Martinez, Rep. Cliff Groh, Mountain View Community Council president Phil Cannon, and other community leaders.

Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Operating Budget

After the Legislature passed a balanced FY25 operating budget that did not draw from state savings, I was disappointed to see unnecessary vetoes that will suppress opportunities for Alaskans and hinder our economy from thriving. I do want neighbors to know that the $175 million one-time increase for education funding remains in the FY25 budget.

Here is a high-level summary of the governor's vetoes (click here for full list):

Education

• $5.2 million veto to Alaska Reads Act for early learning and reading interventions
• $11.2 million veto Broadband Access Grant funding to assist schools with rural broadband
• $2.6 million veto to Head Start which promotes early-learning. 
• $11.9 million in education funding to help the state align with U.S. Department of Education's Maintenance of Equity requirement.
• $205,000 veto to Parents as Teachers program to help with early learning and reading support. This funding would have also brought in significant matching federal funds to support the program. 
• $5.4 million veto to University of Alaska Fairbanks appropriated in an effort for the university to achieve R1 (top tier) research status. 

Health Care Vetoes 

• $3.3 million veto to senior and disabilities grant programs including an increase in payment rates for adult day services and assisted living providers helping to care for our disabled and our elders.

Community

• $20 million veto to replenish the Community Assistance Fund, which aids municipalities with their budgets and jeopardizes future payments.
• $10 million veto to the Alaska Marine Highway System for ferry operations appropriated by the legislature as backstop funding in the event that there is a revenue shortfall after federal funding is allocated. 
• $1.2 million veto to public broadcasting funding for rural radio stations which are essential during natural disasters and other community emergencies.
• $7.5 million veto for the state’s disaster relief fund.
• $204,000 veto to Alaska Legal Services grant funding, which provides legal services to low-income Alaskans free of charge.
• $5.5 million to the Denali Commission's housing program
• $6 million to Housing Alaskans, Alaska Community Foundation

On budget amendments I worked on, I am glad to see that the inflation-adjustment for Medicaid autism rates is officially in the FY25 budget. However, there were vetoes issued to two other amendments I worked on:

• Snow maintenance: The Governor vetoed $1.3 million to the Department of Transportation & Public Facilities' Central Region to improve snow maintenance. There was also a $250,000 veto for a new snow removal storage site.
• Behavioral health: The governor partially vetoed $321,500 to the General Relief for Temporary Assisted Living amendment I passed. Instead of an additional $821,500 daily rate increase of 7.9%, the remaining $500,000 would increase the daily rate to 4.8%.

Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Capital Budget

There were $126.3 million vetoed from the capital budget (click here for full list). I was proud to support 14 capital items in House District 19. Unfortunately, here are the 10 projects that were vetoed completely:

• Mountain View Boys & Girls Club: $82,500 veto for facility repairs
• Davis Park: $200,000 veto for park remediation and improvement, and $50,000 veto for a Hmong Veterans Memorial
• Neighborhood Improvements: $50,000 veto for Airport Heights Elementary school walkway connector, $200,000 veto for Airport Height traffic calming, and $25,000 veto for the path between Tarwater Ave. and Meyer St in Mountain View
• Tikishla Park: $100,000 veto for spur trail repaving
• Alaska Literary Program: $445,000 veto for facility expansion, and $95,000 veto for Advanced English classes 
• Blood Bank of Alaska: $500,000 veto for testing laboratory expansion

I am grateful that four capital items in HD 19 remain in the FY25 capital budget (full list here).

• Shiloh Community Resource Center: $200,000 partial veto (50% cut), with $200,000 funded for facility expansion and $245,000 partial veto (50% cut) with $245,000 funded for their Anchorage Reads program
• Anchorage Community Land Trust: $500,000 funded for a commercial kitchen and business incubator
• Habitat for Humanity: $750,000 funded for new housing development

Every bit of funding makes a difference in these community projects to invest in our youth, support local entrepreneurship, and address cycles of poverty.

Rep. Mina with Bike Anchorage volunteer Donovan Camp at Live After Five. Bike Anchorage and Anchorage Downtown Partnership are offering free bike parking from 5:30-8:15PM at Town Square during the Thursday "Live After Five" summer concert series.

House Transportation

During last week’s House Transportation committee hearing, we had a discussion with representatives of the Alaska State Troopers and Department of Transportation and Public Facilities regarding the increase in summertime traffic crashes and proposed various safety measures to mitigate driving risks. The hearing emphasized the importance of improved road infrastructure, stricter enforcement of traffic laws, and enhanced public awareness campaigns to reduce accidents during the busy summer months.

You can watch the meeting here.

STIP Amendment Public Comment due August 5

The Department of Transportation & Public Facilities released its first amendment to the 2024-27 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program. While comments on projects are accepted any/all the time, the federally required comment period of 30 days for this amendment is open through Monday, August 5, 2024.

You can view and comment on individual projects in the amendment by clicking "participate" to a project of interest.

Correspondence Schools

In late June, the Alaska Supreme Court reversed the lower court ruling on correspondence schools, allowing state laws that provide cash payments to homeschooling families to stand. While this decision currently preserves the use of state funds for various educational purposes, it leaves unresolved the question of whether these funds can be used for private school tuition, pushing that specific issue back to the lower court for further consideration.

Community Council Meetings

Airport Heights Community Council

Hybrid meeting every third Thursday at 7:00PM

(No Summer Meetings)

Airport Heights Elementary School Library (1510 Alder Dr, Anchorage, AK 99508)

Click here for Zoom (Passcode: 499153)

Click here for more information

Mountain View Community Council

Hybrid meeting every fourth Wednesday at 6:00PM

(No July Meeting)

Mountain View Library (120 Bragaw St, Anchorage, AK 99508)

Click here for Zoom (Passcode: 955872)

Click here for more information

Russian Jack Community Council

Hybrid meeting every second Wednesday at 6:30PM

(No Summer Meetings)

Zion Lutheran Church (2100 Boniface Parkway, Anchorage, Alaska 99504)

Click here for Zoom

Click here for more information

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