Lawmakers in the Alaska House unveiled their first draft of the state’s capital budget on Monday. It adds $99.5 million in general-purpose spending to the roughly $250 million capital budget that passed the Senate last month. The majority of the added items focus on shoring up schools and university facilities around the state.
Rep. Calvin Schrage, an Anchorage independent who co-chairs the House Finance Committee, said in a brief interview Wednesday that the House’s approach to an unexpected influx of war-related oil revenue mirrors the Senate’s.
“To the extent we have surplus revenues this year, we want to make sure that we're directing those towards really addressing our huge backlog in deferred maintenance across the state,” Schrage said.
More than half of the House’s additions would go towards K-12 schools across the state, including $10 million repairs to Mt. Edgecumbe High School in Sitka and $6 million to construct a new school in the Northwest Arctic community of Deering.
Along with funding approved by the Senate, lawmakers estimate the $105.5 million now included in the capital budget for K-12 maintenance is enough to fund the first 33 projects on the Department of Education and Early Development’s prioritized list of projects, plus one lower-ranked project, a fuel tank in Tuluksak. Five more would be funded if oil prices remain high through the end of the current fiscal year in June.
The House’s capital budget also includes $9 million in funding for nine renewable energy projects around the state, from Southeast Alaska to the Railbelt to the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. It would also set aside $15 to $25 million in funding for upgrades to the Port of Alaska in Anchorage, depending on oil prices.
The new draft also removes the state’s authorization to receive roughly $135 million federal funding for two controversial transportation projects: the Cascade Point ferry terminal in Juneau and the West Susitna Access Road in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.
Both projects have been the subject of intense criticism.
“I know that Cascade Point was a somewhat divisive issue last year and continues to be. Same thing for the West Su,” Schrage said. “It's been divisive and will continue to be, and we'll see where things end up.”
Removing the West Susitna project from the state’s capital budget drew pushback from Republican lawmakers, including Fairbanks Republican Will Stapp.
“The West Su Access Project is one of the few things that we have in Alaska that is going toward positive steps for resource development,” he said. “We're a resource development state.”
The House Finance Committee is scheduled to consider amendments Thursday and Friday. Schrage said he expects the bill to head to the House floor next week.
