.png)
Governor vetoes nine bills, allows sweeping education and crime bills to become law; override session possible Friday
- Mark Sabbatini
- Jun 19
- 3 min read
Enacted legislation provides per-student funding boost up to $458, raises age of consent to 18, eliminates sexual assault ‘loophole’
By Mark Sabbatini
Juneau Independent
An education bill that could boost per-student school funding by about 7% and a crime package combining provisions from 10 separate bills became law without Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s signature on Thursday, the deadline for action by him on two dozen bills — nine of which he vetoed.
The vetoes include an update that would collect more corporate income tax from companies selling to Alaskans via the internet, strengthen oversight for youth in psychiatric facilities, and impose a tax on e-cigarettes.
"These policies would have positively affected families, businesses and communities," Senate Majority Leader Cathy Giessel, R-Anchorage, wrote in a social media post Thursday evening. "But once again, this Governor is deaf and blind to needs of people and policies that build Alaska. We will have a veto override session tomorrow. This takes time away from any action on a gas Pipeline bill."
Legislative leaders said Thursday night they will decide Friday which bills to consider for override votes during the day, the final one of a 30-day special session called by Dunleavy to consider gasline legislation. That bill has stalled in the Senate and the governor said Thursday he will call a second special session beginning Saturday if the Legislature doesn’t pass the legislation.
Education bill provides up to one-time $458 per-student funding boost
House Bill 28, originally introduced by Rep. Andi Story, D-Juneau, as a student loan repayment program for residents who become teachers in Alaska, became what some lawmakers called a "mini-bus" bill with numerous additions in the Senate.
Those changes include up to $115 million in one-time student funding, which depends on oil prices remaining high enough to meet revenue goals. Juneau School District Superintendent Frank Hauser, in a memo presented last week to the school board, stated that equates to up to a $458 increase in the Base Student Allocation that’s current $6,660.
Legislators increased the BSA by a record $700 last year, arguing no major increase had occurred for about 15 years, causing districts to effectively suffer large losses in funding due to inflation. An attempt at a second permanent BSA increase this year — and another bill by Story to redefine how such funding is calculated in a way that would have boosted overall funding — both failed to pass.
HB 28 also contains about $29 million in energy relief payments to schools, plus the loan payment program proposed by Story and various other provisions.
Crime bill raises age of consent to 18, eliminates ‘loophole’ in sexual assault law
House Bill 239, which originally focused on sentencing for fatal pedestrian hit-and-run offenses, also went through a drastic rewrite in the Senate, with provisions from nine other bills — plus some additional measures — added to the omnibus package. The bill passed the Senate unanimously and the House by a 39-1 vote.
One highlighted provision raises Alaska’s age of consent to 18 rather than 16. Another closes what Rep. Sara Hannan, D-Juneau, called "a serious loophole" in state law regarding sexual assault by health care workers, which she sought to change after former Juneau chiropractor Jeffrey Fultz was acquitted of some charges in a high-profile trial involving accusations by about a dozen female patients.
The crime bill also incorporates Senate Bill 247 by Sen. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau, criminalizing computer-generated child sexual abuse material. Among HB 239’s other provisions are making some marijuana conviction records confidential, expanding confidentiality rules to include victims using tribal counseling centers, and establishing a tracking system and examination timelines for sexual assault examination kits.
Vetoed bills
Among the bills vetoed by Dunleavy:
• HB 23 by Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage, renaming the State Commission for Human Rights the Alaska State Commission for Civil Rights, and broadening its scope. The bill passed the Legislature unanimously.
• SB 24 by Sen. Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak, raising the minimum age to purchase tobacco and vape products to 21 instead of 19, and imposing a new tax on e-cigarettes and vapor products. • SB 258 by Kiehl, altering the rules for state contracts involving licensing of software applications.
• HB 52 by Rep. Maxine Dibert, D-Fairbanks, intended to strengthen the rights and safety of minors in psychiatric care.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.
