Mt. Edgecumbe High School Aquatic Center Opening Ceremony

Author: Bert Stedman

An opening ceremony was held on May 4, 2018, in Sitka to give Mt. Edgecumbe High School (MEHS) students and the public the chance to see the nearly completed aquatic center. I also wanted the seniors at MEHS who have waited patiently for the pool to be completed to have a chance to swim in it before finishing their academic careers at MEHS.

The aquatic center will primarily serve MEHS students while also providing an opportunity for recreation, health and fitness, physical therapy, and other uses to the community at large. Teaching MEHS students to swim is particularly important as drowning is a leading cause of death in rural Alaska.

When fully completed, the facility will also be used by the Alaska State Troopers and the United States Coast Guard for training purposes.

In the 2010 general election, a majority of statewide voters said “yes’ to building the pool and other projects that were part of the statewide bond package. The bonds provided $20 million for the project. As Co-Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, I obtained additional funding for the project in 2012.

I am very glad that years of work pushing the project forward with the help of Governor Walker and Lt. Governor Mallott is nearly complete.

May 7th, 2018  |  Posted in News & Comment  |  No Comments »

Legislature Quickly Funds Public Education, Offers Increased Funding through Grants, Increases Access to the Internet for Rural Students, & Supports Federal Secure Rural School Funding

Author: Bert Stedman

I supported funding education ahead of the rest of the budget for the next fiscal year, FY 2019. This is an unusual step, but the benefits of the bill, HB 287, are significant.  School districts can now set their budgets for the next school year and avoid sending employees and teachers pink slips based solely on the timing of when the legislature passes the budget.  HB 287 sets funding levels at $1.32 billion dollars for K-12.  Education funding makes up roughly 33.7 % of the entire state general fund agency operating budget.

HB 287 also approved $1.32 billion dollars for education in the following fiscal year, FY 2020.  Additionally, $30 million dollars in one-time grants to school districts in FY 2020 if the legislature agrees to pass a bill setting up a percent of market value structure (POMV).  I believe a POMV structure is needed to protect the permanent fund for future generations, but have my own bill on this topic.  [SJR 9]

I also supported a bill passed by the Senate, SB 102, that will bring millions of dollars to rural schools to improve internet access.  Many of the school districts in Southeast have such slow internet speeds, they cannot reliably and meaningfully access courses taught over the internet.  The state funds made available by SB 102 will match and leverage federal funds to increase internet access in rural Alaska.

Another positive effort by the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States Congress to make Secure Rural School Funding permanent.  These funds are meant to blunt the impact of the Forest Service failing to provide enough timber supply and the cut in federal timber receipts for local communities and schools.  I will continue to help whenever possible to maintain or advance good paying timber jobs and our timber industry.  However, it is clear after decades of the Forest Service failing to supply enough timber that jobs and timber related economic development will not return to previous levels.  Southeast Alaskans, their schools, and families have suffered long enough for the effects to be considered permanent.  The federal government should make the Secure Rural Schools program permanent.

April 20th, 2018  |  Posted in News & Comment  |  No Comments »

Federal Government Funds Secure Rural Schools & Essential Air Service

Author: Bert Stedman

Last week the United States Congress passed, and President Trump signed into law an appropriations bill that will fund the federal government until September 30, 2018. Two important programs that received funding directly affect communities in Southeast Alaska:

• Secure Rural Schools
• Essential Air Service

The Secure Rural Schools payments have been reestablished for the next two years. This program provides payments to communities whose land base contains federal forests. This will provide much needed relief to our Southeast Alaska communities. This affects every community in Senate District R.

The Essential Air Service program guarantees a minimal level of scheduled air service by certificate holding air carriers who access isolated communities. Access to air travel is vital to our way of life in Southeast Alaska. This is good news for local economies and those Alaskans living in isolated communities. There are 11 communities in Senate District R that will continue to benefit from this program.

March 27th, 2018  |  Posted in News & Comment  |  No Comments »

Sea Otter Population Concerns

Author: Bert Stedman

On March 19, 2018, the Senate Resources Committee voted to move Senate Joint Resolution 13 (SJR 13) forward for consideration by the full Senate. SJR 13 is a resolution urging the United States Congress to amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act and urging certain federal agencies to permit Alaska Native organizations and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to co-manage, take, and study sea otters. The current management policies of the federal government are a complete failure. I presented facts to the Senate Resource Committee on March 12, 2018, supporting reasonable reductions for our poorly managed sea otter population in Southeast Alaska which is rapidly reducing our shellfish resources.

                                               Senator Stedman introducing SJR 13

The sea otter population in Southeast Alaska has dramatically increased from the initial 400 which were reintroduced in the 1960s and today it is estimated to be around 51,000. This number is growing by 13% per year with the average lifespan of the sea otter being 13-20 years. Each sea otter eats nearly one-third of its body weight per day in shellfish and other foods. The Board of Fish estimates sea otters will be eating over 1 million pounds of shellfish per day by 2030 if no substantive action is taken to control population growth.

We simply cannot allow the unchecked growth of sea otters to eat Alaskans out of house and home. Sea otters are affecting commercial fisheries and the way of life for our rural communities who rely heavily on shellfish resources such as abalone, crab, clams, and other subsistence foods.

The policy changes recommended in my resolution, Senate Joint Resolution 13, would allow Alaska Natives who are  enrolled in a federally recognized tribe or under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to hunt sea otters within reasonable limits. We are also urging the management authority of sea otters be transferred to the state and/or tribes from the federal government. This can provide the framework to establish a closer working relationship with those who are currently being impacted to address the subsistence, commercial, and cultural concerns.

I will provide further updates as this legislation progresses through the Alaska State Legislative process.

March 21st, 2018  |  Posted in News & Comment  |  No Comments »