Bert Stedman

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 »

Ketchikan Selected for Major Mining Facility

Author: Bert Stedman

Ucore Rare Metals, Inc. (Uncore), has announced (January 30, 2018) that Ketchikan will be the location of its Strategic Metals Complex (SMC or plant). Since 2006 Ucore has worked on developing the Bokan Mountain – Dodge Ridge Rare Earth Element Project near Kendrick Bay on Prince of Wales Island. The SMC will separate rare earth concentrates for use in the United States commercial and military technologies. For more information regarding this use read Ucore’s press release here.

Rare Earth Elements (REE) are used to make a wide variety of items, including high-tech military equipment, wind turbines, solar panels, powerful and advanced batteries, and other high-tech consumer products such as televisions, computers, tablets, and cell phones. China currently controls 97% of the production of these elements.

In Ucore’s press release yesterday, they mentioned the $145 million bonding authority which I placed into legislation that became law in 2014. With this authorization, the Alaska Industrial Development & Export Authority (AIDEA) can issue bonds to finance infrastructure and construction of the REE project. For background information on my amendments from 2014 read here and here.

This is encouraging news for Southeast Alaska as the Alaska’s Mining industry will provide family wage jobs. We need to move forward on this important project for economic growth in the region. For more information on AIDEA’s current update on the Bokan REE project click here.

January 31st, 2018 | Posted in News & Comment | No Comments »

Stedman Urges Congress to Protect Alaskans from Federal Flood Zone Requirements

Author: Bert Stedman

As the Senator representing most of the coastal communities throughout Southeast Alaska, I am very concerned about federal efforts to create new and larger flood zone area maps in several of our communities. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is planning to designate entire coastlines in our communities as a “special flood hazard area”. FEMA is expanding its flood maps even though nearly all of these homes and properties have never been impacted or suffered from a flood.

Homes and businesses in a new FEMA flood zone could see significant negative impacts to property values from requirements to buy expensive flood insurance. If you have a loan from a federally insured or backed bank, you must purchase flood insurance. The new and larger flood zones can also restrict how you can build on your own property and impact existing homes and businesses.

Flood damage is very uncommon in our Southeast communities. FEMA’s costly flood insurance requirements take money from the pockets of Alaskan families to pay for billions in hurricane losses incurred thousands of miles away in states like Texas, Florida, and Louisiana. Alaskans should not have to pay a higher premium for those losses.

As the Senator representing District R, I will continue to fight this federal overreach impacting my district. I am also working with Alaska Housing Finance Corporation to be the lender so affected communities are not forced to go to federal backed mortgages and the onerous requirements of FEMA’s flood insurance. A copy of my most recent letter to the members of the Alaska Congressional delegation can be found at this link: Delegation Flood Zone 1.18.18.

January 31st, 2018 | Posted in News & Comment | No Comments »

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

Federal Government Funds Secure Rural Schools & Essential Air Service

Sea Otter Population Concerns

Ketchikan Selected for Major Mining Facility

Stedman Urges Congress to Protect Alaskans from Federal Flood Zone Requirements

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