October 25, 2004
Monday

David Landis is getting my support in the next election because of his view that ideology driven governance is doomed to fail and that we have a solution to the fiscal gap that includes revising the way the state receives oil revenues not in new taxes or raiding the perm fund.

In my view the last thing we need in Juneau is another Republican ideologue that follows the majority no-matter if the policy in question represents the best interests of their district or not. We don't want or need anyone who is on the far right or the far left. We need someone like Landis who is in the middle like most voters in District one.

Elimination of the longevity bonuses, diminished funding to local governments, increased local government taxes due to reduced State funding, censuring one of their own for voting to reinstate the longevity bonus. These policies were put in place by the Republican majority. If we continue to elect Republicans after they have done all that and more, it's an affirmation that they can do anything they want, including raiding the perm fund.

If you listened to the candidate call in on KRBD last week you heard the Republican candidate sound like an oil lobbyist. He said we better be careful or we will lose oil development in Alaska, because it is the most expensive place in the world for oil development. That may have been true before the days of the trans-Alaska pipeline, but not today. We have billions of dollars of existing infrastructure in place for oil development. I believe that it would take a lot more that a common sense restructuring of the way we receive oil revenues to cause the future of oil development in Alaska to cease.

Dave believes, as do I, that the oil companies, due to aggressive lobbing, have managed to extend the Economic Limit Factor beyond what is in the best interest of the people of the State of Alaska. Dave plans to review how we tax oil and if it meets the best interest test for the State. The restructuring of these revenue streams is the answer to the fiscal gap. Not an income tax or a sales tax or a raid on the perm fund. Landis is the right choice for District one. He will listen to your concerns no matter what your politics are and seek a common ground solution for all the inhabitants of our District and State.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Samuel Bergeron
Ketchikan, AK - USA

 

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