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Alaska: House Ends Historic 5th Special Session Without a Comprehensive Fiscal Plan By MARY KAUFFMAN - The Alaska House of Representatives on Friday adjourned the fifth special session of the 29th Alaska Legislature after the Governor failed to secure the needed votes for his new tax measures and Permanent Fund restructuring legislation. The special session convened Monday, July 11 in Juneau.

The Governor’s proclamation included legislation to restructure the Permanent Fund; implement income, sales, motor fuel, mining, alcohol, tobacco, and fisheries taxes; and, revisit oil and gas tax credits.

Responding to the adjournment of the special session Governor Bill Walker said in a prepared statement, “Without a sustainable fiscal plan that includes restructuring of the permanent fund, the dividend program goes to $0 in less than four years. The Republican-led Senate passed the legislation that would have reduced the dividend to $1,000 this year. Senators agreed to this measure in an effort to protect future dividends for all Alaskans. By doing nothing this year, the House sets us on an even more challenging journey to a sustainable fiscal future. Without a plan, all Alaskans will lose not only their dividends but also critical services - from public safety to education and keeping roads and airports open and ready for business. I will do everything I can to keep Alaska on a path to prosperity.”

“While I share the Governor’s view that at some point in the near future we may have to talk about new revenues, it is apparent to me after many discussions with members of the majority caucus, the minority caucus and the minority leader, the support for any of the measures introduced by the administration is simply not there,” Speaker Mike Chenault (R-Nikiski) said. “A majority of our constituents have voiced their concerns with these proposals and the need for more information on the effects through public testimony, public opinion messages, emails and other personal communications.

“Staying here for another 30 days is not going to resolve the revenue issues before us,” Chenault said. “We have discussed all the different proposals and I don’t foresee any significant changes within the time allotted for this special session. Should the governor come up with 21 house votes and 11 votes from the other body, then our meeting in special session may be fruitful.”

Despite the setback, the members of the Alaska Independent Democratic Coalition (AIDC) said in a press release they remain committed to finding acceptable solutions to close the budget gap that can garner approval from the Governor, the Alaska Legislature, and the people of Alaska.

“Governor Walker put forward a plan for lawmakers to consider. Unfortunately, the plan was called regressive by the Rasmuson Foundation. That plan should have been used as a starting point for a balanced and comprehensive fiscal plan that is fair to all Alaskans,” said AIDC Leader Rep. Chris Tuck (D-Anchorage). “This fiscal crisis was years in the making so it’s not surprising that finding solutions will take some time. The members of the Coalition are not giving up and will continue working with the Governor and all lawmakers to create a bipartisan fiscal plan that is fair, protects our economy, and that all Alaskans can be proud of.”

The low price of oil and a flawed tax policy has resulted in a dramatic loss of revenue to the State of Alaska while spending is largely unchanged from a decade ago. The Alaska Independent Democratic Coalition gives the thanks to the forethought of many lawmakers, billions of dollars were put in savings when oil prices were high. That will allow the essential functions of state government to continue while lawmakers and the Governor work on fiscal solutions.

“Our Coalition wants a sustainable path to fiscal stability. Oil prices cannot be expected to rebound in the near future, which means all of the components of the Governor’s plan need to remain on the table,” said AIDC Whip Rep. Sam Kito (D-Juneau). “The seriousness of our fiscal challenges demands that all lawmakers work on ending the current stalemate and stop playing politics with Alaska’s future.” - More...
Saturday PM - July 16, 2016

FISH FACTOR: Bycatch to food banks not over the rails By LAINE WELCH - The decades-old ‘bycatch to food banks’ program has grown far beyond its original Alaska beginnings.

Today, only 10 percent of the fish going to hunger relief programs is bycatch of primarily halibut and salmon taken accidentally in other fisheries. The remainder is “first-run” products donated to Sea Share, the nation’s only non-profit that donates fish through a tight network of fishermen, processors, packagers and transporters.

Sea Share began in 1993 when Bering Sea fishermen pushed to be allowed to direct fish taken as bycatch to food banks instead of over the rails, as required by law.

“Back then that was the only thing that we were set up to do, and we are the only entity authorized to retain such fish. It became a rallying point for a lot of stakeholders, and from that beginning we’ve expanded to the Gulf of Alaska, and grown to 28 states and over 200 million fish meals a year,” said Jim Harmon, Sea Share director.

Some seafood companies commit a portion of their sales, or donate products or overages. Vessels of the At-sea Processors Association have donated 250,000 pounds of whitefish blocks each year for 15 years, which are turned into breaded portions. Sea Share’s roster also has grown to include tilapia, shrimp, cod and tuna and other canned and frozen seafood products.

Over the years, Sea Share has ramped up donations in Alaska where halibut portions from Kodiak fisheries are used locally, at Kenai and flown to Nome and Kotzebue, courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard. A new freezer container has been stationed at the Port of Dillingham holding 8,500 pounds of fish and several more are being added to hubs in Western Alaska, Harmon said.

“I think we’ll probably do 250,000 pounds in the state this year,” he added.

A donation last week by Walmart will bring more seafood to hungry mouths in Washington. Sea Share was one of seven recipients to share grants from the corporation totaling $400,000 for community programs.

“We’re trying to reach out beyond the seafood industry to larger foundations as well as the public at large,” Harmon said.

He pointed out that giving fish to the needy also broadens a customer base to people who wouldn’t otherwise get it.

“Food bank recipients aren’t the chronically homeless or unemployed, it’s the under employed, those between jobs who might access the bank for a few weeks,” Harmon said. “And if we give those people a great experience with seafood, when they are back on their feet again or they get that next job, they’ll start buying more seafood. It really is a win win.” - More...
Saturday PM - July 16, 2016

Alaska: Closing parts of the ocean to fishing not enough to protect marine ecosystems - A University of Washington fisheries professor argued last week that saving biodiversity in the world's oceans requires more than banning fishing with marine protected areas, or oceanic wilderness areas. In a three-page editorial published last week in the journal Nature, he argues that this increasingly popular conservation strategy is not as effective as properly managing recreational and commercial fisheries. "There's this idea that the only way you can protect the ocean is by permanently closing parts of the ocean to fishing, with no-take areas," said Ray Hilborn, a professor in the UW's School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. "You protect biodiversity better by regulating fisheries over the country's entire economic zone."

Marine protected areas have grown in popularity since the early 2000s. Recent examples include an area twice the size of Texas in the central Pacific established in 2014 by President Barack Obama, and a proposal to close 25 percent of the Seychelles' exclusive economic zone, an island nation off Africa's east coast.

Several environmental organizations have set a longer-term goal of making 30 percent of the world's oceans into no-take marine protected areas by the year 2030. But Hilborn believes this is not the best way to protect global marine ecosystems.

"If the problem is overfishing or bycatch, then fisheries management is much more effective than establishing MPAs because you regulate the catch over the entire economic zone," Hilborn said. "I don't see how anyone can defend MPAs as a better method than fisheries management, except in places where you just can't do management." - More...
Saturday PM - July 16, 2016