Association of Alaska School Boards

Legislative Bulletin

A weekly digest of activity by the Alaska Legislature and U.S. Congress for Alaska’s School Board Members. AASB Tel. 907-586-1083, Fax 907-586-2995. Executive Director, Carl Rose crose@aasb.org; Editor, John Greely. Review past issues of the Bulletin on the AASB Website at http://www.aasb.org. To unsubscribe send an email requesting the same to jgreely@aasb.org.

This bulletin is distributed by email only. School districts should copy for board members not online.

April 28, 2006

--AASB FLY-IN PROMOTES EDUCATION PRIORITIES TO LEGISLATURE

--$2 BILLION CAPITAL BUDGET, BUT WHERE ARE THE SCHOOLS?

--PERS/TRS BILLS START TO MOVE

--EDUCATION BILLS IN BRIEF

AASB FLY-IN PROMOTES EDUCATION PRIORITIES TO LEGISLATURE

At this week’s AASB Spring Boardsmanship Academy and Legislative Fly-in, education leaders from around Alaska worked the halls of the Capitol on Monday and Tuesday, receiving assurances, if no promises, that the 24^th Alaska Legislature would address major education issues before adjournment May 9^th. Among the half dozen most important concerns of school board members are school funding and construction, the unfunded liability of public employee retirement systems, and reviving the municipal assistance program.

Some 75 school board members participated in a day-long discussion of education issues on Sunday, April 23^rd, to prepare for two days worth of advocacy at the Capitol. On Monday, Rep. Reggie Joule, D-Kotzebue, and Sen. Lyda Green, R-Wasilla, spoke to the educators before their individual appointments with legislators and staff.

“School board members did a great job conveying the importance that decisions in Juneau will have on Alaska children and their schools,” said AASB Executive Director Carl Rose. “I believe the meetings our members had with legislators this week will have a direct impact on the decisions that remain to be made before May 9^th.”

For a closer look at the message delivered to lawmakers, see this web link:

http://aasb.org/Frontpage/Feature3.html

Governor Frank Murkowski hosted the fly-in participants at the Governor’s House on Monday. The next day he announced that he would call the Legislature into special session on May 10 to consider his plan for advancing construction of a North Slope natural gas pipeline.

$2 BILLION CAPITAL BUDGET, BUT WHERE ARE THE SCHOOLS?

The Senate Finance Committee continued hearings this week on initial versions of a $2 billion budget for capital improvements in FY 2007. As introduced by Governor Murkowski, SB 231 allocated no funds for any major school construction or repairs. Amendments under consideration by the committee as of Friday, April 28, showed no school projects included in the bill as yet.

Legislators have plenty to choose from when it comes to school improvements. A list of requests from school districts to the Department of Education and Early Development includes 42 new schools totaling $645 million and 103 major maintenance projects totaling nearly $400 million.

The House of Representatives may vote as early as next week on legislation extending the school bond reimbursement program. Now scheduled to expire on Oct. 31, 2006, the bond reimbursement program offers local voters a promise of 60 to 70 percent state funding for school projects, if they will pay the rest of the cost, up to a limit of $192 million for all projects statewide. Various amendments were pending to extend the bond reimbursements into 2008.

PERS/TRS BILLS START TO MOVE

The state estimates that the unfunded liability of Alaska’s two major public employee retirement systems has ballooned to $6.9 billion. That’s an increase of $1.2 billion over a year ago. With new defined contribution benefits scheduled to take effect for all new employees in state and local governments (including school districts) in July, the House of Representatives has been debating how to address the unfunded liability and implement the new benefit tiers.

Passed this week by the House was a voluminous HB 475, amending many of the provisions of SB 141 from the 2005 session. A text of HB 475 can be reviewed here:

http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill_text.asp?hsid=HB0475D&session=24

Before passing HB 475 to the Senate, the House included an amendment delaying the effective date of the new benefit tiers in PERS and TRS for a year. A separate bill moving in the Senate, SB 293, would delay the new defined benefit tiers in PERS and TRS for two years.

In the meantime, the House also approved HB 278, allowing the Alaska Municipal Bond Bank to sell pension obligation bonds on behalf of state and local governments. The bonds are a form of legal arbitrage designed to finance pension obligations while they return investment profits to the seller. A text of HB 278 as it passed the House can be reviewed here:

http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill_text.asp?hsid=HB0278C&session=24

HB 278 was reviewed by a Senate committee today (Friday) but was not moved to its next committee of referral immediately.

The House is also scheduled to vote Monday on HB 375, creating a special account for appropriations needed to reduce the unfunded liability of the PERS and TRS systems. Here is the text of HB 375:

http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill_text.asp?hsid=HB0375C&session=24

EDUCATION BILLS IN BRIEF

Here is a summary and status update of other education bills in the Legislature, as of April 28:

SB 1 (Wilken) raises Base Student Allocation from $4,919 to $5,352, in Senate Finance Committee.

HB 362 (Governor) raises Base Student Allocation from $4,919 to $5,352. House Finance Committee substitute raises the amount to $5,380, in House Rules Committee.

HB 13 (Gatto and Gruenberg) extends until November, 2008, the school bond reimbursement program, in House Rules Committee.

HB 482 (Anderson) requires school districts to adopt policies prohibiting bullying and harassment of students, and to report incidents to EED, passed House and pending in Senate Health, Education and Social Services Committee. (Hearing scheduled for Monday, May 1).

SB 235 (Governor) creates School Performance Incentive Program to reward school employees whose students improve on state test scores, passed Senate and pending in House Education Committee. (Hearing scheduled for Tuesday, May 2).

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Our charge is to prepare all young Alaskans for the 21^st century to enable them to participate in the state and global economy. School districts accept this challenge, but an investment is required.”

From the AASB “Talking Points” paper distributed to legislators this week, arguing in favor of a minimum increase of $120 million to state support for K-12 schools.