Latest news with #BillWielechowski
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alaska lawmakers again unsuccessful in last-minute efforts to pass election reform
May 20—JUNEAU — An attempt to update Alaska's election laws has again failed in the final day of the legislative session, with lawmakers promising to return to the effort when they reconvene in January. Since 2022, lawmakers have sought several changes to Alaska's voting laws. Republicans want to more easily remove inactive voters from the state's rolls. Democrats want to make absentee voting easier and ensure that the state's rural, predominantly Alaska Native voters have equal access to the polls. Mirroring previous efforts, lawmakers this year again tried to craft a bill including both parties' priorities. And again, they fell short. The House and Senate majorities began the session with a shared commitment to updating the state's voting statutes, after previously failing to do so in the final hours of the 2024 and 2022 legislative sessions. But Sen. Bill Wielechowski, an Anchorage Democrat who crafted the election bill in the Senate, said that the plan fell apart in the final days of the session because minority Republicans declined to support reforms sought by the majority coalitions. "I think a few people really started to take a partisan perspective on it and blew the bill up," said Wielechowski. Wielechowski said he had sought GOP support for the election bill in order to persuade Gov. Mike Dunleavy not to veto it. Dunleavy has not commented on whether he was opposed to the legislation, but Wielechowski said he was confident that the governor would veto the measure if it did not have minority GOP support. Senate Bill 64 passed the Senate earlier this month but stalled in the House Finance Committee as Republican committee members claimed the bill would open the door to potential election fraud. The package includes measures to allow Alaskans to correct mistakes on absentee ballots, a process known as "ballot curing"; it removes the requirement for witness signatures on absentee ballots; it speeds up the ballot counting process; it streamlines the process of removing ineligible voters from the rolls; it requires the Division of Elections to be staffed with rural liaisons; it guarantees prepaid ballot postage for absentee ballots; and it allows voters to opt in to receive absentee ballots every election year, rather than having to request an absentee ballot ahead of every election, among other changes and updates. House Minority Leader Mia Costello said that her caucus's move to block election legislation from passing this year was a "major accomplishment" for the House minority. "It just simply was not something that we thought should see the light of day," said Costello. Late last year, former House Speaker Cathy Tilton said during a talk radio interview that Republican members of what was then the House majority blocked an election bill — which contained many of the provisions contained in this year's measure — because it would have increased the likelihood of Alaska's Democratic U.S. representative holding on to her seat in the 2024 election by making it easier for people in rural Alaska to vote. After the failure of last year's election bill, Alaska Native voters again encountered barriers to voting. The Alaska Division of Elections didn't deliver election materials on time to rural parts of the state, then fired the elections chief for the regional office overseeing most remote communities in the state shortly before the November election, and also didn't open some rural precincts on time due to staffing challenges. The Alaska Federation of Natives and other Alaska Native groups supported many of the election reforms included in this year's bill, urging lawmakers to pass it in time for it to be implemented ahead of the 2026 election. "After it blew up in the House Finance Committee, we redoubled our efforts and got together with some of the harshest critics of the bill," said Wielechowski. "We had extremely productive conversations and actually came to a point where we had consensus." Those critics included Senate Minority Leader Mike Shower, a Wasilla Republican, and Rep. Sarah Vance, a Homer Republican. The three reached agreement on a pared-down bill, but Wielechowski said that opposition among House Republicans remained. "When you sort of dig yourself in on a position and demonize something, it makes it difficult to un-demonize it," said Wielechowski. "I think that's what happened with this bill. There was a lot of misinformation." Shower said the original election bill "had too many things that I would consider access over security." "We worked really hard over the weekend to strip all those out," said Shower. "It became a very neutral bill." He said the "neutral" provisions that remained in the bill included ballot curing and measures to make it easier to remove inactive voters from the state's list. But Shower said that there wasn't enough time to convince Republicans to vote for the measure. "To do this over the weekend right before the end of session, was just a bridge too far," said Shower. "We had so many bad things to say the week before — we did a really good job of killing it — and then it was hard to pull it back." Vance said she hoped the stripped-down bill could be considered next legislative session. "We did come to almost 100% agreement, but we just simply ran out of time to be able to have the fuller discussion with our caucuses, so we have tabled that until January," said Vance. Wielechowski said he thought the majorities in the House and Senate could have passed a bill Tuesday without the Republican minority's support. But that would have made the bill vulnerable to Dunleavy's veto pen. "I don't want to pass something that is going to get vetoed — that I know will get vetoed — without doing everything I can to try to a point where we enact good policy," said Wielechowski. Senate President Gary Stevens and House Speaker Bryce Edgmon said the plan was to pass the bill next session. "Next year, hopefully we can deal with this early in January or February, and have a little more leisure time to really get through all the details, and if we do it early enough, it'll have an impact on the coming election," said Stevens. Another measure to reimpose campaign contribution limits known as House Bill 16 was also halted in its tracks in the final hours of the session. Like Senate Bill 64, Wielechowski said he thought the campaign contribution measure would not withstand Dunleavy's veto without minority support, so he declined to bring it to a Senate floor vote. Alaska has been without campaign contribution limits since 2021, when a federal judge invalidated the state's previous ones. After that ruling, Dunleavy said he's inclined to support unlimited donations, as long as they're publicly disclosed. Dunleavy then benefited from six-figure contributions during his 2022 reelection campaign. Shower said that he was concerned about reimposing campaign contribution limits because he thought the move could be disadvantageous to Republicans. "I support us finding contribution limits, because I would like to see big money out, but it has to be in a way that's going to balance the playing field for all candidates," said Shower. The bill as it's written, Shower said, "is going to hurt one side and not the other." House Bill 16 mimics the language of a ballot initiative that is set to go before voters in 2026 unless lawmakers adopt it next session. Daily News reporter Sean Maguire contributed to this story.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Alaska Legislature finalizes $1,000 PFD; vote expected as soon as Tuesday
Members of the Alaska Legislature's budget conference committee are joined by Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, as they discuss a budget amendment with aide Pete Ecklund, right, on Sunday, May 18, 2025. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) This year's Permanent Fund dividend will be $1,000, according to a final draft state budget approved Sunday afternoon by six House and Senate negotiators. The dividend was among the biggest items in a $5.9 billion document that will fund state services from July 1 this year through June 30 next year. The draft approved Sunday is scheduled for a final vote as soon as Tuesday in the House and Senate and will advance after that to Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who may reduce or eliminate individual line items. He may not increase a line item. The Legislature's regular session reaches its constitutional limit on Wednesday. The latest forecast from the Alaska Department of Revenue expects significantly lower oil and gas revenue over the next year, and lawmakers significantly cut services and programs during the budget drafting process. Unlike in previous years, the amount of the Permanent Fund dividend was not a contentious issue for budget negotiators at the end of the legislative session. Rep. DeLena Johnson, R-Palmer, said on Sunday that lawmakers had already argued the issue earlier in the session, and even though she unsuccessfully voted for a $1,400 dividend on Sunday, she knew the $1,000 figure would be final. 'From my perspective, I already knew what this number was going to be,' she said. Compressing the dividend is the state's precarious budget situation. In December, Dunleavy handed lawmakers a budget draft with a $2.1 billion deficit and a $3,900 dividend; the budget will leave the Capitol with a surplus of about $55 million. Legislators expect that surplus will evaporate in the coming months — oil prices are running below the Department of Revenue forecast, and Republican members of Congress are planning to reduce the amount the federal government pays for major programs, including food stamps and disaster relief. The Senate approved a budget draft with deeper cuts than the final document, but during the compromise process, lawmakers added individual line items preferred by the House, which proposed higher levels of spending and a draw from the Constitutional Budget Reserve, the state's main savings account, to pay for that spending. The final version of the budget eliminates that draw from savings, except as needed to cover a deficit remaining in the current fiscal year. If lawmakers don't approve the CBR draw, money would be taken from the state investment bank — better known as the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, or AIDEA — and the state's education trust fund. That will put pressure on members of the House's 19-person Republican minority caucus, who previously voted against drawing from the CBR. Thirty votes are needed in the 40-person House to spend from the CBR. The final version of the budget includes an additional $13.7 million for child care programs, $5.7 million more for infant early learning programs and 15 new full-time positions to help process public assistance applications. The conference committee, in charge of negotiating the compromise budget, also approved a House proposal to increase funding for behavioral health services used by mentally ill homeless people by $13.75 million. 'The Alaska Behavioral Health Association made a strong case that they need that,' said Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage and chair of the conference committee. In future years, the state will try to obtain behavioral health funding through federal Medicaid grants. A $1 million grant to food banks — proposed by the House — was rejected in the final version of the budget, as was funding for public radio. There will be no new troopers for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough; the committee voted 4-2 to eliminate a section of the House budget that would have re-established the trooper post in Talkeetna. Sen. James Kaufman, R-Anchorage, and Johnson voted in favor of the addition. Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel and a vote against the addition, said that the reopened trooper post was suggested by Gov. Mike Dunleavy who withdrew that proposal — and all of his other proposed budget increases — before the conference committee met. Johnson said the failure to include the troopers, who could be used to curtail the Railbelt drug trade, was 'probably one of the bigger disappointments for me in there.' The final version of the budget also eliminates a paragraph that sought to restrict gender dysphoria treatment, the kind used by transgender Alaskans. That paragraph was inserted by the House in its budget draft, but the Senate didn't include it. Conversely, a paragraph limiting abortion care, adopted by the Senate but rejected by the House, was included in the final budget draft. That paragraph has been repeatedly challenged in court, and the effect of including it in the budget is a small cut to Medicaid funding. Josephson said the result of the two decisions is a return to the status quo — the Legislature has included the anti-abortion language in its budget for years, and the anti-transgender language was new this year. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alaska Legislature considers comprehensive election bill in final days of session
May 13—JUNEAU — The Alaska Legislature is considering a comprehensive election reform measure with a suite of policies intended to make voting more accessible and secure, and to speed up when election results are reported. The Senate advanced Senate Bill 64 on Monday to the House, where the bill is expected to be fast-tracked through the committee process in the final days of the legislative session. The measure was written to appeal to lawmakers across the political spectrum. Anchorage Democratic Sen. Bill Wielechowski said before Monday's final vote that SB 64 is "truly, a compromise bill" with substantial input from Republican minority members and the Dunleavy administration. He said the bill is not partisan, but it makes common-sense election reforms. "It fixes a lot of things that have long been needed to be fixed," he added. Members of the bipartisan House and Senate majorities have said election reform is a top priority this year after several near misses. Provisions include: —Plans to allow Alaskans to correct mistakes on absentee ballots, a process used in two-thirds of states called "ballot curing." Voters in rural Alaska and military voters have disproportionately had their ballots rejected due to errors such as forgetting to include a witness signature on ballot envelopes. SB 64 would eliminate that requirement after lawmakers noted those signatures are not verified by the Division of Elections. Additionally, postage would be paid by the state for absentee ballots. —Alaska has the slowest ballot counting process in America. SB 64 intends to make that faster by implementing a 10-day deadline for by-mail ballots, which would allow earlier certification of results. —The bill intends to improve election security by establishing cybersecurity protections for voter registration records and by ensuring all campaigns can observe polling places and ballot review processes. Residency requirements would also be made stricter for Alaskans who move Outside and seek to return. —Alaska has long had more people on its voter rolls than residents in the state. SB 64 intends to shorten and streamline the process to remove ineligible voters from the rolls. State agencies would also share data to find out-of-state voters and duplicate registrations. The bill would also add tribal identification cards, and remove hunting and fishing licenses, as valid forms of ID to vote — among a long list of other changes. [Alaska House passes public pension bill, sending it to Senate] Despite the bipartisan approach, the Senate approved SB 64 along caucus lines on a 14-6 vote. All members of the bipartisan Senate majority voted for the bill; all six members of the Republican Senate minority voted no. Wasilla Republican Sen. Mike Shower applauded the collaborative process to craft SB 64. But he said the measure "fell short of the mark." In a Tuesday interview, Shower said there were some non-controversial provisions in the bill. He cited a ban on AI-created "deepfakes" in political advertising. Elections experts nationally have raised concerns that images created by AI could confuse voters and potentially sway elections. However, Shower said he had sought certain stricter safeguards in the measure. He pointed to a provision that would allow voters to get absentee ballots indefinitely, so long as they vote at least once every four years. Shower said he would oppose a "permanent absentee ballot application process" due to election integrity concerns. SB 64 has been supported by groups such as the Alaska Federation of Natives, the League of Women Voters of Alaska, and the Alaska AFL-CIO. Lawmakers say the bill is being advanced quickly with the intention of passing it this year. That way, the policy changes could be in place for the 2026 election. Election measures are set to advance quickly through the House committee process this year, lawmakers said. Anchorage independent Rep. Calvin Schrage said that elections reform is top priority for the House majority. "I've seen too many voters disenfranchised, and I think this is another one of those issues Alaskans are really wanting us to take action on," he said. The measure contains several provisions proposed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy's administration. Several lawmakers said they were unsure whether Dunleavy would support it. Jeff Turner, a spokesperson for the governor's office, declined to comment on Dunleavy's opinions on the bill. Turner noted that the measure could change in the House. Some conservative House lawmakers have expressed concerns. Homer Republican Rep. Sarah Vance opposed eliminating the witness signature requirement and other provisions in the bill. She said that would weaken Alaska's election system. Vance, a minority member, urged further compromise. "If there is any will by the governing majority to do that, you're running out of time," she said at a Tuesday committee hearing. In the past three years, the Legislature has twice failed to pass an elections bill on the final day of the legislative session. In 2022, a last-minute deal collapsed to reestablish stricter campaign contribution limits in Alaska. Last year, the House failed to pass another election reform bill. Former Republican House Speaker Cathy Tilton suggested last year that the measure was blocked because it would have benefited then-U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat. Shower and Wielechowski have been part of prior efforts to pass election reform bills. Both senators said they would work to reach a compromise before the legislative session ends.
Associated Press
01-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
States Step Up for Veteran-Owned Businesses: NaVOBA's State Tracker Shows National Progress
With billions in opportunity on the table, states are boosting support for veteran-owned businesses — and NaVOBA's State Tracker shows who's leading the way. LEXINGTON, KY, UNITED STATES, May 1, 2025 / / -- From expanding tax credits to boosting procurement preferences, states across the country are making bold legislative moves to empower veteran-owned businesses (VOBs). This growing momentum is being captured and celebrated through the National Veteran-Owned Business Association's (NaVOBA) State Tracker — a leading tool that monitors how well states support veteran entrepreneurs. Updated annually, the NaVOBA State Tracker offers the latest snapshot of how well each state is supporting veteran-owned businesses through legislation and programmatic action. Grading states across key policy areas — including procurement goals, loan programs, access, and veteran business incentives — the Tracker has become an indispensable resource for policymakers, advocates, and veteran entrepreneurs alike. Its consistent year-over-year updates ensure transparency, encourage accountability, and highlight where real progress is happening. The 2025 State Tracker update reveals a wave of new legislation and expanded initiatives that are reshaping the veteran business landscape across the country: Alaska: Senate Bill 154, sponsored by Sen. Bill Wielechowski (D-Anchorage) and signed into law in August 2024, created a 2% bidder preference for state contracts awarded to businesses that hire veterans and help transitioning servicemembers enter the civilian workforce. Illinois: SB 3807 amended the Build Illinois Act to increase the small business loan cap from $400,000 to $2 million or 50% of project costs, directly benefiting veterans, minorities, women, and persons with disabilities. Kansas: Statute 73-230 mandates contract preference for service-disabled veteran businesses, with a goal of awarding at least 3% of all applicable contracts. Kansas currently holds a 4-star rating in the State Tracker. Maryland: In 2024, the state increased its veteran procurement goal from 1% to 3% and expanded its Military Personnel and Veteran-Owned Small Business Loan Program, offering no-interest loans up to $100,000. Massachusetts: The HERO Act, signed in August 2024, provides a $2,500 Veteran Hire Tax Credit to small businesses and includes expanded protections for veterans' healthcare and disability benefits. Tennessee: The new Veteran Ready Business Recognition Program recognizes employers that hire and support veterans, offering tiered certifications (Bronze, Silver, Gold) and visibility through digital badges and public listings. These state-level victories matter—but they're just the beginning. For veteran-owned businesses looking to grow and scale, the biggest opportunity isn't in government contracts. It's in Corporate America. While state and federal contracts provide important opportunities for veteran-owned businesses, Corporate America is the largest and most scalable marketplace for veterans to compete and thrive. 'Most veteran-owned businesses who identify as a Veteran-Owned Business (VOB) are aware of and trying to compete for government contracts,' said Matthew Pavelek, President and CEO of NaVOBA. 'While this can be very lucrative, it's dwarfed by the opportunity in Corporate America simply since there are so many more potential customers. In fact, that same 5% of private sector spending is more than $150 billion annually.' 'The opportunity in Corporate America is by far the greatest marketplace for veterans to compete,' Pavelek added. 'More than 900 FORTUNE 1000 companies include Veteran's Business Enterprises as preferred vendors in their supplier diversity programs.' NaVOBA works closely with corporate partners to integrate veteran businesses into these supplier networks and maximize visibility, access, and growth potential. The NaVOBA State Tracker- Transparent, Evolving, Impactful: NaVOBA's State Tracker uses a 0 to 4-star rating system to evaluate states' legislative and programmatic support for veteran-owned businesses. It is regularly updated to reflect changes in state laws, executive orders, and veteran-focused initiatives. The Tracker helps policymakers and advocates identify where veteran entrepreneurs are supported — and where there's still work to be done. It serves as a benchmark for progress, a tool for accountability, and a call to action for stronger and more consistent support nationwide. Explore the Tracker and Join the Movement: With state legislatures passing impactful new laws and Corporate America continuing to expand supplier diversity, the NaVOBA State Tracker remains a vital resource in bridging opportunity gaps and honoring those who served — not just in words, but through economic empowerment. 🔗 Explore the Tracker: To fully capitalize on these opportunities, veteran-owned businesses are encouraged to become NaVOBA Certified. Certification verifies your veteran status and positions your business as a trusted supplier for corporate partners actively seeking to diversify their supply chains. It is recognized by leading Fortune 1000 companies, provides visibility through NaVOBA's national database, and enables veteran-owned businesses to stand out in competitive corporate procurement pipelines. 🔗 Learn more and apply: Marketing Team NaVOBA +1 724-362-8622 [email protected] Visit us on social media: Facebook X LinkedIn Instagram YouTube Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content 'as is' without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Corporate tax update, passed by Alaska Senate, could generate millions for dividends, services
Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, speaks Tuesday, April 15, 2025, on the floor of the Alaska Senate. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) A change to Alaska's corporate income tax structure is expected to add as much as $65 million per year to the state treasury by diverting money from other states. The Alaska Senate voted 16-4 on Tuesday to approve Senate Bill 113, which clarifies that online sales to Alaskans amount to business activity within the state. If passed by the House and approved by Gov. Mike Dunleavy, it would be the state's first new revenue-generating law in years. Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage and the sponsor of the bill, said that without the change, businesses can say that the location of an online sale is a server farm or warehouse outside of the state, making it ineligible for Alaska taxation. Passing the bill is a step toward resolving a major budget deficit, he said, adding that the change won't have an impact on Alaskans and isn't a tax increase. Thirty-six other states have adopted similar tax rules. 'It's about as close as you can get to a unicorn bill to raise money for the state of Alaska,' he said during a news conference on Tuesday. 'It's a bill that doesn't raise taxes on Alaskans, doesn't raise taxes on Alaskan businesses. It's not going to cost any more simply changing the structure of our corporate income tax. It will probably, quite frankly, shift money from other states to the state of Alaska, and so it'll be a unicorn. It's kind of a rarity. There's probably not too many of these out there,' Wielechowski said. Sen. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, said the bill is necessary to modernize the state's tax system. 'You can get pretty much anything online and it comes to your door, and many of these companies that are doing business here in Alaska pay a little or no corporate income tax due due to what has become, I think, an outdated structure for how we assess companies that are primarily located out of state,' he said. Opposition came from four Republican members of the Senate minority, including Sen. Shelley Hughes, R-Palmer, who said she believes it is inappropriate to pass a new revenue measure without also considering changes to the state's spending cap. Senate Minority Leader Mike Shower, R-Wasilla, also voted against the bill, saying he doubts Wielechowski's claims and believes costs will be passed to Alaskans. 'Somewhere, somebody's paying more money if we're raising taxes. The businesses are not charities,' he said. SB 113 has been referred to the House Finance Committee for further hearings. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
