050922-00 Dutch 100_0634.jpg	050922-01 Chuck May 100_0635.jpg
050922-02 Margie Germain-Antrim telling about their Juneau club with Ken Osuna, Ken Mill, Joyce Kiana & Lana Johnson at table 100_0636.jpg	050922-03 Senator Con Bunde 100_0637.jpg
050922-04 Ginny Grupp & Senator Con Bunde 100_0638.jpg	050922-05 Chuck May, Senator Con Bunde, Carol & Mike Howerton 100_0639.jpg
050922-06 Ken Hatch, Ken Osuna, Joyce Kiana, Ken Mill, Lana Johnson & Margie Germain-Antrim 100_0640.jpg	050922-07 Nati May, Gene Bjornstad, George McCoy, Jen Esterl & Ken Hatch 100_0641.jpg

back to Top of Page

The meeting was called to order by Past President Chuck May at approximately 7:05 pm with Tom Yeager leading the Pledge of Allegiance followed by Introduction of guest by Secretary Ron Burson.  See the list of attendees below.  As an inspirational message and Rotary Moment for the night Chuck called on our Juneau Rotary guest, Margie-Germain-Antrim to tell us a little about her club.  She talked about their club, area and some of the fundraising vents.  They have a flower web site at??

Members and guests present are listed in the tables below.

Announcements

·       George McCoy announced the schedule for the GCVA Spaghetti Feed on Saturday at 6 pm at the Day Lodge.  Tickets are $10 for an adult or 25 for a family.  It’s a fun event so come on down.

·       Chuck presented our club flag to Juneau Rotary Club Guest Margie Germain-Antrim and welcomed her to our club meeting.

·       Carol Howerton announced that November will be Vocational month and each meeting will have a surprise vocational theme or event.

 Guest Speaker:

·       Chuck introduced our speaker, the Honorable Alaska State Senator Con Bunde.  Senator Bunde got involved in politics about twelve years ago because he was unsatisfied with his representative.  He is a believer in if you complain you ought to be able to offer an alternative – he was the alternative and spent 7 years as the state representative for his area and the last 5 years in the Senate.

·       He is currently Vice Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Chairman of the Labor and Commerce Committee and serving on a new task force for Public Policy on Geographic Differential for State School Systems.

·       If you’re a curious person, the legislature is a great place to be.  As Chairman of the Finance Committee, all bills pass through his committee, so he has access to every bit of information being considered.  It’s very important to have input from the general public and hopefully, with that input, he can write some legislation that is pleasing to the public – and hopefully even some can get the support of the majority of the senate.

·       Senator Bunde said he would speak mainly on 5 points and then leave time for some questions:  they are education, Workers Compensation, Gas Line, Budget Surplus and Legislation.

·       The recent teacher settlement in Anchorage was reached with the understanding that within a year both the City and the Union would approach the State for additional funding.  It’s not quite so simple as that since the state funding of schools is based on long-standing formula – a specific number of dollars for each student.  Sooo, if Anchorage schools get 15 to 20 million dollars, the total cost would be about 100 million with another 50 million for miscellaneous regions. 

·       Input from individuals is extremely important for a legislator to function.  Example: the off ramp at Huffman was set up with a left turn lane, a right turn lane and a lane for traffic going straight.  A constituent called and asked why not have the left turn lane go straight as well.  Senator Bunde said he didn’t know and called the DOT, who said they didn’t know either – it sounded like a good idea.  The upshot is that they changed the left turn lane into a straight ahead and left turn lane, relieving some of the traffic congestion.  Without public input, this would not have happened. 

·       Alaska is unique.  Some of our Senate Districts are larger than any state just to be able to attain the minimum 32,000 population needed for a district.

·       We have nineteen school districts in Alaska that don’t contribute anything toward their local schools – it’s all state or federal money.  Anchorage schools budget source is 85% from local generated funds.  It’s important that every community provide some support for their schools.  If they have money invested they take more interest in maintaining it and monitoring the programs.

·       The recent retirement changes are significant.  In 1976, 20,000 Alaska workers supported 640 retirees.  Today, that ratio difference has decreased to 43,000 workers now supporting 28,000 retirees.  Changing from a defined benefit to a defined contribution system should alleviate many of the problems.  In the medical claims area, we need to seek ways to eliminate the waste and fraudulent claims.

·       Senator Bunde is confident that the new proposed Gas Line will happen. There are hard fought negotiations ongoing.  However, we must be reminded that if an agreement is signed tomorrow, it would be another ten to twelve years before any revenue is generated from the gas line.  There is a need for us to take advantage of this “opportunity of a generation.”  After an agreement is reached, the process allows for a thirty day comment period, after which the agreement is submitted to the Legislature for their up or down vote.  The Legislature is not afforded the opportunity to make any changes, only a yea or nay vote.

·       There will be an estimated surplus next year of about 1 billion dollars.  That surplus will be a tremendous challenge to the administration, the legislature and the population of Alaska.  Among the many suggested uses for the surplus are: get rid of the gasoline tax or provide a fuel oil subsidy.  These suggestions have many inherent problems.  The administrations suggestion is to use the surplus to finance the new pipe line.   Oil revenues pay for about 85% of the state government. For those that remember the 1985 – 1986 retraction after the oil boom years, they may happen again in about 4 to 5 years.  It’s important that whatever use we decide for the surplus, that it be a wise choice.

·       There are a number of senate bills Senator Bunde is promoting.

o      SB112 – provide for each community to contribute to their schools

o      SB134 – Provides for statewide standards for police investigations of sexual assault

o      SB195 – Sometimes referred to as the Homestead Act.  It allows for a deferral of property taxes for seniors or if a person falls on hard times.  Taxes will be deferred up to when property is sold.

o      Other bills have to do with eminent domain and material witnesses.

  Q & A:

·       George McCoy asked about resolving the drug and drug dealing problems.  Senator Bunde said that legislation would not solve the problems, only more funding would resolve it.  State Troopers are paid less than their counterparts at most other agencies and there is a constant shortage of candidates.  Many potential candidates do not want o be assigned to remote Alaskan outposts.  There is full expectations that when the mom & pop drug operations are busted the Mexican Cartels will move in.

·       Tom Yeager asked what the current thinking was on state ownership of the new gas line.  Senator Bunde said our state does not have a good record on state ownership and cited several examples that had been disastrous.  He cited the huge cost overruns from the oil pipeline and also said the “talk” is about 20% ownership, no need for tax breaks to developers and that he was not personally convinced of the need for state ownership.

·       Gene Bjornstad asked about the rumors of shortening the legislature session by law due to nothing being accomplished until the last week or two of any session.  Senator Bunde said that if the sessions were mandated to last a maximum of 30, 60 or 90 days, the business would still be concluded in the last two weeks but the quality of work done might suffer.  Sometimes the seemingly lack of business being accomplished was actually a reaching of consensus and working through the potential impacts.  Currently three senators have introduced bills for shortened legislative sessions.  They are all three republicans and all three are new to the state legislature. None have had the experience of dealing with a Governor of an opposing party, as he has had in the past.  He recalled one session where they had to resolve “eight months of mischief” by the Governor of the other party while the legislature had not been in session.  Constitutionally, our Governor is the strongest in the nation.

·       Carol Howerton asked, in view of the recent weather caused problems along the gulf coast, if any consideration had been given to earthquake preparedness by the legislature to make communities, neighbors, etc., aware of where the gas shutoff, etc are located in the event of a major earthquake here. Senator Bunde joked that although this sounded like a great project for Rotary to undertake, FEMA did have procedures in place.

 Adjourn:  The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:07 pm.

back to Top of Page