More people left Alaska last year than they have in decades, with net migration out of the state at its highest point in the past quarter-century . . .
The departures don’t appear to be caused by the state’s current financial problems because they came before oil prices dropped, Department of Labor economist Neal Fried said. “When those numbers were put together, we thought $100 oil was normal,” Fried said, referring to the per-barrel price . . .
The migration likely has more to do with improving employment opportunities in the Lower 48, Fried said. People historically come to Alaska when the rest of the U.S. is struggling with unemployment, he said. (Read more from “Record Exodus: Why People Are Leaving Alaska” HERE)
A Senate committee advanced legislation Monday that would update state laws related to marijuana crimes.
The Senate Finance Committee moved the bill after adopting a new version.
SB 30, would update state crimes now that certain recreational use and possession of marijuana is legal for adults 21 and older. It sets out the crimes for possession of larger amounts of marijuana, allows emergency responders under 21 to enter marijuana businesses, and prohibits delivery or transportation of marijuana for sale or barter.
It also would prohibit a commercial or retail marijuana industry in the state’s unorganized borough outside of municipalities, although it allows established villages to opt back in.
The most contentious of the amendments the committee discussed earlier in the month, which would have banned marijuana concentrates beginning in 2017, was not included in the version of the bill the committee advanced. (Read more from “Alaska Senate Panel Advances Bill Regarding Pot Crimes” HERE)
This past week, Alaska’s House of Representatives voted to move forward a reduced budget at approximately $5.4 billion. While there is a substantial difference between our revenue income and this budget, it is clear that the House Finance committees ( HFIN ) have done diligent work to get to this number.
The real issue is to completely rethink our funding formulas to get Alaska’s budget to a level of sustainability. The old models are archaic and will not provide a legitimate path forward. We must act on two fronts:
1. To sustain and promote our diverse investment formulas in order to counter-balance any further decline in the price of oil.
2. To root out the gross inefficiencies of a government system unaccountable in it’s irresponsible spending. This is imperative. This is clearly the issues Representative Lora Reinbold stands against, which brings me to this point.
I wish to speak to all of you with clarity regarding the stance Representative Lora Reinbold took on the House floor. While she gave great credit to the diligent work that had been done in the House committees, she could not, in good conscious, vote for a budget which, in her representative opinion, is loaded with inefficiencies and questionable expenditures given the current, serious, fiscal climate.
As citizen’s we take great issue with an ” internal system” which coerces members of political groups to “delphi” their vote. This is certainly against the grain of representative democracy and especially egregious considering all of you took an oath to defend our Constitution.
It has come to our collective attention that the House leadership will be meeting in conference to take up the issue of a reprimand and disciplinary action toward Representative Reinbold. She is not the target. The target is clearly an inefficient system and financial structure which has be perpetuated for way too long.
As you step into the halls of your committee, to mitigate the perception of damage a rogue representative may cause to your cabal, I want to remind you that Alaska is filled with “rogue citizens” who have staked our tents in the valley of her thoughts and convictions. To make her a target of your disdain is to send a clear and concise message to us all, for it is not only her you are reprimanding, but the foundations of our representative democracy. Your reprimand will not only be to her, but to us all.
In conclusion, I do not write to you as the Chair of the Libertarian Party, nor do I write to you as the Chair of United for Liberty. I write to all of you as a parent who wants my daughter to enjoy the full breath of freedom and liberty which has been given to us all. The manner in which you direct the financial future of Alaska will determine whether she may return to Alaska one day beyond college and continue writing the story of my family as proud Alaskan’s.
I ask you for your maturity in our financial guidance and I ask you to embrace our Alaskan sister, Lora. She deserves nothing less.
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-03-15 23:50:502016-04-11 11:01:17Open Letter to All Representatives of the House, State of Alaska
Photo credit: roger4336Please, this is Serious. TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT THESE FACES [below images]. These are the people that make decisions that affect our lives and our liberties. These people are also the ones who will either “destroy individual Alaskan’s financial liberty from state government” or “save it.” Right now, we are at a critical juncture and on the wrong track. ALL but the newly elected Governor and eight Representatives are responsible for past budgets with the greatest deficit spending in the history of Alaska. This excessive deficit spending has put Alaskans on the fast track to a statewide income/sales tax and an eroding PFD. If this happens, these are the names and faces to blame. You are witnessing with your own eyes the “Crime of the Century.”
They were all forewarned that their current spending was unsustainable and would lead to extreme financial consequences in the near future. They were all forewarned that delaying these difficult spending cuts would only exasperate the situation and increase the complexity in the future. THEY DID NOT LISTEN. Last year’s deficit was $1.67 billion, with oil prices down it’s now approximately $3.8 billion. We are bleeding $10 million a day from savings. They have done nothing to try and stop it.
The drop in oil prices is NOT the problem. They are using that as a scapegoat. The anomaly is NOT low oil prices; it is high oil prices, check history. The PROBLEM is their spending addiction. Low fuel prices should be a time of celebration because it keeps more money in ALL Alaskan’s pockets. Instead we are singing the blues because of our spend thrift leaders, who should have been saving the excess revenue during the unusually high oil prices and adhering to a Sustainable Budget Model were instead supporting their pet projects, growing the size of government, and raising the dependency baseline. That is clearly irresponsible and negligent. That is white-collar crime! Billions of dollars, GONE! Now we are supposed to be understanding and accommodating. I’m mad as hell and you should be too! My liberty and yours came at a great price and we should let no one chip away at it or destroy it. They failed our trust.
The sad fact is Alaska re-elected all but four who chose to run again. This CAN NOT happen again! Every Senator who is currently in office was part of the “28th legislature high rollers club.” They were gambling with billions worth of our liberty and all Alaskan’s financial future, not their own. Their gambling losses will force us to pay in far more ways than just dollars.
Once Alaskans start defending their liberties with the PASSION of our founders this type of behavior from our elected officials will cease at ALL levels of government. Shame on all of them! They all took an Oath to uphold and defend the U.S. and Alaska Constitution. That Oath is there for a reason. They are not free to do as they please. The time for applying extreme pressure to these folks is way over due. The photo chart was designed to help identify the ones who need it the most. By the time this session is over we will know who our champions are, who needs to leave office and who needs to be behind bars.
For now focus on the Main Drivers. Senator Kelly was a Senate Finance Co-Chair last legislature and again this legislature. Maximum fault will be on his shoulders if Alaska fails financially. In a recent Senate Finance Committee he stated that he had just had an “interesting revelation about the magnitude of the problem.” WHAT?
Where in the world has he been? Why is he Finance Co-Chair again? Next are Representative Neuman and Senator MacKinnon who were both Vice Chairs of finance last legislature. Now they are both in the driver’s seat along with Thompson who sat on finance last legislature also. These are the next guiltiest if this falls apart. Governor Walker is front and center. He ran his campaign on 16% cuts and beat Parnell. Where are they Governor or did you already forget? We didn’t.
The Crime of the Century!!!
The ones that are no longer in office are still just as guilty and we need to not forget who they are. That is why their photos are included. Also, this chart focuses on the budget because that is the main focus right now and they’ll be tracked all the way through both sessions. Other main topics to be concerned with are the unconstitutional programs of Common Core and Obamacare Medicaid Expansion. Stay tuned for the Hall of Blame (Common Core) and the Hall of the Lame (Medicaid Expansion). If you like and want these programs, they are in other states, please consider moving!
LEGEND: — First off, print and hang the chart of photos on a wall. Familiarize yourself with the names and the faces. Know who these people are. — Top Row: These are the Financial Drivers. They hold the power to make or break a budget and they are the Governor and the two financial co-chairs of the House and Senate. They are most responsible and liable. — Left and Right Columns: House members are on the left and Senate members are on the right. They are in order by their seniority from top to bottom. If you believe in term limits you will find this helpful. — Oval Mats: Identifies the Financial Drivers in the 28th and 29th legislature. — Oval Circles: Identifies those on the 28th and 29th finance committees; 2nd most guilty group! — Gray Frames: They are near the bottom and newly elected. That does not make any of them innocent; several ran on pork promises. — Slash or X across the Photo: At the bottom. “Slash” indicates they did not run again. The “X” indicates they ran but were not re-elected. In 2016 I’d like to see that number rise, dramatically. — Text: The year they came to office is before the name followed by the party affiliation. A slash separates their time in the House from their time in the Senate. After the name, identifiers indicate if they were in the House Finance (HFIN) or the Senate Finance (SFIN) preceded by the specific legislature (28th or 29th). Last is their Juneau phone number. Call Often!
Passionately start defending your liberties. Get involved! Educate yourself. Listen to the legislative committee meetings (live or archived): https://w3.legis.state.ak.us/index.php. There is a call-in number. Call and email the Governor and legislators. Make public testimonies. Write public testimonies (very important). If you need help getting started, contact me. Anything is better than nothing.
*** If you are a true fiscal conservative and constitutionalist (small government and greater individual liberty/personal responsibility) please consider running for office. Duty calls!
NOTE: If you are a Legislator that is taking this Fiscal Crisis serious, removing Common Core from the state, and not implementing ACA(obamacare) Medicaid Expansion, your actions will be reflected positively in future updates and charts.
The new Sustainable Budget Number is $4.5 Billion!!!
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-03-09 01:30:242016-04-11 11:01:34Preliminary Alaska Fiscal Hall of Shame
The crash in world oil prices has sent Alaska state financial officials reeling. After years of high oil revenue, nearly unrestrained government growth, and unrepentant “bring home the bacon” pork spending, Alaska now finds itself with a whopping fiscal year deficit expected to exceed $3.5 Billion. If you divide this amongst Alaska’s tiny 738,000 population, this financial bloodletting amounts to a staggering $4,742 per individual Alaskan, $18,970 for a household of four, or $28,455 for a household of six.
For years Alaska has grown our state bureaucracies on autopilot by mathematical formula (around 6-9% per year) into cash draining behemoths. We now employ over 24,000 state employees- many of which to help protect Alaskans from themselves.
Our legislature also writes huge annual checks to literally hundreds of state funded non-profits for myriads of diverse social causes or even to entertain us, such as the Alaska State Fair. If you want to get a good laugh at some of the more humorous titled non-profits getting state funding just from just one state agency- Alaska’s Department of Health and Human Services, download their FY2014 report. I caution you not to try to print it out because it is 302 pages long and you may run out of ink, or paper, or patience trying.
Perhaps the worst example of legislative largess is found in the Capital Budget (I call it Alaska’s pork budget which may be a little harsh considering some of it is good). This is the part of the budget where new roads and bridges are funded. Who can argue with that right? This has however devolved into a catch-all category where legislators fund micro “pork” projects at every level in their voting districts- from sewer pipes, to extra fire engines and police cars, to senior center vans. These can be argued as good things to fund from a social viewpoint, but shouldn’t local governments fund local projects with local tax dollars and not rely on the state legislature to bridge the gap between their bronze-plated haves and gold-plated wants?
Last but not least is the profligacy of local entities continually voting to sell bonds for capital improvement projects such as roads and schools where the state is on the hook for paying back 70% of the bond debt back while the local entity only pays back the remaining 30%. Alaskan bond debt is now a crushing $40,714 per Alaskan– the highest in the nation.
At this hemorrhage rate, the legislature has only about three years’ worth of savings left in the financial blood bank before it turns anemic and must adopt new revenue sources such as a state income tax, a state sales tax, new oil taxes, or a raid on the PFD. All are being actively discussed for implementation as early as 2017. We need not go limping down this gray government-bricked road.
The University of Alaska Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) has calculated a maximum annual sustainable budget amount of $4.5 Billion (unrestricted general fund that is currently around $6.1B or $6.3B if you add the $262 Million annual PERS/TERS retirement contribution to make yearly comparisons). This is the amount we can spend annually nearly into perpetuity without having to implement ANY new taxes or raid the PFD.
With oil trading at $60 per barrel, Alaska will only generate about $2B in oil revenue. In this scenario Alaska will generate more income from our savings invested in financial instruments than from oil. However, if the Alaska legislature continues to plow through our savings like a Valdez snowplow in January on Thompson Pass, we will have no investment income left and therefore the sustainable budget number will also plummet to around $2B. It is absolutely essential therefore to reduce the state budget from $6.3B to $4.5B. If I were governor, I would rip the Band-Aid off in one year by vetoing any budget that came in a penny over $4.5B (this number does not include federal grant money which is additional). However since I am not governor, the current plan is to reduce our state budget to $4.5B over a three year period to help reduce price shocks in the economy. The goal then is to reduce state spending to $5.5B this year, then $5.0 the second year, and $4.5B the third year and thereafter. Many grassroots politicos are putting the entire political weight of their organizations behind this plan. Big-spending scoffers will likely find us funding their opponent during the next political primary.
Many legislators from both political parties would rather increase revenue rather than cut spending owing to the intense lobby pain being inflicted on them by special interest groups (who are also the largest campaign donors). The big-government ideological phrase now echoing through the legislative halls in Juneau is, “You cannot cut your way to prosperity.” Really? Imagine yourself as a CEO at the helm of a large corporation that was losing fistfuls of cash because of having too many redundant employees on their books that used that phrase to their investors. The board would fire the CEO immediately. Historically, states like Texas that have had the most prosperous economies in the nation have also governed themselves in the most businesslike manner by attempting to keep their bureaucracies small, budget balanced, and taxes low. Those that have tried to overtax and spend their economies into a Utopian existence like California always seem to be in financial trouble and have high unemployment. You cannot spend your way to prosperity either.
Having too many state bureaucrats living off the private sector reduces Alaska’s prosperity in three fundamental ways. First, public pay and benefit costs must be born on the shoulders of the private sector. Secondly, the state loses out on the potential economic growth from state employees that could be otherwise similarly employed in the private sector. Thirdly and not insignificantly, too many red-tape producing bureaucrats can slow new economic activity to a crawl as potential new natural resource developers are dragged through a veritable glacial mud steam of regulations, fees and permits.
Alaska’s economic future now rests in the strong hands of State Representative Mark Neuman (R-Big Lake). He is Co-Chair of the powerful House Finance Committee and in charge of Alaska’s massive Operating Budget (the Capital Budget is assumed to be nearly zero during this financial crises). Rep. Neuman told me he has a goal to reduce the Operating Budget by $600-700M which would put Alaska on the recovery trajectory. However, he is facing enormous opposition from special interest groups to keep spending levels near their historic highs.
Quite frankly, the special interest voices being heard in Juneau for continued levels of spending can be much louder than their district grassroots voices for spending restraint. The Roman Senate had a famous saying of vox populi, vox Dei or “the voice of the people is the voice of God.” Though somewhat blasphemous for a person of faith like myself, I am convinced that many legislators informally poll their districts daily by the volume of daily phone calls, emails, and faxes they receive as their district vox populi. If you the grassroots are silent on this issue, than the budget will likely follow the voices of the special interests and your family will soon be facing a state income tax, a state sales tax, an industry stifling rise of oil taxes, or the raiding of your PFD- or possibly all at once.
Keep Alaska financially solvent and a good place to do business and raise a family. Contact Rep. Neuman today to encourage him and his staff along with your local legislators. Crimson red now paints the Alaskan skyline. Whether it is on the east or western horizon is up to you. Contact Rep. Mark Neuman at 907-465-2679 or [email protected] to give him encouragement along with your local representatives. Remember, our elected legislators work for us, not the other way around.
A 28-year-old Italian tourist was killed in Alaska when he was crushed by a chunk of ice that broke from a glacier, authorities said.
Alaska State Troopers said Alexander Hellweger, of Sand in Taufers in northern Italy, died Sunday at Lake George Glacier, north of Anchorage.
Hellweger was with a group of eight friends from Italy and Belgium who were vacationing in Alaska. Guides had taken seven members of the party to the backcountry by helicopter to go skiing.
The party was later taken to the glacier site by helicopter. Troopers spokeswoman Beth Ipsen said the group began gathering for a photo.
“Alexander was away from the group, but making his way there when the others in his group of heli-skiiers reported hearing the crack of ice as if it was going to calve,” Ipsen said in an email. “Some members of the group ran when they heard the ice start to crack. The glacier calved and a chunk fell on Alexander.” (Read more about the Italian tourist being killed HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-03-03 03:11:532016-04-11 11:01:50Italian Tourist Killed When Hit by Piece of Alaska Glacier
Today we are on the precipice of determining whether Alaska should follow the guidance of Commissioner of Education, Michael Hanley and Alaska School Board President Esther Cox as they direct our entire educational K-12 foundation to align with the national and international standards and curriculum of Common Core.
Certainly, there are convincing arguments that there should be standards of achievement for students and that there should be a method of assessment periodically throughout what is commonly held as the “formal years of education.” The argument evolves into a sense that without these standards, our Alaskan children will not be able to properly compete with all citizens for work in a global market.
And certainly, one can argue that our current educational standards are subpar both globally (ranked 26th in the world) and nationally (Alaska~ 39th overall) which are issues we need to take into account specifically when Alaska spends more money per capita, per student than anywhere in the world at approximately $22,000.00 per student. When you factor in the Taj Mahal brick and mortar structures , we have no financial competition. We get the financial “Blue Ribbon” with very little accountability, which brings me to my next point…
Most people do not know that the Commissioner of Education does not answer to the Governor in the state of Alaska. To add insult to injury, neither does the Alaska School board. These are officials who are appointed through the legislature and do not answer directly to the electorate. I find it fascinating that the most important resource Alaska has is directed by administrators who are not directly accountable to “We the People.” Perhaps, this is why we get the results we have, which brings me to my next point…
Esther Cox ~ President of the Alaska School Board recently made remarks in the House Education Committee hearing when asked what implementing Common Core standards would cost the state over a period of ten years, Ms. Cox answered:
“I could not possibly answer that question. I don’t live and breathe this daily as do those through the department.”
Commissioner of Education, Michael Hanley has made statements all over the map regarding whether the State of Alaska is Common Core compliant, and whether or not our children’s personal data has been shipped away to a national database. His changing testimony over the last few years has been less than stellar and one could certainly argue extremely deceptive and definitely not forthright and transparent.
Through it all, even a passive observer will come away with a sense that the education network in Alaska is run by a very selective “education cartel.”
Generally speaking, the Alaska legislature has had somewhat of a “hands off” approach in directing educational policy, and those few legislators who have actively engaged in the promotion of ideas of educational excellence seem to be met with some form of ostracizing as “educational zealots.” One comes away with a sense that the professionals are in place to promote the monopoly of an average educational experience and nothing more which brings me to my next point…
Common Core is being “sold” to the Alaskan legislature and to the citizen’s of Alaska as the “new” best way forward. I find it disconcerting that Bill Gates recently stated that Common Core is a 10 year experiment. One must wonder if we should expend an entire generation of our children on an educational experiment cooked up in the “Bill and Belinda Gates” education kitchen, but I divert…
Common Core is actually similar to the same national conversation we are having regarding global warming or it’s new label, “Climate Change.” There is a fascinating similarity especially here in Alaska for instead of Commissioner Hanley calling our standards “Common Core” he just promotes them as “Alaska Standards” but any reasonable assessment would indicate that they are 95% compliant to Common Core , so much so that the federal government has been willing to shovel some educational dollars into our coffers all with the idea that we will be a “good little state” and be compliant. Why do I hear that catchy tune from the movie Chicago playing in my head….” Give them the old Razzle Dazzle…” which brings me to my final point..
We are on the verge of an educational explosion based on technology. Today we have the opportunity to deliver a massive array of educational packages that are interactive in real time for pennies on the dollar. We can either embrace this new technology and begin directing the definition of excellence in educational content, or be bound to the convention of the “horse and buggy” of Common Core which is simply put, reinventing the same experiment which has given us questionable results. Recently, the “education cartel” passed legislation that “distance learning” or internet educational content must come from Alaska based educators. Given this notion, if Albert Einstein were alive today and wanted to provide Alaskan children with physics lessons via the cyber world, he would be turned down unless he wanted to take up residence in Alaska. This is an excellent example how decisions are made inside the narrow confines of the “cartel.”
For me, it is a clear picture. On one hand, we can continue to assist in the development of a condensed curriculum of educational content controlled by a select few for their own proprietary reasons which is generally associated with force, fraud and money, or we can embrace the open source market and explore all the options available to direct educational content truly as a learning tool instead of the convention of the global model which simply exists to socialize our citizens to “fit” into a global construct.
Is there any reason why any motivated student cannot accelerate at their own pace far beyond the convention of any “minimum standards” of education. Don’t we owe our very intellectual existence to assist in the development of true “brain power” based on the spirit of an individual and their desire to want more than the conventions of an educational cartel working on a “Common Core” design in the backwater of an archaic workshop simply to move the money around within their legions?
Our constitution was written for the individual to protect our personal liberties from an oppressive government. At the very least, shouldn’t our education construct reinforce the strength of our individual nature in assisting us to reach for the stars? Is our educational salvation going to find it’s greatest achievement in social doctrine?
I say we are on the shore of a great educational journey. We should not lack the common sense it will take to reclaim our destiny. “Common Core” is nothing but an expensive and embellished anchor. One we do not have the luxury to afford.
To accept the nomination of Commissioner Michael Hanley and President Esther Cox is to purchase the anchor. We deserve better
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-02-24 02:00:132016-04-11 11:02:06Alaska Determining Whether it Should Follow Common Core (+video)
When it comes to well-being, Alaskans nabbed the top spot in the United States, according to an annual ranking. . .
Hawaii and South Dakota followed Alaska in spots two and three. And Kentucky stayed in the 49th spot, where it’s been for a number of years.
The 2014 rankings, released Thursday, are based on over 176,000 phone interviews with people in all 50 states. The Index measures how people feel about and experience their daily lives, and looks at their health across five categories: purpose, social, financial, community and physical.
Over the past seven years, Alaska has ranked in the top 10 four times. And Alaskans are having a good year for a reason, according to Dan Witters, research director of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index.
“They do a lot of the blocking and tackling, as far as taking care of themselves and making good choices, but also demonstrating good holistic well-being in ways that extend beyond the conventional physical wellness,” Witters said. (Read more from, “You’ll be Surprised about Which State Grabbed the Top Ranking” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-02-20 00:43:332016-04-11 11:02:12You Might Be Surprised By Which State Grabbed the Top Spot for “Well-Being”
Photo Credit: clarionledgerAs Americans stood horrified at the news of a Jordanian pilot burned alive by the terrorist group known as the Islamic State, one of the top law enforcement officers in the country talked about how Mississippians can fight those kind of extremist ideals within our own borders.
FBI Director James Comey, who was in the state for the second visit of his 10-year term, said there are open cases looking into individuals who may be related to ISIS/ISIL in every state in the Union except Alaska.
“Mississippi is a great state, but like all 50 states it has troubled souls that might look to find meaning in this sick, misguided way. The challenge that we face in law enforcement is that they may be getting exposed to that poison and that training in their basement,” Comey said. “They’re sitting there consuming and may emerge from the basement to kill people of any sort, which is the call of ISIL, just kill somebody.”
So he stressed that the threat is very real, not just for military or law enforcement or the media, all of whom have been warned by the FBI that ISIS could be gunning for them, but for ordinary citizens as well. (Read more about where ISIS probes are HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-02-06 02:04:242016-04-11 11:02:43FBI Director: ISIS Probes in Every State Except Alaska
Photo Credit: NASA When you think of NASA launches, you probably think of Florida and shuttle missions and massive rockets blasting into the sky. But NASA is busy launching all sorts of smaller projects that don’t attract as much of the space glory. On January 26, the space agency sent four suborbital sounding rockets up into the sky from the Poker Flat Research Range in Alaska.
A time-lapse composite image shows all four rocket launches as bright trails leading up into misty green aurora-filled skies. The otherworldy image shows stars streaking in a circular pattern, a green Lidar streak and frost-covered ground and foliage. (Read more about the photo from the rocket launching in Alaska HERE)
