Alaska Lawmakers Vote on $449M Spending Bill

0:00Alaska lawmakers are gearing up for final votes on a $449 million supplemental spending bill. This fast track measure covers disaster responses and construction projects from the current fiscal year. A conference committee approved an amended version 5-1 on Monday with House and Senate votes possibly coming Wednesday. The bill allocates $70.2 million to Kickstar federally funded construction projects, a big win for the industry. It also funds last year's wildfire response and initial costs from ex-typhoon halong that hit Western Alaska. Higher oil prices, boosted by the Iran conflict, should cover most of it through June 30th. House Republicans, who make up the 19-member minority, have pushed back hard against dipping into the state's main savings account. The Constitutional Budget Reserve. They argue it's not needed now. The majority needs nine of their votes for the required 30 in the House, but pass attempts fell short. That opposition sent the bill to the conference committee for tweaks, like capping potential reserve draws.

1:05Senate leaders expect to clear the 15-vote threshold easily, but the House remains a question mark. Representative Will Staff from Fairbanks was the lone no vote in committee. As summer construction ramps up, pressure is on to pass this soon and avoid delays for businesses. We'll see if negotiations hold when the votes hit the floor this week. This has been Anchorage News Today, powered by AI. I'm Kori with the story.