Day 74 of 90 Day Session

by Senator Lyman Hoffman

Good morning,

Day 74 of the 90-day session…47 days left to the constitutional 121 days of session. This week, the Senate Finance Committee heard overviews from Alaska’s WWAMI program. WWAMI is a one of a kind, multi-state medical education program offered through the University of Washington. WWAMI stands for Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. The Governor proposed eliminating this program in his budget. The overview included facts and figures, or good arguments on why the program should be continued.

The Committee also had open discussions on K-12 Education funding and on the Permanent Fund Dividend program. In addition, the Committee heard SB 55: Temporary Appointments to Court of Appeals and SB 61: Commercial Fishermen’s Fund: Vessel Owner Claims.

This week, the Senate Community & Regional Affairs Committee heard a historical perspective from Meera Kohler on the Power Cost Equalization Program. This program has been in existence for several years and is a continuing education process in the Legislature as new Legislators cycle through.

I would like to extend my appreciation to the House Finance Committee for including the community of Bethel during their outreach for public testimony on the FY20 budget. Thank you to Representatives Zulkosky and Josephson for chairing the hearing and a huge thank you to all who participated in providing comments during the hearing.

www.senatorlymanhoffman.com

If you haven’t had a chance to visit my new and improved website, please do! All of my newsletters are posted weekly on the site. Another idea I had was to have pictures up on the website from happenings around the capital. At this point of session with the weather turning from winter to spring, I would really love to see some photos of the district! Send your photos of the district to [email protected].