Anchorage Issues

1.      Amend AK Constitution for Sheriffs & Move State Capital to Anchorage

·       Sheriffs are elected, provide local law enforcement and jail administration

·       Budget from State is managed locally with direct accountability to the community

·       Can be used to facilitate temporary housing shelters for unhoused populace

              Every year, campaign promises are made to address the unhoused, addiction problems, vagrancy and crime rate in Anchorage & the state. No solution has been implemented, as we see these problems continue and worsen.

As our population has grown, the need for community policing has as well. I propose that we amend the state constitution to allow Boroughs to elect Sheriffs.

         Elected Law Enforcement, will be able to bring community policing to our residents. Direct oversight and administration of the jails, protecting residents’ property, providing oversight and investigative help to municipal agencies, assisting in traffic mitigation, fire investigations, and court security are many ways in which this elected official can provide the much needed support to our neighborhoods. As an elected official, this provides the people the power to demonstrate their specific needs and wants with community law enforcement.

Revitalizing downtown Anchorage should start with cleaning up the streets of vagrancy and crime. Providing tax incentives to headquartered corporations and reduced parking fees can attract more traffic. Special Legislative sessions should occur in Anchorage, reducing costs to the Alaskan Tax payer, and providing residents an opportunity to attend hearings and address their representatives while on the road system.

1.   Ban Corporate Homeownership in AK

2.   AirBNB Limits  / Pied-A-Terre Non - Residence Tax

3.   Promote Alaska LNG Major Infrastructure Project to Encourage Competiton

  Major corporate investors have purchased many homes throughout the United States, disenfranchising Americans and preventing their ability to reach financial security. The President has advocated for this to be law, after issuing an executive order.

Here in Alaska, we face a different set of abuse from corporate landlords. Residential homes owned by corporations & non-residents, listed for short term rentals, create scarcity for our full time residents. This artificially increases rent prices, while simultaneously reducing quality of long term rentals. Providing a structure that allows vacation rentals to exist, while protecting our residents must be a priority of the next legislative session.

To encourage competition, we must have additional major infrastructure projects. Competition for labor will increase salaries, provide greater supply of skilled labor, higher demand for small businesses & increase our economic output.

·       Change requirements of PFD – stricter qualifications, for only true - full time residents

·       Removal of Board members if Rate of Return is below market average & Charge Back Management Fees

·       Removal of Oil Company Subsidies

              The PFD is one of the greatest economic stimulators and tools to combat our high cost of living. Not only does it jump start the Winter season, it allows for many families to purchase school supplies, Winter fuel, fund hunting expeditions, catch up on bills, or spend within our local economies. To eliminate the PFD, would be instituting a regressive tax. HB209, introduced by the incumbent, would limit the PFD distribution to a fixed rate, regardless of the rate of returns. The bill would eliminate eligibility for any Alaskan over $50,000. A single dollar over the limit would eliminate your share of an economic stimulant, and additionally, would devastate the “Pick. Click. Give” program so many Alaskans donate to. This would result in millions of lost funding for charitable nonprofit organizations that make the difference in our communities. The longevity of the PFD needs to be a priority for this reason. Restoring prior revenue streams before the introduction of oil tax credits, removing the S Corp loop hole, and providing an avenue for nonresident workers to contribute to our state are the needed solutions for long term PFD sustainability.

·       Department of Agriculture to address Snap issues & promote food production and security in AK

·       Promote Grocery competition and Local Food Markets

              The Division of Agriculture needs to be made into a cabinet level position in Alaska. Alaska was fined millions of dollars over the improper implementation of SNAP benefits, which the department should oversee, to prevent any delays for Alaskans receiving these benefits. Further, our distance from the lower 48 puts our supply chain at the end, and we face these problems at the grocery store with lower quality, higher prices, and food scarcity. To combat our continually increasing cost of living, we must grow more in Alaska, better our supply lines, and encourage local grocers and farmers to sell direct to the community. Fairview is in a food desert with the closure of Carrs, and this creates a further economic burden on our neighbors.