Annual budget battles between the Alaska House, the Senate and the governor are shaping up as a fight between the size of the PFD and a proposed increase to public school spending after years of flat funding.
. The Senate majority has acknowledged that implementing a new pension plan will take longer than one legislative session. But the Senate’s desire for a permanent increase to the state’s per-student funding formula remains on the table for this year.
Dozens of education advocates rallied on the Alaska State Capitol steps Thursday in support of a substantial increase to the Base Student Allocation, the state's per-student funding formula on April 20, 2023. The Kenai Peninsula School District is projected to have a $13 million budget deficit next year, which has resulted in layoffs for district support staff, said Superintendent Clayton Holland. He said if school funding was not increased, that the equivalent of 78 educators would be sacked.
To draw from the $2 billion Constitutional Budget Reserve — the state’s main savings account — requires a three-quarters approval vote by lawmakers in both legislative chambers. That vote failed to get enough support from the Democrat-dominated minority caucus, meaning the one-time school funding boost was deleted from, which advanced to the Senate Monday. But there could be a second chance if a draw from savings is included in the final budget bill.
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