ISER Research Announcements 6:59 PM (20 hours ago) to iser_publicati. ​ISER Research Matters is our effort to quickly let Alaskans know about research findings from the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER), at the University of Alaska Anchorage. We post these periodically on our website and also distribute them by e-mail. If you’d like to be removed from or added to our e-mail list, visit http://matrix.uaa.alaska.edu/mailman/listinfo/iser_publications, or send us a message at ResearchMatters@uaa.alaska.edu. Research Matters No. 99: Short-Run Economic Impacts of Alaska Fiscal Options March 31, 2016 A report analyzing the potential short-run economic effects of eleven options for reducing Alaska’s huge budget deficit is now complete. The authors are ISER economists Gunnar Knapp, Matthew Berman, and Mouhcine Guettabi. They looked at potential effects of several kinds of state spending cuts, new taxes, saving less of Permanent Fund earnings, and reducing the Permanent Fund dividend. They emphasize that they don’t advocate or oppose any option, but rather intend to help Alaskans understand and compare the potential short-run effects on income and jobs of different ways of reducing the deficit. In the big picture, they found: • Different ways of collecting money from Alaskans affect those with higher and lower incomes in significantly different ways. • Anything the state does to reduce the deficit will cost the economy money and jobs. But spending some of the Permanent Fund earnings the state currently saves would not have any short-run economic effects. In the longer run, saving less would slow growth of the Permanent Fund and reduce earnings. • Because the deficit is so big, the overall economic effects of closing the deficit will also be big. To see their detailed findings, download the report, Short-Run Economic Impacts of Alaska Fiscal Options​ (PDF, 4.3MB). If you have questions, get in touch with the authors: Gunnar.Knapp@uaa.alaska.edu, Matthew.Berman@uaa.alaska.edu, and mguettabi@alaska.edu.

Dave Harbour, publisher of Northern Gas Pipelines, is a former Chairman of the Regulatory Commission of Alaska, a Commissioner Emeritus of NARUC, NARUC's Official Representative to IOGCC and Vice Chairman of NARUC's Gas Committee. He served as Gas Committee Chairman of the Western Conference of Public Service Commissioners. He also served as commissioner of the Anchorage Bicentennial Commission and the Anchorage Heritage Land Bank Commission. He earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree: English, at Colorado State University, a Master of Science Degree: Communications-Journalism at Murray State University and graduated from Utility Regulatory School for Commissioners at Michigan State University. He served as a Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs at Alaska Pacific University, taught bank marketing classes at the University of Alaska and was an English teacher at Los Alamos High School. Harbour served in ranks of Private - Captain during a 4-year assignment with the Army in Korea, Idaho, Georgia and Fort Meade and received the Meritorious Service Medal among other commendations. Harbour is also a past Chairman of the Alaska Council on Economic Education, the Alaska Oil & Gas Association Government Affairs Committee, the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce, the Export Council of Alaska and the Department of Commerce's District Export Council. He is a past President of the Alaska Press Club, American Bald Eagle Foundation, Consumer Energy Alliance-Alaska and Common Sense for Alaska. Harbour was instrumental in founding the American Bald Eagle Research Institute (UAS), the Alaska Support Industry Alliance, the Downtown Anchorage Business Partnership, and Arctic Power. He also served as CEO of several small Alaska organizations, including the Anchorage Parking Authority and Action Security, Inc. Harbour is also Chairman Emeritus of the Alaska Oil & Gas Congress. Harbour's wife, Nancy, is a professional, performing arts administrator and his three boys, Todd, Benjamin and William work in the fields of environmental management, energy marketing and medicine.