7-26-17 We’re on the road; but here’s your COMMENTARY from Seward, Alaska….

Committee Passes Bill to Improve Transparency, Management of Federal Land Ownership

Comment: Since the majority of federal land is within Alaska, the 49th state could be a major beneficiary of legislation to inventory federal land assets. -dh

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources passed H.R. 2199, the “Federal Land Asset Inventory Reform Act of 2017” or the “FLAIR Act.” Introduced by Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), the bipartisan bill requires the Department of the Interior to create a publicly available register of federal real property to increase transparency and improve management of the federal estate.

“Federal land managers often do not have a precise picture of what lands the federal government owns because there is not one accurate database of federal lands and their boundaries. The FLAIR Act increases transparency and efficiency by conducting an inventory of its federal property holdings and integrating the findings into one database that can track and manage property. By adopting the FLAIR Act, we can improve federal land management, resource conservation, and environmental protection, all while reducing land ownership conflict and saving taxpayer dollars in the maintenance of one, efficient database,”Rep. Cramer said.

Click here to learn more about H.R. 2199.

Commentary: “Adult spending, passing our debt down to our children and the minimalist lifestyle.”

Senator Cathy Giessel. Northern Gas Pipelines stock photo by Dave Harbour

We trust Senator Giessel (See her constituent letter below), one of Alaska’s finest legislators, to bring exceptional judgment to the capital budget bargaining table during this time of fiscal crisis.

We would hasten to remind readers and legislators alike that while the Capital Budget may include an 80-90% match of federal dollars, the state is in the midst of financial crisis. Today’s fiscal crisis involves a multi-billion dollar deficit that has almost wiped out Alaska’s “available” savings accounts. Therefore, as in family life, there comes a time when adults have to look at each other and agree that, “no matter how cheap or how compelling or essential this expenditure is, we cannot afford it.”

Alaska’s available savings are nearly gone. Alaska’s debt load burden is growing with the expansion of medicaid, unsustainable government spending, unfunded public pension liability and rating agencies’ downgrading of creditworthiness. Should not elected leaders and their constituents alike, therefore, have the discipline to avoid every possible penny of expenditure…no matter how attractive the new acquisition might be?

And there is another thing. “Matching FEDERAL dollars are not free. Federal dollars come from two sources: taxation and fees paid by working citizens and proceeds from $20 trillion in public debt whose repayment we have kicked down the road to our kids, the future taxpayers.”

Adults can take some courage in knowing that millennials — their offspring — do not want their parents’ debt just as they lack interest in our accrued memorabilia; if you doubt that, just ask them. We also note that, more and more, millennials are cherishing the minimalist lifestyle — learning from us the dangerous traps that lavish lifestyles lay before us.” -dh (Reference: here and here)

TOMORROW’S SPECIAL ALASKA LEGISLATIVE SESSION UPDATE BY: SENATOR CATHY GIESSEL

Dear Friends and Neighbors:

The legislature is headed back to Juneau for a 3rd Special Session, this time to address the Capital Budget. This is the budget that provides funding for road projects and deferred maintenance. It leverages significant Federal funding, especially for road projects, generally at an 80-90% rate of match. This is important to do now, as construction season is now and projects for next year are approaching planning and design stage. Transportation infrastructure is a core government service. Private sector companies provide the majority of the planning and design, as well as the construction work.

About the Author: wpnorthern

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.