We are already entering week four of the legislative session! The group of eight legislators (two from each caucus) have been meeting with Governor Mike Dunleavy’s (R – Alaska) legislative director to try make some kind of deal on education. Governor Dunleavy released his FY2025 supplemental budget. The yearly compensation and travel report of executive positions was released, showing salaries and travel are both up from 2023. Senate President Gary Stevens (R – Kodiak) made it very clear that dipping into the Constitutional Budget Reserve is not an option. Yet another announcement was made about the looming gas crisis in Southcentral. In a press conference, President Donald Trump said that Japan is looking to import LNG from Alaska via a gas pipeline. And the State of Alaska filed a lawsuit against the new casino the Village of Eklutna opened in Birchwood. 

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Several state executives saw pay increases last year, travel costs also up

The following is an excerpt from a special edition of the Alaska Political Report. You can click here for more information about the Political Report. A subscription is $1,299/year per organization. Discounted pricing is available for non-profits and government entities. Our coverage of the budget starts with the governor’s proposed budget, and we track everything in detail through the entire process. If you have any questions or would like to subscribe, please email jeff@akpoliticalreport.com.

The 2024 executive compensation and travel report is out. It’s a reminder that the state continues to pay some eye-popping salaries to some of its executives — particularly at state corporations and other quasi-independent entities. A significant pay raise went into effect last year for the governor, lieutenant  governor, and commissioners that was passed in 2023 by the State Officers Compensation Commission. 

The report also shows state travel was up from 2023, despite a September 2023 memo from the Office of the Governor attempting to curtail travel. We will have a breakdown of the legislative travel reports soon. 

Note that “other” compensation usually refers to travel but can include things like leave cash out, salary adjustments, or relocation expenses. 

• Frank Richards, who heads the Alaska Gasline Development Corp., continues to be Alaska’s highest paid state employee. He was compensated $488,000, $86,000 of this was classified as “other.” This is an $8,000 increase from the previous year. 
• Bill O’Leary, president of the Alaska Railroad, was compensated $351,000, $15,0000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $3,000 decrease from the pervious year. 
• Bryan Butcher, chief executive at Alaska Housing Finance Corp., was compensated $379,000, $17,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $23,000 from the previous year. 
• Deven Mitchell, the executive director of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation, was compensated $397,000, up $47,000 from the previous year.
• Randy Ruaro, the head of the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority was compensated $316,000, $34,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $46,000 increase from the previous year.
• Scott York, the director of the Alaska Psychiatric Institute, was compensated $281,000.  
• Curtis Thayer, the head of the Alaska Energy Authority, was compensated $252,000, $28,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $26,000 increase from the pervious year.
• Sana Efird, executive director of the Alaska Student Loan Corp., was compensated $254,000, $89,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $51,000 increase from the pervious year.
• Bryan Barlow, a former deputy commissioner for the Dept. of Public Safety who now heads the Wildlife Troopers, was compensated $250,000, $44,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $16,000 increase from the pervious year.
• Jusdi Warner, the executive director of the Alaska Mental Health Trust Land Office, was compensated $226,000, $7,200 of which was classified as “other.”
• Stacie Kraly, the director of the Civil division at the Dept. of Law, was compensated $224,000, a $14,000 increase from the previous year. 
• Bill Smith, the state CIO, was compensated $217,000, $8,000 of which was classified as “other.”
• John Skidmore, the director of the Criminal division at the Dept. of Law, was compensated $216,000, an $11,000 increase from the previous year. 
• Terrence Haas, a former judge who is now the head public defender, was compensated $215,000, $3,000 of which was classified as “other.”  
• John Linnell, a division director at the Dept. of Transportation, was compensated $209,000. This is a $9,000 increase from the previous year.
• Ryan Williams, executive director of the Alaska Municipal Bond Bank Authority, was compensated $180,000, $4,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $13,000 increase from the previous year. 
• Tyson Gallagher, Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s chief of staff, was compensated $193,000, a $13,000 increase from the previous year. 
• Jeremy Woodrow, the chief executive of the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, was compensated $183,000, $18,000 of which was classified as “other.” This is a $19,000 increase from the previous year. 
• John Oberst, CEO of the Alaska Aerospace Corporation who started in February 2024, collected $173,000. 

If you would like to see the rest of this section, as well as our more detailed coverage of the legislative session, consider subscribing to the Alaska Political Report. Email jeff@akpoliticalreport.com for a copy of the latest special report. 

Education, Education, Education

Education continues to be the big issue in Juneau. A group of eight legislators have been meeting with Jordan Shilling, Governor Dunleavy’s legislative director, to try and hammer out some kind of deal on education they can all get behind. Dunleavy has been out town all week. No one seems to know where he is, or if they do they aren’t talking. Here are the legislative negotiators:

• Senate majority: Senators Bill Wielechowski (D – Anchorage) and Löki Tobin (D – Anchorage)
• Senate minority Senators Shelley Hughes (R – Palmer) and Mike Cronk (R – Tok/Northway)
• House majority: Speaker Bryce Edgmon (I – Dillingham) and Representative Rebecca Himschoot (I – Sitka)
• House minority: Representatives DeLena Johnson (R – Palmer) and Justin Ruffridge (R – Soldotna)

Himschoot has a bill to increase the Base Student Allocation (BSA) by $1,800 over three years. Senator Matt Claman (D – Anchorage) has a bill to effectively make education funding a yearly decision by the Legislature. And Governor Dunleavy has a bill that includes many reforms he has supported like increased funding for charter schools and letting parents choose what public school their kids can attend. 

All the groups are pretty far off. The House majority will probably pass a large BSA increase, but probably smaller than the amount in Himschoot’s bill. The Senate majority is far apart on what kind of increase they support. And unless Dunleavy gets some of his reforms, he will probably veto any bill like he did last year with Senate Bill 140. 

The fact that Dunleavy has not been around also does not bode well. Legislators negotiating directly with Dunleavy would make cutting a deal easier. But even if they are able to hammer out a deal, or the framework of a deal, does not mean both majorities would be on board. Amendments can always be made. And with just 21 members in the House majority, things could get shaky on the floor. 

Other Happenings 

A bug has been going around the Capitol. Many legislators and staff have been out sick this week. The House majority did not have enough members to make quorum on Friday, so they opted to do a technical floor session. With just 21 members, if the majority is missing just one member they don’t have enough for quorum without the help of the minority. Each body must hold floor session every fourth day during the session, per the Alaska Constitution. Technical floor sessions area way to comply with the constitution when they do not have a quorum. 

It looks like Senator Donny Olson (D – Golovin) will be out for some time. He is in an intensive language program in Chicago due to aphasia, the loss of the ability to speak. Unlike the House majority, the Senate majority has enough members to avoid a problem if one member is gone for a while. If this had been a member of the House majority, they would have a real problem. 

Senate President Gary Stevens did not mince words when reporter Mark Sabbatini from the Juneau Empire asked him if they would dip into the CBR to fund deficit spending. Depending on the price of oil and the amount of the PFD, that could end up being hard to avoid. 

The Alaska Democrats were in Juneau this weekend for a central committee meeting. Former Representative Mary Peltola, and several of her former staff, and former Senator Tom Begich were both spotted in town. Eric Croft was elected as the new chair of the Alaska Democratic Party. 

Chugach Electric, Harvest Midstream (Hilcorp), and Marathon announced a deal this week to convert the old Marathon Kenai LNG export facility into an LNG import facility. At least this time all the players are serious. But it’s still insane it’s come to importing LNG for Alaska’s energy needs. 

The Railbelt electric utilities were once again in Juneau talking to the Legislature. What no legislator seems to be willing to ask is why we have five of these things in the Railbelt (with a population of around 500,000). There should be one electric utility in the Railbelt, not five, and one gas utility (which there is).Think about all the duplication. They all have executive teams (highly compensated) and boards. The amount of money and bullshit saved by having one electric utility on the Railbelt instead of five would be staggering. This is absolutely something the Legislature and governor have the power to make happen.   

While no exact deal has been made with Japan, if they do end up committing serious money to buying Alaska LNG, it could make the gasline much more likely. With Trump you never know. But I always take these kind of announcements with a grain of salt.   

Governor Dunleavy appointed businessman John Binkley to the Permanent Fund Board of Trustees. He replaces Ellie Rubenstein, who resigned last summer months after this Landmine story came out. Binkley also sits on the Alaska Railroad board of directors. 

The State of Alaska filed a lawsuit against Eklutna’s new casino on a Native allotment in Birchwood. It was filed in Washington D.C. rather than Alaska, which could be for a variety of reasons. This is the second lawsuit challenging the casino. This Landmine story has more details. 

Speaking of that casino, the Marnell Gaming people (Vegas company bankrolling the Eklutna casino) were in town this week. A meeting with them and Representative Jamie Allard’s (R – Eagle River) went off the rails! 

Really going to miss Rayme. I have gotten to know him well since I started coming to Juneau in 2019. He’s one solid dude. And he has some incredible stories. He will be missed around the Capitol. 

This Week’s Loose Unit

Normally this section is funny. Not this week. There is nothing funny about this week’s designee. This week’s Loose Unit is the North Slope Borough. There is not really much else to say than who the hell thinks it’s acceptable to drag a dead body through the street on a sled? Just absolutely sickening. You can see the video here, as well as the half-hearted attempt of an apology from Mayor Josiah Patkotak. 

If you have a nomination for this week’s Loose Unit, or if you have any political news, stories or gossip (or any old pics of politicians or public officials) please email me at jeff@alaskalandmine.com.