Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced a series of vetoes Thursday that spanned $215 million in budget cuts, the âpaltryâ $525 Permanent Fund dividend and $2 million in per diem payments for lawmakersâ expenses in Juneau.
âLawmakers need to finish the work on protections for the Permanent Fund and the PFD before paying themselves,â Dunleavy said about the per diem veto.
The governor vetoed $17.5 million in Medicaid services and $10 million from the Alaska Travel Association. He eliminated $12.5 million for an upgrade to the Alaska Vocational Technical Center as well as funds to help pay for renovations at the University of Alaska.
âWe want to keep the budget tight,â Dunleavy said in a press conference Thursday afternoon. âThere is not going to be massive reductions, but there are reductions to drive the size of government down.ââ
Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - The impact of Canada s order on Alaska s cruise ship season is sure to dominate the discussions of the Southeast Conference during its Mid-Session Legislative Summit next Tuesday through Thursday.
Executive Director Robert Venables had this reaction to the latest development. It just really is a gut punch, he said.
He added that they have tried to keep businesses encouraged and optimistic about hanging in there and surviving. Last year the Cares Act really helped get them through, but nobody was made whole and they re just barely hanging in there, leveraged to the hilt and in debt and exhausted out of their savings, so this announcement by Canada certainly is disheartening.