:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/adn/FFOLMVTI2FEAHEVAAVXR6TFX3Y.jpg "Dunleavy’s budget draft includes plans to modernize Alaska’s state computer systems, reopen a shuttered trooper post and advance the West Susitna access road")
A proposed Alaska state budget issued by Gov. Mike Dunleavy this week includes a preliminary funding plan for maintaining or improving the state’s infrastructure.
The capital budget, as it is known, differs from the operating budget — which funds state services — because most of it is made up of one-time funding appropriations that cover projects to be completed in the coming year.
The governor’s budget proposal — which serves as a starting point for lawmakers’ crafting of the state’s upcoming budget — numbers hundreds of pages of proposals and ideas. Much of the operating plan remains unchanged from the current fiscal year. The budget covers the 2026 fiscal year, which starts in July.
Here are some of Dunleavy’s ideas.
Funding for computer systems
Dunleavy’s capital proposals include millions of dollars in funding to improve not just Alaska’s physical infrastructure, but also the computer systems that are used for state services. Alaska’s aging computer systems have been blamed in recent years for major delays in the approval of applications for food assistance and for delays and errors in the payroll of state workers.
Dunleavy is requesting $7 million for a statewide attendance management system that will improve payroll services for the state’s 14,000 public employees. According to budget documents, the current system “does not adequately address the complex timekeeping needs arising from various bargaining units and special agreements.”
“The existing process involves over 200 event codes and significant manual input, leading to inefficiencies and increased potential for data entry errors,” the department said in its request. Last year, a union representing 8,000 state employees alleged that hundreds of its members were paid incorrectly that year due to errors made by the state payroll division.
The Department of Administration, which oversees the payroll division, stated that the new system will reduce the error rate, in part by reducing reliance on paper forms.
This year’s budget request also includes nearly $4.5 million for a new Permanent Fund dividend application system. Among other changes, the new system is expected to use artificial intelligence in order to “improve operating efficiencies.” This year’s request comes after lawmakers already approved earlier this year a $7.5 million appropriation for the project. In total, the new dividend application system is expected to cost nearly $12 million.
Dunleavy is also requesting $8 million for a new case management system in the Department of Law. The department stated that its current system for tracking civil cases “is not compatible with moving to the cloud” and its criminal division system “is unable to keep up with the amounts and types of evidence and experiences connectivity issues with the court system.”
The Department of Law is expected to request an additional $5 million to complete the full project next year, for a total cost of $13 million to update the Department of Law’s case management system.
Reopening a shuttered Talkeetna trooper post
The administration wants $2.4 million to reopen an Alaska State Trooper post in Talkeetna that closed in 2016.
The state announced in 2015 it would close the Talkeetna trooper post to save about $80,000 annually. Following the 2016 closure, the sergeant, four troopers and one administrative assistant who were assigned to the Talkeetna post were reassigned to the Mat-Su West post, 45 minutes away from Talkeetna.
But this time, Dunleavy is not proposing that those positions be returned to Talkeetna. Instead, he is proposing to create five brand-new positions, at an annual cost of nearly $1.5 million, including a sergeant, three troopers, and a criminal justice technician.
The Department of Public Safety says the Mat-Su has seen significant population growth, but law enforcement “lacks sufficient capacity to effectively respond to calls” in Willow, Talkeetna and Trapper Creek.
The deployment of troopers in the Mat-Su has been contentious. The borough has long opposed funding its own dedicated law enforcement department.
Adding village public safety officers — if they can be found
Dunleavy’s budget proposal also includes $1.2 million to hire five additional Village Public Safety Officers on a temporary basis, but not all currently funded positions are filled, according to the Department of Public Safety
If the requested funding is approved — and the positions are filled — that would bring the total number of officers to 90, from a low of 38 in 2019. But the number of positions would still be lower than the peak of more than 100 officers in 2012.
Though the department currently has 85 funded VPSO positions, there were only 71 filled positions as of June of this year, an increase of only two from the previous year.
The village officers provide law enforcement, fire suppression, search and rescue and emergency medical services in the communities where they work.
The proposed additional positions come through grant funding, meaning they could be discontinued in the following fiscal year, depending on the length of the grant.
“Attracting and retaining VPSOs remains a persistent challenge due to high turnover rates, remote postings, and the extensive training required. This challenge is exacerbated by infrastructure limitations and resource constraints in many rural communities,” the department stated.
Progressing on the West Susitna access road
Dunleavy is asking for $2.5 million to put toward the controversial West Susitna Road Project.
The road project’s full cost was previously estimated at $350 million for a 100-mile route that numerous mining companies have eyed for potentially lucrative deposits. Dunleavy has continued to push for the road to be built despite opposition from some residents of the region, including by dissolving a public oversight board whose members were skeptical of the project.
Critics say the project threatens salmon habitat and the wilderness character of an undeveloped part of the state. Dunleavy and the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority say it would open access to minerals, timber, coal and renewable energy sources, along with recreational opportunities.
Lawmakers had previously appropriated $8.5 million toward the project. The funding is intended for AIDEA, which oversees the planned project for the state, to obtain the necessary environmental approvals for its progress.
Clearing homeless camps
The administration wants $500,000 in the operating budget to hire contractors to clear vacated homeless encampments from the side of state roads.
The Department of Transportation and Public Facilities says the number of abandoned camps are growing in state rights-of-way. Contractors would clear debris, waste and hazardous materials, state transportation officials said in a budget request. The department said it will focus on “critical areas” that have “posed ongoing challenges.” It said that using contractors rather than department employees would be cost effective.
Making room for burials
The Anchorage Cemetery is nearly full, so Dunleavy is asking for $1 million in state funds to purchase and establish the Eagle River Cemetery. The request comes after Dunleavy vetoed the same amount of funding for the cemetery in last year’s budget.
Anchorage voters rejected earlier this year a $4 million bond that would have established cemeteries in Eagle River and Girdwood.
Body armor for troopers
The Department of Public Safety wants $750,000 to outfit Alaska State Troopers with new protective gear. The department says the funds would be used to buy new ballistic shields, and to replace “expired body armor,” which “presents significant risks.”
Additionally, the capital request would replace “outdated” shotguns used to deploy less-lethal rounds. The department says those shotguns “have demonstrated a 60 percent failure rate.”
”Without this new equipment, troopers will continue to face considerable risks from high-caliber firearm assaults, and the continued use of failing less lethal shotguns may result in increased reliance on lethal force,” public safety officials said in their budget request.
Boosting University of Alaska Fairbanks
Dunleavy is asking for $5 million in funding for the University of Alaska Fairbanks to achieve R1 status, given to the nation’s top research institutions. The request comes after Dunleavy vetoed a similar funding amount approved by the Legislature earlier this year.
According to the budget request, the $5 million grant “has the potential to transform Alaska’s economy” in part by attracting top students and faculty. Alaska is one of only five states without an R1 research university.
Studying Alaska king salmon
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game wants $22 million over five years to study king salmon numbers across the Gulf of Alaska.
In March, a federal fisheries agency launched a year-long review to determine if Alaska king salmon should be listed as an endangered species. The review was triggered when the Wild Fish Conservancy, a conservation group, filed a petition that argued the prized fish is at risk of extinction.
The department’s capital request notes that king salmon “run sizes have generally been decreasing and ocean conditions have been changing, sometimes dramatically.” As a result, some king salmon fisheries across the Gulf of Alaska have been closed or severely restricted for over a decade, the department said.
The five-year study is intended to provide up-to-date information on king salmon stocks to help “sustainably manage” Alaska’s fisheries, state officials said.
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