Mat-Su's 2027 asks include school debt money, Talkeetna flood help and a stalled railroad

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough wants the state to send about $17 million in school debt payments, put $20 million toward protecting Talkeetna from the Susitna River and spend $300 million on a rail line that stalled almost a decade ago.

Those are the top money requests in the borough's draft list of priorities for the Legislature in 2027. The Assembly will take public testimony on that list, and a separate one for Congress, Nov. 17 and could adopt both that night.

Under a state program, Alaska repays part of what local governments borrow to build and fix schools. The borough is asking for about $12.5 million for the coming year, plus about $4.6 million it says the state didn't fully pay for the year that ended in June. The draft calls the state's unpredictability on those payments one of its "greatest challenges" in building a budget.

Talkeetna moved up the list. This summer, the Susitna River washed away a home and damaged others, and the state authorized disaster aid. A permanent fix protecting about 2 miles of riverbank, including the Talkeetna Spur Highway, could exceed $20 million, borough officials said in July. Talkeetna ranks second on the state list, up from 11th of 12 last year, and first on the federal list.

The rail line would connect Port MacKenzie, the borough's port across Knik Arm from Anchorage, to the Alaska Railroad's main line near Houston. Work stopped in 2017 when money ran out, after $184 million in state investment. In October, the federal government awarded the Alaska Railroad up to about $249 million toward finishing the roughly 32-mile line. The rail line ranks second on the federal list.

Borough Manager Mike Brown's memo puts five policy priorities ahead of the money requests: fishery management, Alaska State Trooper staffing, a tax holiday of up to 10 years for companies investing at Port MacKenzie, a state database of health claims that would let people compare what procedures cost, and transfers of state land to the borough. The state list also supports Alaska LNG and parental-rights legislation.

The current Assembly will vote on the lists. Newly elected members take office Nov. 23.