The Alaska State Senate (Alaska Senate) is the upper chamber of the Alaska State Legislature, based at the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau. It votes on bills and the operating budget, confirms appointments, and joins the Alaska House of Representatives on appropriations.
Photo: Matt Howry via Wikimedia Commons · Photo source · CC BY 2.0
Alaska State Capitol, 120 4th St, Juneau, AK 99801
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Alaska Legislature: Senate Resources - October 14, 2026 10:00am · Oct 14, 2026
Alaska Legislature: Senate Resources - October 14, 2026 10:00am · Oct 14, 2026
Tim Powers
“The legislature has already appropriated this money in the budget cycle this last year. We did use a sole source justification, Section 040 exemption for this procurement. KTO has unmatched infrastructure. They already possess the technological setup, the broadcast equipment, and the institutional knowledge and have a working agreement with the legislature that's spanned for over a decade already. It's impractical to put this out for competitive bid.”Alaska Legislature: Joint Legislative Council, 8/25/26, 11am · Aug 25, 2026
Tim Powers
“Transitioning to a new vendor would require costly duplication of infrastructure and risk disruptive delays to service that the public relies on. Because this contract value exceeds $50,000 in a single fiscal year, Council action is required to approve the contract.”Alaska Legislature: Joint Legislative Council, 8/25/26, 11am · Aug 25, 2026
Tim Powers
“KTOO, who has provided longstanding public service in broadcast of the legislature by means of gavel-to-gavel coverage of the House and Senate floor sessions and committee meetings. They are essential for transparency for the legislature, for the public in this state, and due to the loss of federal funding last year, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting cut, KTO approached the legislature to secure funding to provide this service continuing.”Alaska Legislature: Joint Legislative Council, 8/25/26, 11am · Aug 25, 2026
Alaska Legislature: Joint Legislative Council, 8/25/26, 11am · Aug 25, 2026
Giessel says free AIDEA land transfer takes over the Legislature's appropriation power
Senate Resources Chair Cathy Giessel says DNR's free transfer of 20,000 Houston-area acres to AIDEA usurps legislative appropriation power and forgoes about $14 million a year.
by Walter AlaskaNews2d ago2 min read
Senate committee votes to subpoena DNR commissioner over AIDEA land transfers
Alaska Senate Resources Committee votes to subpoena DNR Commissioner John Crowther to testify Oct. 26 and produce records on no-cost state land transfers to AIDEA.
by Walter AlaskaNews3d ago4 min read
Giessel says governor kept DNR commissioner from legislative hearing on AIDEA land transfers
Senate Resources Chair Cathy Giessel said the governor denied DNR Commissioner John Crowther's appearance Thursday at a joint legislative hearing on proposed no-cost land transfers to AIDEA. Senate Resources will meet Oct. 14 on executive branch appearances.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago3 min read
Legislative attorneys say Houston land transfer to AIDEA may fail public-purpose test
Legislative Legal Services told a joint Resources Committee hearing Thursday that DNR's plan to give AIDEA nearly 20,000 acres near Houston may not meet the public-purpose test. AIDEA's director said state law settles the question in his favor.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago3 min readNorth Slope crude runs $15 above Alaska's spring forecast, budget group says
Daily tracking by Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets puts fiscal 2027 North Slope crude at $90 a barrel against a $75 state forecast, a gap worth about $970 million if futures hold. Production is running about 50,000 barrels a day below forecast.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Prince William Sound faces a winter without ferry service as the Aurora is overhauled
Prince William Sound ferry: Aurora overhaul leaves Valdez, Cordova and Whittier with little or no winter service; state plans docks in Cordova, Tatitlek and Chenega.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Lawmakers press state on Safer Seward Highway project's size and funding as DOT reopens comment
Safer Seward Highway project: lawmakers question the four-lane plan's size and funding as DOT reopens its environmental comment period and cites crash data.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read
Southcentral's gas storage is two-thirds full with winter coming
Southcentral Alaska's two commercial natural gas storage fields are about 68 percent full heading into winter, with roughly 16 billion cubic feet of space empty.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Alaska's youngest students are improving in math and reading. Older grades aren't.
Alaska's 2025-2026 AK STAR results, released Thursday, show math and reading proficiency rising in grades 3-5 while grades 6-9 hold near 29 to 32 percent. Commissioner Deena Bishop called achievement in the higher grades relatively flat.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Alaska Legislative Council approves $851,400 for KTOO's Gavel Alaska coverage
The Alaska Legislative Council approved a contract worth up to $851,400 with KTOO Public Media to continue Gavel Alaska coverage of legislative proceedings.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Alaska's audit watchdog gets a new leader, inheriting a fisheries probe and a new power over the governor
Mark Lundahl takes over as Alaska's acting legislative auditor Aug. 31, inheriting a Board of Fisheries special audit and new access to state oil and gas tax records.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Gas tax package still off the Senate floor as the special session nears its limit
The Alaska State Senate met Monday for a technical session, waived roll call and other opening business, took up no bills or resolutions, and adjourned until 2 p.m. Friday, August 21.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Dunleavy vetoes hunting residency bill and university fee bill
Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed a bill tightening residency rules for hunting, trapping and sport fishing and a bill requiring the University of Alaska to itemize student fees. Both veto messages were read into the Alaska State Senate record Tuesday during a technical session with no vote.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Senate majority to regulators: reconsider the rejected gas storage project, and make BlueCrest produce
At a press availability Monday, Alaska Senate majority members said they are sending a letter asking the Regulatory Commission of Alaska to reconsider its denial of Enstar's Kenai gas storage petition. They also called on the governor to get BlueCrest's undeveloped Cosmopolitan lease into production.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min read
Alaska Senate Majority says gasline tax break waits on Glenfarne financial numbers
The Alaska Senate majority says it won't commit to the gas pipeline tax break without detailed financials from Glenfarne and Gov. Dunleavy, as cost estimates range from $44.5B to $70B.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago4 min read
Governor's disaster declaration unlocks state aid for Talkeetna flooding
A July 25 disaster declaration authorizing state public assistance for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough over Talkeetna flooding was read into the Alaska State Senate record Tuesday during a technical session.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Alaska Senate opens fourth special session with technical session, adjourns to Friday
The Alaska State Senate opened the fourth special session Monday in Juneau as a technical session, taking no action on natural gas taxation and adjourning until Friday, July 31. Members heard the governor's proclamation and word that the House had killed HB 381.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Alaska Senate passes LNG bill as Republicans warn it kills financing
The Alaska State Senate passed LNG legislation 11-8 on July 16, drawing immediate opposition from Senate Republicans who say three provisions Glenfarne warned against four weeks ago will make the project impossible to finance. A fourth special session is scheduled for July 27, with supply agreements Republicans say will begin expiring in roughly two months.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Alaska Senate passes HB 381 oil and gas tax bill 11-8, with dissenters signaling more work ahead
The Alaska State Senate passed the conference committee substitute for House Bill 381 on a split 11-8 vote Thursday, advancing legislation that reshapes oil and gas property taxes and governs the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation, but senators who voted no said the S corporation tax provision needs to be fixed before the bill can do what it promises.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Dunleavy vetoes six bills, including invasive species and polystyrene measures
Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed six bills on June 24, including measures on invasive species management and polystyrene food containers that passed with bipartisan support. The Alaska State Senate received the gubernatorial messages in a technical session Wednesday.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Alaska LNG tax bill advances as working draft, disputes unresolved
The Alaska Legislature's conference committee on HB 381 adopted a new working draft Thursday, with members raising disputes over how the alternative volumetric tax applies to required local contributions, among other provisions. Chair Schrage said the committee would take a few days off for the holiday weekend before reconvening to refine the bill further.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago3 min read
Kenai's $9.4M school-cost risk may never actually come due
One version of Alaska's HB 381 gas-tax bill could raise Kenai Peninsula Borough school-funding costs up to $9.4 million a year, but a sunset provision may mean none is ever charged.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Gas-line developer warns Alaska's Senate terms could drive it off
Glenfarne warned an Alaska conference committee that Senate amendments to the HB 381 gas-line tax bill, including a 9.4% investor tax, could deter investment and threaten the project.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Alaska's gas-pipeline bill now carries a tax on Hilcorp and others
The Alaska Senate added a corporate income tax on oil and gas pass-through entities like Hilcorp to the AK LNG gas-pipeline bill (HB 381), effective 2028 regardless of the project.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read
A pass-through tax, not the pipeline, is the real fight in Juneau
Alaska's gas pipeline tax bill conference committee weighs a new pass-through tax on oil and gas producers and a rewritten volumetric tax splitting revenue with communities.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago3 min read
Kenai's quiet stake in the gas-line bill
Legislative Finance Division modeling dated June 27 shows the Kenai Peninsula Borough could owe $9 million in Required Local Contribution in FY34 and $11 million in FY42 under the Senate Finance version of HB 381 — a school-budget consequence that hinges on which version the conference committee adopts.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min read
The number that quietly sets the state budget: a barrel of oil
Alaska North Slope crude is running above the state's Spring 2026 forecast, hinting at surplus revenue — but the forecast itself assumes a late-year jump to $91 a barrel.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
An oil spike filled Alaska's budget and hammered its schools — and the new budget sends some back
Gov. Mike Dunleavy signed Alaska's FY2027 budget, directing a temporary oil-revenue windfall to school infrastructure and rural districts' rising energy costs.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
The $16 Gas Promise Comes With Fine Print
A consumer watchdog warns Alaska's $16 gas-line price may climb before delivery, while utilities call the firm cap protection against costlier LNG imports.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Alaska's LNG tax break now hinges on a gas line to Fairbanks
A Senate Finance draft of HB 381 ties Alaska LNG's tax break to Glenfarne paying $80M, signing a labor deal, and building a gas spur line to Fairbanks.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
A union-labor fight is breaking out over who builds Alaska's gas line
A Senate amendment mandating a union project labor agreement on the Alaska LNG pipeline has sparked a fight over apprentices and out-of-state labor.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Alaska Senate digs in on gas tax bill, sends it to conference
The Alaska State Senate voted 0-16 on whether to recede from its amendments to House Bill 381, failing to do so and sending the natural gas pipeline tax measure to a conference committee. The chamber also passed two procedural resolutions and introduced two new Senate bills before adjourning until July 1.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Alaska Senate passes S-corp LNG tax with 2028 effective date
The Alaska Senate on Friday adopted a pass-through entity tax on oil and gas income with a 2028 effective date, after rejecting an immediate version 9-11, then passing HB 381 12-8 with the provision included.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read
Senate passes gas-line bill; Dunleavy immediately calls lawmakers back to rewrite it
Alaska's Senate passed LNG bill HB 381 12-8; Gov. Dunleavy called a second special session to rewrite provisions he says would sink the North Slope gas project.
by Cale Green3mo ago3 min read
Dunleavy called a second special session over the unresolved LNG tax bill
Gov. Dunleavy called a second special session over the unresolved Alaska LNG tax bill — and the legislature overrode two vetoes but failed on three more
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read
Alaska Senate minority demands clean floor vote on LNG tax bill
The Alaska Senate Republican minority caucus held a press conference Wednesday urging the Senate majority to bring HB 381, a volumetric tax bill for the Alaska LNG pipeline, to a clean floor vote, warning that delay or unrelated amendments could jeopardize the project before a developer deadline.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Senate Finance presses Alaska LNG spur line: who builds, who pays, who regulates
The Alaska Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday heard unresolved questions about who will build, own, and regulate a proposed Fairbanks natural gas spur line, how its cost should be spread across ratepayers, and whether HB 381's spur commitment is firm enough to guarantee construction.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago3 min read
Senate Finance demands Phase 1 pipeline math before Alaska LNG tax vote
Senator Bert Stedman pressed the Alaska Senate Finance Committee to obtain standalone Phase 1 pipeline economics before acting on Alaska LNG tax relief. The special session ends in four days.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Alaska House passes new tax structure for Alaska LNG pipeline aimed at attracting investors
The Alaska House passed HB 381 on Friday, replacing property tax with a volume-based tax on natural gas transported through the proposed Alaska LNG pipeline. Governor Mike Dunleavy called the vote a significant step toward advancing the project.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago3 min read
Senate Finance weighs Alaska LNG tax worth $124M a year — and whether it's enough for host communities
Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche told the Alaska Senate Finance Committee Wednesday that the House version of the Alaska LNG tax bill provides a workable 70% property tax reduction, while the original 90% cut would have left local taxpayers subsidizing the project.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago3 min read