By Corinne Smith and James Brooks, Alaska Beacon
For the second year running, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed an education funding bill on Thursday, citing a lack of policy changes he supported.
House Bill 69 would have increased the base student allocation — the core of the state’s per-student funding — by $1,000 in the funding formula. The BSA has not been substantially increased for more than a decade, and public school advocates testified that inflation-driven cost increases have resulted in cuts to programs, school closures, and larger class sizes.
The governor’s veto is subject to a vote of the Alaska Legislature. Under the Alaska Constitution, a vote to confirm or override the vote must be held “immediately,” but multiple lawmakers have said that the bill lacks enough support for a veto override. Votes from 40 of 60 state legislators, meeting in joint session, are needed for an override.
Last year, the education funding bill included a $680 per-student increase. That bill had broad bipartisan support, with only three Republican legislators voting against it. But after Dunleavy vetoed it, 20 Republicans voted to uphold the veto. This year, none of the 25 members of the two Republican minority caucuses voted for the bill. The three co-chairs of the Senate Finance Committee voted against it.
Editor’s note: This is a developing story.
