OPINION: Alaska’s senators show courage in leadership

On February 2nd, the Alaska State Senate voted to encourage all Alaskans and make it appear that our elected leaders were able to negotiate difficult conversations, tough votes, or difficult compromises for the greater good. At times, they acted in ways that quelled the cynicism we tend to feel toward them. of our state. What did the Senate do? They passed Senate Bill 88, a public employee retirement bill that provides small pensions to state employees. The matter is now before the House of Commons.

Why is this law important? Alaska is no longer a competitive employer and is in crisis as a sector with ever-increasing vacancy rates attempts to provide critical public services. One in five state jobs is unfilled. Nearly all leaders in Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s administration have said staff recruitment and retention will be a top concern in their 2025 budget proposal before the Legislature.

How did we end up in such an uncompetitive position? The Alaska state government abolished Social Security in 1955, so most public employees do not receive Social Security benefits. In both cases, most people do not have other additional savings plans. Before 2005, we were able to stay competitive because of our pension, but in 2005 we gave that up too. Does it have anything to do with pensions? Let’s ask the governor.

Michael Dunleavy, a native of Scranton, Pennsylvania, was interviewed in the October 10, 2009 issue of the Scranton Times Tribune about his educational experience in Alaska. He then served as superintendent of the Northwest Arctic School District. Mr. Dunleavy had unqualified praise for Alaska’s pensions, saying: I was able to retire with a retirement package that many people would envy as part of their earned income. ” Today, this is no longer the experience of school teachers and civil servants.

Daily headlines across Alaska illustrate the inability of police departments to staff shifts. Schools are not opening due to a lack of teachers. Snow plows abandoned due to lack of operators. And entire communities are suffering from food and shelter shortages due to a completely submerged welfare sector. It would be foolish to hide the seriousness of the situation.

Economists at the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, researchers at the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation, Governor Dunleavy’s Teacher Recruitment and Retention Task Force and state agency heads all say the same thing. Alaska can no longer retain its workforce, wages and benefits are no longer competitive compared to other states, and service delivery continues to decline without drastic, decisive action to change the tide. is expected.

Is this just a public sector issue? No, it directly impacts the private sector. A slowdown in permitting for residential and commercial building projects, roads, and other economic development activities means project viability, schedules, and financing all fall apart. Businesses can’t operate if their employees can’t work because the roads aren’t plowed. As a result, schools are closed and last-minute childcare facilities are unavailable. This public-private dynamic represents a collective and individual obligation that we all share.

Senate Bill 88 is the culmination of a 15-year effort by lawmakers, pension accountants, and employee organizations to provide public employees with a small pension option. Alaska ended pensions in 401k plans in 2005 due to incorrect actuarial advice that directed the state to zero employer contributions to the pension program for two consecutive years. As a result, a large amount of unfunded liability was incurred. The state won a $500 million civil judgment against actuary Mercer, but the damages were incurred. Alaska has eliminated its previously well-funded pension system that evaluated the experience and skills of its “day labor” cash workforce. And today we are suffering the consequences of that decision.

Are there risks with this new pension plan? Yes, there are with any retirement plan. I would also like to add that many public servants face significant risks to you and me every day as they keep our communities safe, educate our children, and plow snow from our streets. Is your pension plan de-risked? Absolutely. Sheiron, a pension accountant who has been instrumental in strengthening Alaska’s pension system, and Pension Trust Advisors testified before Congress on the soundness of the retirement system proposed in Senate Bill 88.

The bill has endured withering and misguided criticism from out-of-state advocacy groups that have made a fortune selling pensions to employees of Alaska’s current defined contribution plans. These groups have no interest in Alaska’s future and no personal stake in our well-being. Nor does it care about our public safety, the education of our children, or the quality of our roads and infrastructure. Still, I have hope because there are qualities about Alaska that no one should miss. We may have our differences, but they don’t divide us like most other states. We have a strong sense of valuing our neighbors, our unique identity as Alaskans, and our way of life. Bitter winters, vast frontier states, lack of roads and infrastructure, and concerns for safety and survival are common bonds that unite us in times of hardship.

In fact, the solution to the recruitment and retention crisis and the failures of the Public Employees Retirement System will be found not in the governor versus the Legislature or the Senate versus the House, but in the unity of the Governor and the Legislature and the Senate and the House. The toughest problems always require trade-offs to achieve the best outcomes, and the best solutions are never the product of party or political parties, but only come together as Alaskans.

I’m proud to be a senator from Alaska. We all have confidence in Governor Dunleavy and the House of Representatives that we can find common causes and solutions that will keep Alaska strong and our future bright.

Dominic Lozano He is also the president of the Alaska Professional Firefighters Association, which advocates for the health, safety, and interests of firefighters and emergency personnel throughout Alaska.

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