ANCHORAGE:Business leaders across Alaska are publicly making suggestions for how the Legislature could possibly handle the state’s fiscal crisis ahead of next year’s legislative session.The Alaska State Chamber of Commerce in a draft letter addressed to Gov. Bill Walker and sent to the state’s 62 elected officials said cuts to programs and services should be prioritized over new revenue streams such as taxes, according to the Alaska Dispatch News
Nineteen businesses and business groups had signed the letter .“The goal here is to show broad alignment among the business community, that while there is a problem, there is also a solution,” said Rachael Petro, president and CEO of the Alaska Chamber.In an August letter from the Alaska Bankers Association, the group suggested a similar approach. Unlike the chamber, the board of the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation outlined a plan in a letter released Wednesday that considers cuts and new revenue all at once.
“Our board decided not to take a linear step-by-step approach,” said Bill Popp, president and CEO of AEDC. “When a business has a down situation like the state does and has the assets available to it like the state does, it comes up with a comprehensive plan to address its issues. That is the tone and direction of our letter.”Despite the clear distinctions in plans, many businesses in the state belong to more than one business organization, which could make pleasing major players in the state economy a challenge.
