Alaska Legislature: House Finance, 4/29/26, 4:30pm

All right, I call this meeting of the House Finance Committee back to order at 4:46 PM. I appreciate the patience of the public in waiting for us to finish up our work on the House floor. Present today, just to run through our standard process, we have Representative Galvin, Co-Chair Foster, Co-Chair Josephson, myself, Co-Chair Schrag, Representative Hannan has also joined us, and I expect other members to be streaming in momentarily. I'd also like to just take— quickly take a moment to thank our committee staff for all their work to help our committee do our work. That would be committee assistant Helen Phillips, Paige Tallulah Listufka, Secretary Bree Wiley, Secretary Leah Fraser and our Legislative Information Office moderator Emily Mesh.

Before we get started, I'd like to ask committee members to please mute their cell phones. We have one item on our agenda this evening. That's public testimony on Senate Bill 214, the capital budget appropriations bill. Public testimony is scheduled to end at 6:30 tonight. Testifiers may add themselves to the schedule until 6 PM when the schedule will close.

All testifiers who call in prior to 6 PM will be given a chance to testify. To put yourself on the schedule for testimony, call the appropriate number, and I'll list those off here. For those calling in from Juneau, the number is 907-586-9085. For those calling in from Anchorage, the number is 907-563- 9085. For all other locations, please call 844-586-9085.

Those numbers will also be displayed on screen wherever you are watching or streaming this hearing, so you should see that on your broadcast. We also welcome written testimony on the capital budget. Written comments should be submitted to House [email protected] by 5 PM tomorrow, April 30th. Again, that email is [email protected].

And I will note that we will have a 2-minute limit on public testimony. It can be very difficult to keep all that you want to testify on within that 2 minutes, and so please feel free to send in written testimony to the extent that you would like to. I will also note that if needed, depending on the number of testifiers that we receive tonight, we will extend the meeting to make sure that we can accommodate that testimony. All right, with that, we, I believe, have some in the room who are hoping to testify. Give me just a moment to navigate myself there.

In the room here I believe we have Leah Farzin. If you would please come to the dais. When you're ready, state your name, affiliation, and begin your 2 minutes of testimony. Hello, my name is Leah Farzin. I'm just here on behalf of myself.

I am here to testify about adding, adding some money to the budget or allocating some money in the budget for the Arctic Winter Games to be hosted in Fairbanks in 2028. I was the team Alaska figure skating coach in 2020 and 2026. 2020 Did not happen. The skaters this year at Arctic Winter Games came from Anchorage, Eagle River, and Juneau, so all across the state. And in the past, we've also had skaters from Fairbanks.

We try to recruit from every community with a rink. I am a firm believer that every kid needs to find their thing. For a lot of them, it's sports. It's sports that they connect with and that spark their interest and motivate them. It sounds like a cliché, but for those kids, they learn so much from our athletic participant— athletic participation and competition.

Teamwork, respecting officials, how to fail, how to learn from failure, how time and effort lead to improvement, sportsmanship. I personally learned all of that during my own skating career, and I see skaters learning it now as I coach them. Them. Um, Arctic Winter Games is an incredible opportunity for Alaska youth to interact with athletes who live thousands of miles away but who are just like them. They live in a relatively small community with limited athletic resources and difficulty accessing competitive opportunities simply because of geography and distance.

Delaying the games by a full year, which is what's on the table right now, could be a huge loss for the games themselves and for the athletes who might miss their only opportunity to make Team Alaska. I urge you to add the $1.75 million to the budget to support Arctic Winter Games 2028 in Fairbanks. The games bring 2,000 athletes to the host city, as well as 3,000 friends and family of athletes to support them. I think Fairbanks is actually a pretty accessible city as the cities— as the host cities go, so it could be even more. Also, a handful of officials and coaches like me.

Okay, I can stop. Thanks. Well, I believe you'll have a question from Representative Galvin. Thank you. Firstly, thank you so much for being here.

Thank you for being a coach. And the question is, in your testimony you mentioned delaying the games, and I'm— that's the first I'd heard of that. If you could just clarify what that means. Oh yeah, so right now there is no next Arctic Winter Games scheduled. It is usually every.

2 Years. The proposal that I've heard most recently is that they would have to move it to a 3-year cycle because no city has submitted a host city proposal, and so they haven't been able to— no one stepped up to host. Thank you. Yep. Okay, very good.

Thank you for your testimony. Uh, just basic record keeping really quickly, I'd like to note that Representative Tomaszewski and Representative Jimmy have joined us. Thank you. And just a slight correction from earlier, I followed my normal script and said that the LIO moderator was Emily Mesh. It is not Emily Mesh today, it is Zach Lawhorn.

Thank you. Zach, for your work supporting our committee. With that, I'd like to invite Brian Wilson to the table. Please state your name, affiliation, and begin with your 2 minutes of testimony.

Thank you. My name is Brian Wilson. I'm the executive director of the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness. I'm here to urge the committee to fully fund the Homeless Assistance Program, or HAP as we call it. I know that this program is a little tricky with it receiving MTAR and capital dollars.

We've heard that we should be testifying for both bills, so here we are to cover both our bases. With HAP dollars, agencies deliver a full range of services, including shelter for survivors of domestic violence, youth homelessness response, behavioral health services, emergency shelter, and transitional housing for families, as well as homelessness prevention and housing stabilization. HAP funds ensure that these services are available and coordinated, allowing people to move from crisis to stability. HAP is essential— is especially critical because it provides flexible funding that can be adapted to unique conditions. While federal funding sources are essential, they are often limited in scope.

HAP fills these gaps, allowing providers to respond to winter shelter demand, support landlord engagement, and stabilize households before they fall into homelessness. Over 30 service providers in 14 communities throughout the state receive HAP grants. Not just our larger communities like Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau, But rural hubs and smaller communities like Unalaska, Prince of Wales, Bethel, Nome, where sometimes only a handful or even in some cases a single provider serves the entire region. So we respectfully urge this body to maintain funding for HAP at the previous year's level of $10.15 million to ensure providers can continue to serve our most vulnerable members, neighbors throughout the state.

Thank you, Mr. Wilson. And I would like to just note for your information that you may be pleased to know that in the other body today, they added the appropriation that you are requesting here today. And so I believe that will ultimately be taken care of in the budget. At least that's the way things are shaping up so far. And maybe also for anyone else that's calling in on that issue, I just again want to let you know that that is now— has been added in on the Senate side.

Thank you for your testimony, Mr. Wilson. Okay, very good.

All right, next up we have Anne Weske.

Miss Weske, please put your name on the record, state any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Great, thank you. Um, my name is Anne Weske and I'm representing an athlete from the Arctic Winter Games. So, uh, thank you, Chairman Schraggy, and, uh, honored members of this committee. The Arctic Winter Games was an incredible, an incredible opportunity for my son.

He was asked to play volleyball on Team Alaska and was quick to accept, as this would be one of his first times getting to play competitive volleyball with other boys his age. As a parent, I walked in with hopes that Drew would learn more about the sport of volleyball, teamwork, and basically just to have fun. So this ended up being so much more. I learned that the Arctic Winter Games is roughly 5% about the sport and about 95% about celebrating our indigenous cultures. Respecting differences, meeting others who have similar and different values, watching our youth support each other in what is good.

Although rivalries existed on the court, I watched this group of kids grow together through their shared interests. They walked around the city of Whitehorse in their team uniforms with so much pride. Our Alaskan youth were a group to be proud of. In the end, there was no talk of where our gold medal was. The talk was about the experience, the growth, the sense of pride, and most importantly, the relationships that they formed.

Our team, Alaska's men's volleyball, was blessed with an incredible coach who truly instilled a desire to do their best always, but winning wasn't the focus. This team of young men walked on the court as completely different fabrics and left as the most beautiful quilt ever created. We will forever be thankful for your support. Although I've said a lot, there actually are no words that will adequately describe, um, the life lessons and values that these— this event has provided to the over 2,000 athletes that are honored to participate in this event. So thank you so much for hearing my testimony.

Thank you, Miss Weske. We have a question from Representative Hannon. Thank you. Um, and first I want to just thank Miss Weske, who was a student of mine, but now I need to ask, how old is your son? Oh my goodness, 2?

No, he's 17. Okay. And so he is is probably about to matriculate from your alma mater. She's graduating. Yes.

I didn't get the time— we started to talk to Miss Franzen about this, but we've— I've seen in writing that the games are not until 2029. But now the testimony that was presented by Miss Franzen indicated that may not yet be determined. Do you know as a parent— I mean, the Arctic Winter Games governing organization, have they selected the next games date or is it the monetary contribution of the participating states and provinces that determines it? Ms. Weske? I'm actually unclear on the answer to that question.

Representative Tomaszewski? Thank you, Co-Chair Sharagi. I do believe that there was a location selected but it fell through, if I'm correct. And so, uh, Fairbanks or Alaska is, um, uh, wanting to not let the games go by the year that it should be doing it, which is every even year. So we should be on 2028.

And, um, just so the previous testifier and yourself know, I do have the amendment, and I will give the committee the opportunity to vote on the funding for the Arctic Winter Games. And I'm not sure if Representative Allard has anything else on that, on the date or the location, possibly. Yes, I did see Representative Allard looking to get into the conversation. Yes, a little bit. Just really quick.

Thank you for being here. My girls qualified for it too, and then COVID hit. But the bottom line is that the Northwest region of Canada can't do it because they don't have the facilities to do it. And that it was moved to 2028 if Fairbanks gets the approval to do it, which would be $3.5 million of funding. And I believe the revenue coming in from that would be about $8 million.

So there would be some profit made for your community, which is great, and basically for the whole state. I did speak with President John Rada. He's the international president. He's my constituent. He's amazing, which I— I think you probably maybe have met him.

I know. So John is amazing, and he's trying to get people on board to support this too. And I will definitely be on board as well. But those are the reasons. If they are able to get the funding for Fairbanks, then the 2028 Games will happen.

And there's a little bit of back and forth going on. Co-chair, thank you for giving me a moment. They believe that the 3 years instead of every 2 years will leave out a lot of children to be able to participate. So I think they're going to be bringing it back to the 2 years and lock it back in. To that.

Hopefully. So thank you, Representative Ballard. Appreciate the discussion and looking forward to further discussion on this. Thank you, Miss Weske. Thank you.

That brings us to Mr. Weske. Mr. Weske, if you could please come forward.

When you're ready, state your name, affiliation, and begin with your testimony. My name is Drew Weske. I'm representing an athlete of Arctic Winter Games. If I had to describe my Arctic Winter Games experience in one word, it would be connection. When I first arrived in Anchorage to meet the team, that was what stood out the most.

From our first practice to our last day, we spent that time connecting with each other and with the athletes from across the game. I was able to form deep, meaningful bonds with all of my teammates, bonds that words cannot capture. Maybe it was the fact that we were a bunch of smelly guys crammed in a room together, or maybe it was that we were young men on our own paths in life who all shared the same passion for a game we love. Either way, I believe that same feeling was true for all 2,000 other athletes as well. It amazed me how much I had in common with two guys from Golovin, a town of just 160 people.

Who would have guessed that despite all of us coming from different upbringings, we would leave as brothers? What struck me was how well everyone treated each other. Even though both teams cheered and taunted one another during competition, it never changed how people acted off the court I remember walking out of the team room after our last game, eyes red and puffy from heartbreaking loss, hair in shambles from leaving everything on the floor, when I was greeted by players from the opposing team. They insisted on hugging me and we exchanged genuine compliments about how each other played and how intense the game had been. That wasn't just one or two guys.

Every single player on that team approached me with respect and humility and congratulated.

Us on how well we competed. That moment will stay with me for the rest of my life, and it stands as a powerful example of why the Arctic Winter Games matter, not just for competition, but for building connections and developing young men and women across the Arctic. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Weske. That brings us to, uh, Brenda Stanfield.

Oh, I'm sorry, Representative Hannon. Question. Thank you. Can I ask Mr. Weske a question? Yes, please, Representative Hannon.

My apologies. Mr. Weske, do you play the piano? I used to, I do not anymore. Representative Hannon. And what are your plans for next year?

My plans for next year, I'm gonna be going to Weber State in Ogden, Utah for business administration. And I'll be joining a club volleyball team there, so. All right, thank you. Very good. Now that brings us to Miss Brenda Stanfill.

Miss Stanfill, if you could please come forward, state your name for the record, your affiliation, and proceed with your testimony. Thank you. Brenda Stanfield. I'm the Executive Director of the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. So you heard from Brian Wilson with the Homeless Coalition, and so I'm here to echo that the Homeless Assistance Program is extremely important.

And all of us are a little confused as to where we're supposed to testify, but I never have— I never pass up an opportunity. So here I am. And I want to tell you about one really exciting part of what the housing— the Homeless Assistance Program does for the victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in Alaska. We have something that's called an ECHIP voucher, Empowering Choice Housing Program voucher, that's offered in 10 communities across the state. However, that isn't offered in all communities.

And so last year, the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, through the Homeless Assistance Program funds, created something called the Next Generation Stabilization Program. That has allowed us to expand a voucher program throughout Alaska that is available to domestic violence and sexual assault survivors. And some of the specific communities that expanded that are Bethel, Cordova, Ketchikan, Kodiak, Nome, Prince of Wales, and Sitka. This means that a victim of domestic violence can get some assistance long-term for their housing. It's not enough just to say, "We can help you with a deposit," or, "We can pay one month's rent." Trying to work up to the point that you can pay your own rent sometimes takes time.

And this would allow around 12 months' worth of rent, subsidized rent, which could be really, really low at the beginning and then would build as their income went up. So this really makes a tremendous difference when we have funds in the Homeless Assistance Program. It's also one of the most flexible sources of funds. There are not many funds that will let you pay for, like, other things that someone might need to be able to move into, like a utility deposit. Those are things that without those funds, you cannot get into a place.

So in order to move our people out of emergency shelter and into programs, I urge you to support wherever it needs to be, the $5 million that we need through the Homeless Assistance Program. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Stanfield, and I believe you'll find a lot of support for that program amongst committee members. Thank you. Thank you.

All right, that takes us to those calling in. Via the phone lines. First in the queue, I have Sarah Callis. After that, we'll have Karen Garvey and Bob Butera. First of those three is Sarah Callis.

If you could please state your name for the record, any affiliation, and begin with your 2 minutes of testimony.

Hello, my name is Sarah Callis. I'm calling in from Eagle River, and I am calling also in support of Arctic Winter Games. In 2028 in Fairbanks.

Please proceed. I was able— I had the privilege to serve as the head coach for men's volleyball. Hi Drew! He was one of my athletes this year. We were able to assemble an incredibly diverse and talented group from across the state.

Our team of 11 athletes traveled from Galavan, Kodiak, Fairbanks, Juneau, Anchorage, and the Mat-Su Valley, each bringing their own experiences, perspectives, and strengths. This geographic diversity created something truly special. It allowed us to build not just a team, but a statewide community. Beyond the court, the experience fostered powerful connections. The camaraderie extended not only among teammates, but across cultures and countries as well.

Our athletes had the opportunity to engage with competitors from other regions and countries, gaining a deeper appreciation for the shared values of hard work, sportsmanship, and respect, um, really celebrating our diversity. Our tournament run ended in a hard-fought 5-set match, and while the loss is difficult, what stood out most was the response. Within hours, the athletes were already asking about the next opportunity to compete, and that speaks volumes about the impact of this experience. The lessons they learned about perseverance, teamwork, and commitment will influence how they approach their academics, careers, relationships, and contribution to to their communities, and they want more. In a time where fiscal responsibility is a high priority, there are so many other reasons to also promote this.

From an economic perspective, the Games bring a significant and immediate benefit. We eagerly immerse ourselves in the host community. Our guides found ways to explore the town and various museums and dining establishments in an effort to fill time and enjoy the culture and really immerse themselves in it. Um, also in— oh, sorry, that's my time. I just want to thank you for letting me testify today, you guys.

I appreciate your time and consideration in the matter of contributing important funds to bring Arctic Winter Games to Fairbanks in 2028. Thank you so much for your testimony, uh, testimony, Miss Kellis. Next up is Karen Garvey with Bob Butera on deck. Karen Garvey, if you could please state your name, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Hi, my name is Karen Garvey, and I'm calling in about the West Housatna Industrial Access Road.

Um, it looks like you guys are— or the bill is trying to offlate $95 million to which would cover the first 22 miles of that road. So that's just a small part of it. And the environmental impact has not yet been completed, and our village, Alexander Creek, is in on that as far as pointing out things to the— you guys' team that they don't understand, like sacred areas. Other than that, it looks like it's going to cross 182 streams, 171 which will have calverts, and only 83 are going to be designed for fish passage. And many, many streams out there are designated as fish salmon rivers.

And there's lots of wetlands, which of course would have critical habitat. There's a state game refuge, and it also is going to run alongside the Idit Rod Trail for a while. If you look at that map, it shows exactly what it's going to be compromising. And all just to get to a mining industrial lease, which is, uh, to me, I hope that doesn't happen. But before it goes forward, I think that there should be that, especially that environmental study completed.

And I don't think they should be slaking $95 million to do something that isn't even— hasn't even been decided yet.

Does that conclude your testimony, Miss Garvey?

It appears so. Thank you, Miss Garvey, for your testimony. Next up is Bob Butera with Mark Miller after that. Mr. Butera, if you could please state your name, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Yeah, hi, my name is Bob Butera. I'm a civil engineer and I live in Anchorage and I'm representing myself. Um, I'm following up on the previous testimony because it's the same topic. Um, in 2019, I worked on the reconnaissance study for the West Sissetona Access Road, and the capital budget you are reviewing includes a line item for $95 million for ADOT for the first phase of this project. In the recon study, we were tasked by ADA with finding a road route to the West Sissetona Mining District.

We evaluated numerous routes We settled on the only practical route, which was a difficult-to-construct 100-mile from Big Lake across the Little and Big Sissetona Rivers and then across and along the north side of the Siletuna River. And one of the reasons that this road will be difficult and expensive to build is that it crosses 156 rivers and streams. And 11 of these crossings will be bridges, and 4 of these bridges are very complex due to long spans and deep canyons. One example of this is the bridge across the Susitna River, which would be 2,200 feet long, and this would be 700 feet longer than the Glenn Highway crossing at the Knik River and would make it the longest bridge in south-central Alaska.

This project has morphed from a mining access road that was to be paid for by PEDA having its first phase is classified as a recreational access road that is paid for by DOT. And throughout the state, there are many delayed or unfunded projects. When there are so many other needs, ADOT should not be funding the first phase.

Of a road that few people will use and whose primary purpose is to subsidize access to private mining ventures. Any logical scoring system would not prioritize this road. Every dollar spent on the West Sitna Access Project is money taken from construction operations and maintenance of the basic transportation needs that serve the majority of local residents. I ask you to please remove this funding from SB 214. Thank you for taking the testimony.

Thank you, Mr. Butera. And you have a question from Representative Galvin. Mr. Butera, I just wanted to thank you, uh, for showing up. I see you so often in community meetings and want to thank you for taking the time, especially as busy as you must be. I want to also appreciate you helping us to learn some more around the engineering and piece kind of more technical details that we might not have been mindful of.

So thank you very much, Mr. Bajera. All right, thank you for that. Thank you, Elise. Next up, we have Mark Miller with Lois Epstein after that. Mark Miller, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Okay, my name is Mark Miller. I'm the owner of Dallheim Lodge, a hunting and fishing lodge now in its 50th year, and I live in Willow during the winter. I'm here to ask you to remove the $95 million for the West Houston Access Road for the capital— from the capital budget. I want to start with a simple comparison. If you were to sell me a car or the idea of a car and ask for money down but couldn't tell me the total price, couldn't estimate maintenance, and no committed buyers, you wouldn't get very far.

No private lender would finance that deal. But that's what's happening here with this road. We're being asked to move forward without a clear total cost, without long-term maintenance, projections and without any companies committed to paying for it. At the time— at the same time, the benefits being presented don't match reality on the ground. This isn't farmland.

It's mostly wetlands west of the Susitna. There's plenty of farmland in McKinsey Point available. It's not needed for oil and gas. They operated there for decades without a road. There's no timber market.

Most of the mature spruce is already dead, beetle bark killed. We hear about jobs, but that's mostly short-term construction followed by a small number of long-term positions while the state takes on ongoing maintenance costs. We hear about recreation, but a 24-foot industrial road with heavy traffic, you know, heavy truck traffic, isn't how Alaskans access backcountry. We hear about broadband, but people are already using satellite systems that don't require broadband. I've been using Starlink.

It's cheap and you can set it up in 10 minutes. At the end of the day, this road goes to two exploratory mine sites. Without those, this project would not exist. It would be a dream. And if those companies were asked to pay even half the cost, this road would not move forward.

So the question is simple. Why is the state taking on a risk for a project that private industry won't commit to? Alaska has real infrastructure needs right now. I would urge you to prioritize, excuse me, goes over a project with uncertain costs and long-term objections— obligations. I thank you.

It's Mark Miller. We're out. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Willow. And you have a question from Representative Josephson.

Uh, yes, I'm going to be fast, Mr. Chairman, because I know we've got many callers. But is Mr. Miller— are you still there?

Thank you. Yeah, I'm still here. The two exploratory mines so near Alexander Creek, there's a potential coal mine, or are you referring to mines that are north-northwest around the east side of Mount Susitna?

Well, I hope there's not a coal mine there or a projection of one there, Alexander Creek. I've never heard of it. The coal mine is up the— where is it— up the Squintna River, and it would be— the mine would be up the Canyon Creek, which is a heavy, heavy salmon use river. Canyon Creek has thousands and thousands of spawning Trout jar. But anyway, in order to get to that proposed mine site and a coal plant, a fired coal plant projected, you would have to build a road across the braided Quitna River from the proposed Susitna Access Road, and that road would be as wide as the one going across the Susitna River where the road goes.

I mean, it's stupid. If you want to build a coal plant, fired plant, just build it east along the railroad and bring down the coal from Healy. And, uh, it would, it would, it would need all that other construction. All right, thank you. Thank you, Mr. Miller.

I'm talking about the— excuse me, I'm talking about the mines up at, uh, up at the, up at the very end of this proposed road. It's, uh, it's, uh, two mines owned by, uh, New Zealand and Australian companies. Thank you, Mr. Miller. And we have a committee member asking you to confirm that you're from Willow. Is that correct, Mr. Miller?

Okay, Mr. Miller, another question. I have a hard time hearing it. Mr. Miller, can you just confirm that you're from Willow, Alaska?

Yeah, that's where I'm talking to you from. I'm from Willow, Alaska. My lady on the Park Highway. Thank you very much. All right, that brings us to Lois Epstein with Felicia Carpenter afterwards.

Uh, Lois, if— or Miss Epstein, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Okay, thank you. Good afternoon. Thank you to the committee for the opportunity to testify today on the capital budget's proposed spending on the West Susitna Access Project. My name is Lois Epstein, and I am an Alaska licensed engineer with my own small business, L&E Engineering and Policy, located in Anchorage.

I have approximately 20 years of experience working on Alaska transportation issues throughout the state, including extensive familiarity with transportation planning and financing. Note that I provided invited testimony to the Senate Transportation Committee on February 12th of this year on the Cascade Point Road and Ferry Terminal project. I am speaking today on my own behalf. One of the analyses I performed for clients utilized a 2014 HDR report for Alaska DOT and PF entitled the West Sussitna Access Reconnaissance Study. This report contains detailed capital cost estimates for the project.

Which range from $8 to $12.6 million per mile in 2025 dollars. I took their numbers and moved them up to 2025 using well-recognized indexes. This means that the cost for the full 100-mile road, largely intended to subsidize mining companies that pay the state relatively little in revenue and offer few long-term jobs, would range from $800 million to $1.26 billion. For the 78 miles not yet funded, the cost would be $624 million to $983 million according to the HDR report. I am providing this information to the legislature so members recognize the statewide tradeoffs inherent in utilizing state dollars for building the proposed West Desitna Road.

This 100-mile road will be very expensive, uh, with limited statewide revenue and/or job benefits. Second, any money used for the 78-mile portion of the road would not have a 90% match from the federal government. The state cost to build that portion of the road could be used as a state match for up to nearly $10 billion in roads and bridges statewide. This enormous trade-off is a very persuasive argument to not support the West Houston Met appropriation in SB 214. A similar argument— I'll say thank you, Miss Epstein.

I'm gonna have to end your testimony there. Thank you, Miss Epstein, for your testimony. Next we have Felicia Carpenter followed by Susan Smith. Miss Carpenter, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Good afternoon and thank you for the opportunity to testify. My name is Felicia Carpenter. I'm a mother of 3 and a lifelong Alaskan. I represent myself today.

I live in Anchorage and I volunteer and advocate with the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness. I sit on the Homeless Prevention and Response System Advisory Council, and also I volunteer my time and experience with the Homeless Resource Advocacy Council. It is with, it is with great conviction I respectfully and honestly request that the funds for the HAP, the Homeless Assistance Program, We restored in the capital budget to the $10.15 million. The HAP funding was crucial in my success. I lived for 7 and a half months at the Clare House and moved into my own place on May 19th, 2025.

After 7 years of homelessness and mental health issues, I am in a place where I can now go back into the darkness and be a light of empathy and compassion. I wholeheartedly share my hope and optimism for a brighter future filled with love and free of judgment. We are in a time where housing costs leave families and individuals choosing whether they eat or have housing. They have to weigh the cost of transportation, often live in silent shame over not having the basic needs. Housing stability doesn't just help the individual experiencing homelessness.

It also benefits the community by making public areas clean and safe from drugs and violence and will reduce the crime rate. I respectfully ask you to restore the Homeless Assistance, uh, program funding to the $1,015,000.

Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you very much, Ms. Carpenter. And I believe Rep. Galvin has a comment or question. Rep. Galvin. Thank you.

Ms. Carpenter, I want to thank you for sharing your story and for continuing on to advocate. There are not very many people who have come out of homelessness like you have and then decided to help others as much as you're doing right now. I really commend you for that, and I hope that you continue strengthening the community as you're doing. Thank you so much. Okay, thank you again, Ms. Carpenter.

Next up we have Susan Smith, and then we are going to go to the Cordova LIO after that, to Ms. Kristen Smith. With that, Ms. Susan Smith, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Good afternoon all, my name is Susan Smith and I serve as the executive director of the Brother Francis Shelter in Kodiak, Alaska. I understand that the SB 214 bill includes a proposed 50% reduction to HAP funding. These funds support the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation's Homeless Assistance Program that flows to many communities in the form of grants across the state.

You need to understand the direct impact of these funds to Alaskans. HAP funding supports safe and warm shelters, daily meals, case management services, and access to housing resources, to name a few. We serve individuals who face mental illness, physical disabilities, and severe barriers to stability. Without structured support, many have no path to housing or care. We work with each client to connect them to medical and behavioral health services, secure identification and benefits, help them move towards stable and permanent housing, A funding cut would create measurable negative consequences across public safety, healthcare systems, and municipal budgets.

You— you will see an increased demand on emergency services, reduced shelter capacity, and more individuals at risk of chronic homelessness. Local systems will have to absorb these impacts. Costs will shift, not disappear. HAP funding keeps people housed. Stable housing reduces system strain and improves community safety.

A 50% reduction would remove critical support from vulnerable individuals and destabilize communities across Alaska. I ask that you reject this reduction and maintain full funding for the HAP program. Thank you, and I appreciate your time. Thank you very much, Miss Smith, for the work you do and for your advocacy. I'd just like to reiterate for members of the public who may be calling in that as of today, the housing assistance— homelessness assistance program was added to the mental health budget in the other body.

So that's good news for those that are calling in on that item. With that, we're now going to go to the Cordova LIO, to Miss Kristen Smith, before returning to the phone lines to Michelle Snowden. So up next we have Ms. Kristen Smith from Cordova, if you could please put your name on the record, state any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Hello, Chair Schrag and members of the committee. Thank you for taking testimony today.

My name is Kristen Smith. I'm calling in as the mayor of Cordova, and I just want to speak in support of the capital budget that has been proposed. The city of Cordova, like municipalities all over the state, has a lot of aging infrastructure, and we fully support The Harbor Facility Grant Program, we have benefited from state support on that, and I'm not saying we need it right this minute, but I know it's important for communities all over the state. The school major maintenance and school construction, anyone who has been to an Alaska village knows that our schools are the beating heart of all of our communities and that it's critical that we begin to reinvest in that infrastructure. And then for water and wastewater, Cordova has enormous needs.

And we don't have any illusion that we're going to get all of the funding at once, but we need to start replacing tanks, replacing lift stations, doing the small piecemeal work that will add up over time to providing the very basic services that municipalities provide. So we— I strongly support the capital budget because that spending is an investment in state infrastructure and it translates into jobs. And spending in our communities. So I ask you to protect the municipality-focused items in the budget, as I said, including water and wastewater funding, federal transportation match, Alaska Marine Highway System and ferry terminal investments, port and harbor grants, school major maintenance and construction, housing, weatherization, and energy resilience. These complement the House and Senate's investments in community assistance and other municipal programs.

So that local governments have the capacity to operate and maintain the infrastructure that the state helps build. Thanks for taking that into account, and thank you so much for your time. Thank you, Mayor Smith, for your testimony and for your service to the citizens of Cordova. With that, we're going to return to the phone lines to Michelle Snowden, followed by Gloria Burns. Miss Snowden, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Good evening. I am Michelle Snowden, the Executive Director of SITKA Homeless Coalition, calling in from SITKA. Today, we are deeply relieved and grateful that funding for Alaska's Homeless Assistance Program was restored in the amended budget. Sincerely, thank you to the legislators and advocates who recognize how critical these resources are across the state. In SITKA, this funding is not optional.

It is essential. Homeless Assistance Program supports and sustains direct support for those in our community experiencing homelessness or at imminent risk of homelessness. HAP funding directly supports weekly meals, showers and laundry access, outreach and case management, and part of our emergency winter shelter. In a state with high housing costs and limited options, Losing these funds would halt operations and would have immediate dire consequences on those in our state who are most vulnerable. The restoration means SITKA and the rest of our state can continue responding.

We know that when people have access to basic support and a path towards stable housing, the entire community, SITKA, and the state of Alaska benefits. We are stronger when we care for one another, and today's decision helps make that possible. Thank you for your time. Thank you, Miss Snowden. That takes us to Gloria Burns, followed by Carly Straley.

Miss Burns, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Okay. Uh, ha da la si. Gloria Burns, president of Ketchikan Indian Community in Ketchikan, Alaska, president of the federally recognized tribe of more than 6,800 tribal citizens. I am calling in to encourage and implore the restoration of the HAP funds to the capital budget.

And even to go further than that, I know that we're talking about they've been restored. I'd say please consider putting more in, in the— even if this tight fiscal situation. 1 In 10 children in our school self-identify as homeless in Ketchikan. We are all just one emergency away, just one check away from being in that situation. And it's really important to recognize that we have to have the funds to do this good work to make sure that our people are taken care of.

When you decrease critical services such as these, we have increased costs that are in our emergency services. And so I would just implore all of you to really recognize that. And I also want to say that even if the president I've been homeless for— I was homeless for 3 years in this position. There was an electrical issue in my family, and so I couch-surfed for 3 years. I live in an overcrowded home of a 2-bedroom in which 4 adults who are not married to each other or in relationship live.

I do that by choice because I'm taking care of my 96-year-old grandparent. But I want you all, you know, I implore you to recognize that this is the lived reality of so many in our community. Community in which we're all just one house fire away from being in a situation where, uh, we cannot sustain ourselves. And, uh, particularly in Ketchikan, when 1 in 10 children have identified themselves as homeless, we need more money and we need more resources to address this, not less. So thank you so much.

Thank you very much for your testimony and for the work that you do, Miss Burns, uh, and for keeping your testimony to exactly 2 minutes. Well done. Representative Bynum has a question or a comment for you, I believe. Representative Bynum. Yes, President Burns, thank you very much for taking the time out of the evening to pay attention to these important issues and call into the Finance Committee and sharing your thoughts on that particular issue.

But I did also want to say thank you for your leadership with KIC and in the community on these issues, among many others that you guys are taking up right now.

I know that I'm here and available to work with KIC and the legislature here to share the needs of Ketchikan and our community there. So, gunalchéesh. All right, thank you, Representative Bynum. That brings us to Carly Straley, followed by Adam Kuthriel. Miss Straley, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

All right, thank you. Yeah, thank you for the opportunity to testify. My first name is Carl, so a bit of a different spelling Apolo— that's actually just Carl Spraley, and I am calling on behalf of myself, um, calling in from Palmer. And I only have a single issue that I'd like to address, which is the $95 million appropriation in the budget for the West Suisun Access Road. And I can keep my testimony relatively short.

I've been an Alaska resident for 22 years and have worked in habitat and fisheries research, including in the West Sioux. Along with wilderness guiding, some construction, work with local NGOs, and I am currently actually a graduate research assistant in energy innovation as a student at UAF. But I fully oppose any funding for the West Sioux Access Road and believe those public dollars would be better spent elsewhere improving our existing roads and related infrastructure. This road proposal would sacrifice the existing renewable natural resources, economic drivers, and unique opportunities to find the West Susitna Basin to subsidize and benefit corn companies. I believe other testimonies have already effectively illustrated these points well, and I'm sure there are a lot more people that are going to talk about tonight.

So I can leave it at that. Thank you very much. Thank you very much, Carl, and apologies for butchering your name. That's the deal I make with all testifiers. You can butcher my name, please forgive me if I butcher yours.

With that, that brings us to Adam Cuthrell, followed by Brandy McGee. Mr. Cuthrell, if you Excuse me, Adam Cuthrell, if you could please state your name on the record, begin with your, uh, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Yes, sir. My name is Adam Cuthrell. I am representing myself as well as my guide service, which is named Fishhound Expeditions. Uh, thank you very much, House Finance Committee, for allowing public comment on this very important issue. We run trips across Alaska as well as in the West Zoo area.

I am testifying today to ask the committee to not fund SB 214. Using almost $95 million of our money to pay for a foreign company's road is an absolute waste of money and resources. This amount of money would be better spent on repairing our current roads and fixing culverts that have caused massive amounts of flooding in the Matsu and Anchorage areas. In addition to the absolute waste of taxpayer dollars, this road will harm existing local businesses like my own, as well as other tourism industries. In 2019, just sport fishing, just sport fishing generated over $50 million for the valley.

This revenue does not include other recreational-based businesses such as guided hunting, heli skiing and snowboarding, snow machine tours, flightseeing tours, dog mushing, photography tours, whitewater rafting, and other recreational-based businesses. That same year, 2019, mining only generated $7 million to the valley. If this road goes in, all those tourist dollars will go elsewhere. People choose to travel and spend money in the West Zoo because it is wild and free from massive industrial mines. This road is a waste of our money and will harm an existing and thriving outdoor recreation economy.

Please stand with local Alaskans and local Alaskan businesses and do not fund SB 214. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Cuthrell. Appreciate your testimony. That brings us to Brandy McGee, followed by Barry Santana.

Uh, Brandy McGee, if you could please state your name, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Hi, my name is Brandy McGee. I'm the CEO of Kenai Peninsula Housing Initiative. Our office is in Homer. We serve the Kenai Peninsula and have housing in 5 different communities throughout the peninsula. Our organization develops and operates housing, again, throughout the Kenai Peninsula.

We focus on serving low-income households, seniors, and individuals with special needs. And we have a focus on those coming out of homelessness. I'm testifying today in support of restoration of the flexible funding for the HAP program. And I appreciate the amendment that was introduced today While our org doesn't directly receive HAP funding, reductions to this funding will absolutely directly impact those we serve. In the past year, we've housed 38 households coming out of homelessness, which is 23% of our portfolio.

We support the increased investment in housing development, and those resources are essential for projects like ours to move forward. At the same time, programs like HAP are critical. To help people access housing in the first place by covering security deposits, first month's rent, and support stability once they're housed. Without support, many households cannot move in or remain stably housed even when units are available. We encourage continued investment in housing development alongside the restoration of flexible HAP funding.

Thank you. Thank you, Ms. McGee. That brings us to Barry Santana, followed by Stephanie Thompson. Barry Santana, if you could please state your name, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony when ready.

My name is Barry Santana. I'm a structural engineer. I'm representing myself. I live in the Wasilla area. I'd like to comment on the West Zoo Access Road.

I agree with previous testimony by Bob Butera and Lois Epstein. The West Sioux Access Road is not an expense and a road Alaska can afford in this tight fiscal environment. This road has many engineering and environmental challenges, as Bob has mentioned. It's not a prudent way to spend limited DOT funding.

The, the project has shape-shifted many times since conceived by the state and foreign mining companies to get to mining prospects in the Alaska Range. One day it's a public road for sportsman access, the next day it's a mining— a private road, private industrial road for hauling supplies and equipment for the exploration effort, ultimately to haul out the ore if the mine proves economical. We should not be funding these projects with public money. The state of Alaska cannot maintain the roads we have now. I've never seen such a degraded highway, highway system that we have currently.

Let the mine companies build bridges and roads to their prospects. As sportsmen, we can access the Susitna Valley just fine with Super Cubs and jet boats. I value the West Susitna Region's public lands and pristine waters that support abundant fish and wildlife resources, fishing, hunting, all kinds of recreational opportunities. Proposed West, West Industrial Access Road threatens those values and is yet another look and see project and a waste of state funds. Please, please remove the $95 million associated with this project and repurpose it for all of the deferred infrastructure needs that we have in the state.

Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Santana, for your testimony. That brings us to Stephanie Thompson, followed by Thane Piscoia. Ms. Thompson, if you could please state your name for the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Yes, thank you.

Yeah, I'm testifying on the West Sioux Access Road on behalf of myself, Stephanie Thompson, as— and as president of Alexander Creek Incorporated. DOT needs to stop deceiving the public about the true industrial purpose of the road. In all our meetings last year as the tribes, our tribes have called it for what it is: a mining road. And it is a connective action. DOT's and PS portion of the road is the first 22 miles of a 100-mile industrial corridor.

ADA plans to build the remaining 78 miles to access gold mining claims, with Alaska on the hook for at least $600 million in subsidies to benefit foreign mining companies. This is not a recreation road. It's an industrial road subsidized by the state. As such, this road as planned will have a huge negative impact on Aboriginal hunting and fishing areas and a human impact on our community. Roads that crisscross Salmonberry Rivers have long-term impacts to streams, wetlands, and floodplains that eventually destroy salmon habitat and lead to reduced salmon populations.

Industrial mining roads increase noise and pollution, displacing game and eliminating hunting opportunities. The West Sioux region is rich in cultural sites that need to be protected and burial grounds that should remain undisturbed. At this, I ask thee to please remove this funding from SB 214. Kweyana. Thank you.

Thank you for your testimony, Miss Thompson. That brings us to Thayne Paskoya, followed by Jessica Lenee Ashley. Um, Thayne Paskoya, if you could please state your name for the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Hi, good evening. My name is Zane Siskoya. I am Vice President of Alexander Creek.

And I would like to highlight and agree with the testimony from Karen Garvey, Mr. Patera, Mark Miller, Lois Epstein, Carl Fraley, Adam Petherow, Barry Santana, and Stephanie Thompson. I also would like to add that the federal review is not complete on this project for the Wexoo Access Road. The environmental assessment has not been released. The Section 404 wetlands permit has not been issued. The Section 106 historic preservation review is still in programmatic consultation.

And I don't think— and I don't think anybody else in Alaska would think that money should be— should move before the federal process is finished. I'll be short here. And I also would like to say that this road would adversely affect our hunting, fishing, foraging, berry picking, and our indigenous way of life at Alexander Creek. And I would like to ask to remove the funding for Washington Access Road from SB 214. Thank you for your testimony, Ms. Pascolla.

That brings us to Jessica Lenee Ashley, followed by Hal Shepherd. Ms. Lenee Ashley, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Thank you for the opportunity. My name is Jessica Lenee Ashley. I am calling to represent myself. I live remotely at the confluence of the Hayes and Skwentna River year-round. I would like to share the same sentiments as others, my opposition to the West Sittenaxess Road.

I believe this project conflicts with Alaska's public trust doctrine and the state's fiduciary duty to protect both public resources and taxpayer dollars. Under the Alaska Constitution and Alaska's public trust doctrine, the state has a legal obligation to manage public lands, water, fish, wildlife, natural resources for the maximum benefit of all Alaskans.

Not primarily for the benefit of a single private industrial project. The proposed West Desidna corridor would cut through undeveloped wetlands, wildlife habitat, and impact ecosystems. Yet the environmental assessment remains incomplete. The Section 404 wetlands permit has not been issued, and the Section 106 historic preservation consultation is still unresolved. Despite these unresolved environmental and legal reviews, the legislature is still being asked to commit nearly $95 million in public funds.

I believe advancing one of the largest transportation appropriations in the state budget before federal review is complete exposes both Alaska's environment and Alaska taxpayers to unacceptable risk and fails the state's responsibility to act as a prudent trustee of public resources and public money.

I believe this project improperly prioritizes a publicly subsidized mining access road over infrastructure that serves existing Alaskan communities. The proposed $95 million appropriation represents roughly 8% of Alaska's entire FY27 transportation construction budget for only 22 miles of access infrastructure tied primarily to Nova Minerals Limited Estelle Gold Project. At the same time, DOT and PF have publicly acknowledged Alaska lacks insufficient matching funds to fully draw down all available federal transportation dollars. In my opinion, every dollar committed to this corridor is a dollar unavailable for roads, bridges, maintenance, and safety projects that already serve Alaskans statewide. I believe the state's fiduciary responsibility under the Alaska Public Trust Doctrine is to prioritize projects with clear public benefit, demonstrated public use, and completed environmental review, not to shift substantial financial environmental risk onto taxpayers in support of a speculative private mining development.

Thank you, Miss Nalani. Thank you for the opportunity. I believe you're wrapping up. Thank you for your testimony. That brings us to Hal Shepherd, followed by Matthew Lustroffer.

Apologies if I'm not pronouncing that correctly. Mr. Shepherd, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Mr. Shepherd, are you there?

We cannot hear you, Mr. Shepherd. We will leave you in the queue and come back to you momentarily, or hopefully you're able to connect with us. That brings us to Matthew Lorstorfer. If you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Uh, yeah, you said it right. I'm Matthew Lohrstorffler. I'm representing myself. Um, I also want to testify against appropriating money for the West Sea Road. Um, I have a place in the area, Shell Lake, I've been going to for the past 20 years, and I'm just really worried about the impact the road will have on that area.

Um, it will irrevocably change the place. Um, roads are never good for wilderness, and For the past few years, I've been doing work in the Yukon River drainage. I do water sampling and I check culverts along roads there. And I have been finding so many failing culverts that are impeding fish passage and erosion that creates high turbidity, which is detrimental for fish. So it just doesn't bode well when I hear they're proposing a new road when there's already so many problems.

And it feels like that money could be used to do remediation on these areas that are already negatively impacted by roads around the state. So thanks for listening.

Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it. We're going to return to Mr. Hal Shepherd. Mr. Shepherd, are you there? Can you hear us?

All right, apologies, Mr. Shepherd. Uh, you may want to try calling back in again. The queue is still open if you would like to try recalling in. That brings us to Nakisha Bailey. If you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

After that, we will have Christelle Marino.

Hello, and thank you for the opportunity to testify. I am Nakisha Bailey. I am the housing coordinator, victim advocate for Tundra Women's Coalition on Bethel. Um, I'm here to ask for funding to the Homeless Assistance Program in the capital budget. Um, HAP funds play a vital role in keeping these people safely housed.

Without the support, many individuals and families are faced with increased risk of eviction, displacement, and homelessness. Um, with a region where there is no homeless shelter for families, housing costs remain extremely high. And while the prices of utilities and food continue to grow, cutting or reducing these funds would have a serious consequence for our community. Our HAP grant also pays for utilities for our shelter for victims of violence and sexual assault to stop people from becoming homeless when they fall behind on bills. I've had people we've helped come to me thanking me, or thanking for the HAP program, since they don't have to worry about the added stress of where are they going to go with their kids if they get evicted, especially in an area with no homeless shelter for families.

I've had people come and cry saying now they can rest knowing, you know, the rent is paid, they don't need to worry about being homeless in an area where our weather can be extremely sticky or, you know, super negative during the winter months. Stable housing is vital for health, education, economic opportunity. When people have a safe place to live, it brings more stability and takes away strain on other community systems. So much better to stop people from ever becoming homeless in the first place. It's more cost-effective, less traumatic, and more humane.

The HAP program out here has an average of our— sorry, has helped an average of anywhere from 14 to 28 families annually.

And with our shelter, which the HAP program helps pay utilities, we've had 11,934 shelter nights of—. Oh, sorry.

Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you very much for your testimony. Representative Jimmy, I believe, would like to ask you a question or has a comment. More of a comment. Thank you, Commissioner Schrag.

I just want to thank you, Ms. Bialy. I got to tour the TWC Center and really appreciate all you do. And thank you for calling in for your testimony and being a part of the conversation. Goianna chakanaaka. Yes, thank you, Ms. Bialy.

Appreciate your testimony today. That brings us to Crystal Marino followed by Allison Steed. Ms. Marino, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Testimony. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Crystal Marino. I'm the executive director of Fairbanks Youth Advocates up in Fairbanks, and I just want to echo my colleagues on the call about the importance of the homeless assistance program and to urge that he put back into the capital budget. For the kids that we serve, the HAP funding is often the difference between life and death for them.

Many of our young people Come to us already facing difficult circumstances, whether that's family conflict, unsafe living conditions, or aging out of foster care. And without emergency shelter, they're at greater risk for homelessness, exploitation,.

And long-term instability. Since our inception, Fairbanks Youth Advocates helped thousands of kiddos in the interior. We also serve all the 42 villages on the northern end of the state, and since that time too, we've also expanded all of our services for all the way down to 6 years old and up to 24 years old. In my past with this organization, I've witnessed of the, what these kids go through, um, and the predators that are out there waiting for them when they don't have a place to go. And so, HAP funds guarantee that our shelter stays open 24/7 to make sure that they have a safe place every night.

Thank you. When our, sorry, when our young kiddos, um, when they have a place to stay, it also helps them stay in school. It's one of the problems that we see quite often. It helps them with the job force and then building stable futures. Because our kiddos are our future and one day I hope to see them either sitting in your seats or have successful futures because they had a place one time when they were younger that was safe and it gave them a place to thrive.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Marino. I believe Representative Staff would like to say hi or maybe has a question. Representative Staff. Yeah, thank you, Chair Schrag, to the Chair, to Ms. Marino. Kristel, it's always good to hear from you and thank you for all the work you've done for many years now banks, especially with youth advocacy.

Wonderful. All right, that brings us to Miss Allison Steed, followed by Jessica Parks. Miss Steed, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Thank you. Hello, my name is Allison Steed. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. My family's business, San Stevens Glacier and Wildlife Cruises, has been operating in Valdez for 55 years. And I represent the third generation of our family to work in this industry.

I am here today to speak to the importance of funding for tourism marketing. Currently, Alaska is not keeping pace competitively with other U.S. destinations. While they are growing 2% annually, Alaska is only seeing about a 1% growth rate for the same period. This shows that we are indeed losing market share. Statewide tourism marketing is essential for small communities and small businesses like ours to thrive.

We do not have budgets to market on a national or international on a national basis, and we need state-led programs to raise awareness of travel to Alaska so that businesses like ours can spend our individual marketing dollars to get guests on our front door. Tourism is an economic contributor to the state budget, generating over $181 million annually. We are asking for you to reinvest a small portion of these funds to help our businesses survive and help Alaska remain competitive. Thank you for all that you do for the state and for ensuring tourism remains strong. Thank you for your testimony, Ms. Steed.

That brings us to Jessica Parks, followed by Javan Schroeder. Ms. Parks, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Thank you. My name is Jessica Parks.

I'm with the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness. We are the lead agency for the continuum of care responsible for the design and implementation of the homeless prevention and response system in the municipality of Anchorage. I'm testifying today in support of restoring the funds for the Homeless Assistance Program, or HAP. You've heard from many of my colleagues. I know earlier today the Senate Finance Committee approved an amendment to the mental health budget restoring these critical funds, and we thank them.

But our advocacy cannot stop. Ensuring these funds are in the enacted budget is essential to the safety and stability of hundreds of Alaskans. The two coalitions working towards addressing homelessness in Alaska, myself and the Anchorage Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness, we have one advocacy priority this year, and it was maintaining these funds at the existing FY26 level. As you've heard, 34 different organizations respond to homelessness or the threat of homelessness with these dollars. In some rural Alaska communities, the only shelters and supports for people experiencing homelessness are funded by these dollars.

These cuts threaten the very viability of programs that already operate on very thin margins. These projects fund shelter, housing, support in 14 communities: Alaska, Bethel, Cordova, Fairbanks, Homer, Juneau, Kenai, Ketchikan, Kodiak, the Mat-Su, Nome, Prince of Wales, Sitka, and Unalaska. With these dollars, agencies are able to provide services such as emergency shelters, transitional housing for families, and homelessness prevention, which stops homelessness before it even starts. HAP funding ensures these services are available and coordinated. So we urge you to join us in ensuring the continuity of these important services and supporting restoration of these funds back to the $10.15 million as they were funded in FY26.

Thank you for your time. Thank you for your testimony, Ms. Parks. We appreciate it. That brings us to Javan Schroeder, uh, followed by Yvette McDonald.

Mr. Schroeder, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Hi there, thank you for having me. My name is Javen Schroeder and I am a commercial fisherman in Upper Cook Inlet. I live year-round in Homer, Alaska. I was born and raised in Alaska and I will live and die here.

I'm calling like many others to voice opposition against the $95 million set for the beginning of West Deschutes Access Road. I believe it's an irresponsible allocation of money for the state. Aside from the economic problems of this, the risk of habitat degradation from the development is is steep, and I'm calling as a commercial fisherman to voice my opinion against this. Any degradation of the habitat of salmon in West Susitna and the drainage of the Susitna River would directly compromise my livelihood as a fisherman in Cook Inlet, as well as compromising the livelihood of sport fishermen, of hunters, subsistence users, all the recreational opportunities and the robust tourism economy that exists currently. The Westy Sitna Industrial Access Road threatens these values that I hold and so many other Alaskans.

It's an ill-conceived project and it's a total waste of the state money— state Alaskan taxpayer money. And the entire project here, a billion dollars of this, the $95 million years that's in this 214 is just scratching the— all of it is wrong. Alaskan money would much better be spent on infrastructure that exists that needs serious attention, as more qualified individuals have pointed out before me this evening. And the efforts to preserve the priceless natural beauty and resources of Alaska is something that should be prioritized, both renewable, of course, and some non-renewables. I'm a realist here.

Please do not fund the proposed Lucky Center Industrial Access Road, and please prioritize Alaskan money for us Alaskans. Thank you very much for hearing me tonight. Thank you very much, Ms. Schroeder. We have a question or a comment from Representative Allard. Rep. Allard.

Thank you, and through the co-chair, thank you for being here, Ms. Schroeder. Ms. Schroeder, are you from the, um, the Matsu Valley in which this road would interact with you? Miss Schroeder? No, ma'am. I grew up in Anchorage, and my family, my grandparents and my mother, were born in Homer, Alaska, and that's where I live year-round.

Thank you. I appreciate that. All right, thank you very much again for your testimony, Miss Schroeder. That brings us to Yvette McDonald, followed by Pamela Nilsini. Apologies if I butchered that.

Uh, Yvette McDonald, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Hi, my name is Yvette McDonald. I'm calling from Palmer, Alaska, representing myself on behalf of funding for the 2028 Arctic Winter Games in Fairbanks, Alaska. I had the privilege of volunteering as Team Alaska mission staff for the Youth Ambassadors Program This was the very first year Alaska has ever brought youth ambassadors to the Games, and what I witnessed went far beyond sport. As a leader, I watched our youth ambassadors step into roles that challenged them to grow in real time. They weren't just attending an event, they were representing Alaska on an international stage.

They collaborated with peers from places that they had never been, learned how to communicate across cultures, they built friendships that will last a lifetime. These are not small moments. These are the kind of experiences that shape our future leaders. I saw our two youth ambassadors gain confidence as they spoke in front of crowds with leaders of our country and foreign leaders. They adapted to unfamiliar environments and took initiative in meaningful ways.

They learned how to lead, but also how to listen. They learned that leadership isn't about being the loudest voice, but about understanding others, building bridges, and representing something bigger than yourself. Perhaps most importantly, they came home different. They came home more confident, more aware of the world around them, and more connected to their identity as Alaskans and as global citizens. Funding for the Arctic Winter Games is an investment in that transformation.

It's an investment in youth who will go on to lead our communities, our state, and.

Beyond. These games provide opportunities that simply cannot be replicated in a classroom or a local program. They give our youth a global perspective while strengthening their roots here at home. Alaska doesn't just send athletes, but we send future leaders. And when we support the Arctic Winter Games, we're ensuring that those leaders have the opportunity to grow, connect, and thrive.

Thank you for your time. Thank you, Miss McDonald. That brings us to Pamela Nolsini, followed by Terry Gorlick. Ms. Nolsini, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Good afternoon, this is Pamela Nolsini, and I am a resident of the Alaska Native Village of Alexander Creek and an Alexander Creek Village board member. I'm representing myself. I am testifying against the budget allocation for the West Matsu Access Road. The village of Alexander Creek is directly affected by this project, and I am totally against the project road for a number of reasons. I want to make 5 points, although I have many more concerns.

Number 1, the access road is mainly serving a small number of outside mining interests. Number 2, the $95 million allocated for it needs to go elsewhere to provide safe roads and other needed infrastructure. Put the money where it's needed to benefit Alaskan residents. Number 3, I am a Native Alaskan who was born and raised here at Alexander Creek, which is directly affected by the access road, and I depend on the food resources to live here, as my father and grandfather before me did. I cannot have those things jeopardized by mining practices and construction, which will undoubtedly damage the delicate area we rely on.

My village has been fighting against this project since it was introduced. Number 4, the project benefits only a select group of people, specifically millionaires who stand to make a lot more money at the expense of Alaskans and the Alaskan environment. And finally, number 5, it will be a tragedy to harm an area sacred to my people and to my heart and the people from other areas impacted by this project, and I request that it be stopped. And I just thank you for letting me speak.

Thank you very much for your testimony, Miss Nalsini. That brings us to Terry Gorlick, followed by Don Morse. Gorlick, if you could please— oh, Mr. Gorlick, excuse me. Please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

My name is Terry Gorlick, and I was a business owner in Alaska when Alaska Pump and Supply for over 33 years, employing hundreds of employees in that business and numerous other businesses. And I'm here to speak and thank the chair and the members of the House Finance Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today in strong support of SB 214, the capital appropriations necessary to advance the Western State Access Road. Most of the folks that have spoke before don't realize they all have roads to their homes. They don't realize, I don't think, that in 1929, when the original Alaska Highway was proposed, almost identical to what they're saying.

You can—. Then in 1942, when it went under construction, were said— if you look up the diary notes and the public testimony, it's almost identical. This is not a simple road project. It's strategic investment in Alaska's economic future, resource independence, and long-term security, economic development, and return on investment. Infrastructure unlocks value.

The West Sitka Access Road provides access to one of the most mineral-rich regions in the state, including gold, copper, critical minerals essential to modern supply chains, including some logging and recreational business development. These are identified resources in a growing demand. The road reduces development barriers, turning stranded assets into producing assets, creating high-paying jobs, royalty revenues, and long-term tax base expansion. National security and strategic resources— the project supports domestic supply chain that reduces reliance on foreign adversaries for critical minerals. It strengthens industries from defense to energy infrastructure.

It's one of the strategic— infrastructure. Public access and equity. Over 6 million acres of public land become accessible. This supports hunting, fishing, and subsistence while reducing reliance on expensive air transport and expanding fair public access. Responsible development and environmental stewardship.

Modern construction includes advancing fish passage systems, elevated crossings, wetland protection, and strict NEPA compliance. These projects are engineered to protect salmon habitat and hydrology. Legislative responsibility and appropriations decision. The West of Sitka Access Road project has been placed in the state's capital budget at the request of the governor. While legislature does have the authority to remove it from the $95 million appropriation, I respectfully submit that given the statewide economic strategic and public access importance of this project, this is precisely why funding should be maintained in advance.

Removing this appropriation would halt not only state investment but also alignment and flow of federal funding tied to Department of Transportation's first phase. Advancing the appropriation ensures Alaska remains competitive, forward-looking, and positioned to fully leverage both state and federal partnership dollars. Costs versus value. This is a phased, structured investment leveraging ADA financing and tied to measurable progress. The real question is cost of doing nothing.

Lost jobs, lost revenue, restricted access. Closing. Alexis Simic's Access Road is the economic engine—. Thank you, Mr. Gorlick, for your testimony. We do appreciate it, and I'm sorry to cut you off.

We did let you go past the 2 minutes by a good bit. If you have additional comments, please feel free to write in with your written testimony. With that, that brings us to Don Morse, followed by Andrew Traxler. Dawn Morse, if you could please put your name on the record, state any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Dawn Morse, are you there?

Yes, I am here, thank you. This is Dawn Morse. I am a Mountain View community member and advocate in Anchorage. And Miss Morse, if you're possibly on speakerphone, if you could if you could go to your handset, that would be appreciated. It's coming in quite muffled.

We can hear you, but it's a little bit difficult to listen to. Yeah. Is this better? That is much better. Thank you, Miss Morse.

Please continue. Yeah, thank you. Thank you for telling me. Okay, so I am a Mountain View community member and advocate in Anchorage, and I am here to advocate for the homeless assistance program funding. I'd really like to add my voice to what Gloria Burns from Ketchikan said.

That you need to not just make it the same as it was last year, that funding should be increased. I was a grants consultant. I do significant pro bono work with one of my clients, Trusted Connections. And Trusted Connections is in Anchorage. It's an Alaska Native-led nonprofit who facilitates trauma Indigenous-centered, peer-led trauma healing circles and provides culturally sensitive support for unsheltered neighbors and safe liaisons for visitors from the village.

And the work that they do It's beautiful and it makes a difference in people's lives.

You're not just treating them or giving them housing, you're walking with people and helping them through homelessness and helping them figure out how to become strong and resilient themselves and bring their own beautiful change to our state, and we are seeing it happen. So I would like to advocate that the new funding be routed to small grassroots groups who are working for prevention in new ways. And thank you for your time.

Thank you very much for your testimony, Ms. Morse. And we have a question from Representative Galvin. I have a comment. Ms. Morris, I just want to thank you for taking the time. It sounded like you were in Mountain View.

Did I hear that correctly?

Ms. Morris, if you are still there? I think I got confirmation from Representative Justesen. It was hard for me to hear. But anyway, I just wanted to make sure to say thank you for chiming in from the Anchorage area. We really appreciate it.

Your stories make a difference. Thank you.

Thank you for your testimony, Miss Morse. That brings us to Andrew Traxler. Mr. Traxler, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Hello, um, I called in this evening to testify in favor of the West Susitna Access Road. I actually live only a mile or two here from the West Susitna Access Road and also the Point McKenzie Railroad. I happen to also serve as chairman of the road board.

For this local road service area, and I'm testifying for myself today. This is just to say that I'm qualified to testify on roads. The Weston-Sutton Access Road is essential to our community for us to have jobs and for future jobs. The increased access for hunting and fishing would be very important to us. And it shouldn't be accessible to just a few.

And by roads, that means that everyone has access. And a 24-foot-wide road does not destroy salmon streams. And all of the roads in our community, we have salmon streams, and all of them have culverts that let the fish cross. If you build a bridge, it's not difficult to do. It's kind of sad that so many people outside of the community calling in are trying to kill this project.

I believe that it's very important to our community. Something also to note, that 2 miles of the West of Sedna is already built. And right now, 80% of the Matsonboro firewood is supplied from West Sissetona. And currently, there is a timber harvest already purchased that will supply the next 10 years worth of firewood in the Matsonboro. So thank you for the time to testify.

Thank you, Mr. Traxler. Representative Allard has a question or a comment. Representative Allard. Thank you, and thank you for being here today, Mr. Traxler. So I'm gonna, um, I I'm going to say something first on record because I don't think a lot of folks know that these are federal receipts and we're in Stage 2.

This isn't money we just give back and then say put somewhere else. So thank you for calling in. I like your expertise. So I'm just going to ask you really quick one question, and it is, can you tell me some of the impact that this may affect on businesses, port, the rail spur, and recreation? I know I spoke fast, but you're an expert on this because you are on the Roads Board, and I would like to hear your input on that, please.

Mr. Traxler. In regards to the Washington Access Road to the, you know, fun, you know, the prosperity of the Port McKenzie would be absolutely essential, along with the railroad bed spur being finished. Yeah, it's— to not have this road, it's very impossible to get the resources to port, for us to do what we do with timber harvesting to supply the Mat-Su Valley. There's just so many things, and this project's been planned for 10 years.

Can I do one more? Yeah, follow-up, Representative Allard. Thank you. And so the federal government is looking at spending just over $94 million. Do you think that they're taking this lightly if they're willing to spend $94 million to help grow Alaska into a better direction?

Mr. Traxler? Of course. Well, that was easy. Okay, thank you. Of course I do.

I just And Chair, I just want to— Co-chair, I just want to reiterate to folks, this is federal receipts. This isn't funds that are just state dollars that we're not allocating properly or where they might want us to shift around. That's not how these federal receipts work. But I do definitely appreciate everybody's testimony and concerns. Thank you, Representative Ballard.

This is federal authority. Sorry. But small distinction there, but an important one in my view. All right. That brings us to Mike Mason, followed by Michael Bowles.

Mr. Mason, if you could please put your name on the record, state any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

My name is Mike Mason. I'm a 26-year resident of Alexander Creek, and I too am opposed to the Wesuhsitna Access Road. As you've heard from many people, the economical feasibility, the environmental and everything from the experts, from my neighbors, that, you know, that's points that everybody's brought up. But I want to bring up a point about what if they don't do it right, about safety and environmental. And my subject I'm going to give you is just last year, Alaska Directional Drilling got a permit to lay 5G cable on the same area as the road almost in the West Susitna— in the Susitna Game Refuge.

They violated every sense of the permit all winter long. When it was too warm, they were running D6s with semi-trucks loaded and stuff through the mud and just tearing everything up. They dropped at least 3 or 4 pieces of equipment through the ice, and they killed 2 people. And that's what we're worried about. A lot of us are worried about what if they do this when they build that road.

And to me, it seems like DOT and Fish and Game don't have any teeth. I asked Fish and Game why they didn't enforce a permit, and they said, well, we just had to rely on them to do the right thing. Is ADA going to do the right thing? They sure haven't many times. And I just, I want to bring that aspect of it up.

And I live on Alexander Creek. I've lived there a long time. And it's just not feasible. I'm not against development, but that is not feasible. And Mr. Traxley says he's a road expert.

You guys been driving on his roads? They're terrible. That's all I got to say. Thank you, Mr. Mason. I appreciate your testimony.

Uh, next up we have Michael Bowles followed by Robert Thompson. Mr. Bowles, if you could please state your name for the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Yes, thank you, sir. I appreciate it. My name is Michael Bowles.

I'm calling in from Palmer, Alaska. Just to disclose, I am a member of the Mat-Su Borough Assembly representing District 1. I also sit on the Mat-Su Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission. Today I call in though to speak on my own behalf. So bottom line is the Mat-Su Borough is open for business.

We want this. We want this funding for the West Zoo. This is going to be an outstanding opportunity for not just us here, but for the entire state. So I ask that you— I support this. I strongly support this, and I ask that you support this as well.

This is going to bring in jobs. Mr. Gorlick, who I do know but I did not coordinate with, I mean, he nailed it. He nailed it. Mr. Traxler nailed it. So every time, if you look at the history of roads in Alaska, Every road project has had its opposition, but look at us now.

I mean, the Alcan is used for over-the-road transportation for food, to bring food to Alaska. The Denali Highway is one of the most highly recreated roads in Alaska. So I just ask that you please consider that, consider us who live here, what we want in the Mat-Su Borough. We want to grow. We want strong infrastructure.

We want economic development. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Bowles. Appreciate your testimony. We do have a question or a comment from Representative Ballard.

Rep Ballard. It's a little bit of a comment, but it's not directly necessarily to Mr. Bowles. I just wanted to make sure that on record when I say federal receipts, it's federal receipts authority. So you and I are both correct, but the documentation clearly says federal receipts. That's all.

Thank you. Representative Ballard. All right. Representative Moore. Thank you, Co-Chair Schrag.

I just wanted to thank Michael for calling in, and always good to hear people from the Massou calling in and participate. Thank you so much. All right, thank you, Rep Moore, and thank you again, Mr. Bowles. Appreciate your testimony and your service to your community. All right, that brings us to Robert Thompson followed by Angela Wade.

Mr. Thompson, if you could please state your name for the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. My name is Robert Thompson. I'm testifying for myself. I am against the project. I think it's ill-advised.

The state spending millions of dollars on a project that has been very vaguely defined. It seems like every time they face opposition from one of the descriptions, they change it to something else. It's been described as a gold mine, a haul road for mines, public recreation access, wind farm, LNG, all kinds of things. And honestly, a big part of this is the fact that Ada is involved in it. I live about 2 miles away from a $50 million fish processing plant that is now a church and never saw a fish unless it was for a Sunday dinner.

The local, local people, vast majority I've spoken to and heard from, and the lodge owners, property owners, people that live there and use the area, are against this. And as far as a few people using it, this is already a very heavily used area. There's access by snow machine in the wintertime, boats in the summer, airplanes all year round, and it's very heavily used and it's very heavily impacted already for a lot of different reasons. But we used to fly over there for years and years, and every time you flew across the Palmer Hay or the Sisseton Hay Flats there, you'd see dozens of moose, and now you hardly ever see one. And moose habitat is right in the center where they're going to put that road through.

It's going to destroy it. The fish in Alexander Creek barely show up anymore. It's been heavily, heavily impacted. I believe that there is much better use for this. I mean, talking about roads, my wife and I took a trip down the Seward Highway going to Skubin, and it just about went airborne over the bumps.

It's a patchwork of of, uh, potholes, and it's, uh, designated a scenic byway, and the road is barely, barely safe to drive on. So, uh, I'm against this, and I, I'm thankful that you gave us the time. I think that this $95 million should be removed from the capital budget. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Thompson.

We appreciate your testimony. All right, that brings us to Angela Wade followed by Teal West. Uh, Miss Wade, if you could.

Please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Good evening and chinan for the chance to testify. My name is Angela Wade and I'm the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for Chickaloon Village. I'm here to talk about SB 214. I'm here to urge you to reject the West Susitna Access Road funding and instead protect the opportunities and ecosystems that already sustain Alaskans. This project is a poor use of public dollars.

We have crumbling roads, deferred maintenance, and real transportation needs in communities across this state. With limited state matching funds needed to unlock federal support, we cannot afford to tie up tens of millions in a new industrial access corridor that offers little public benefit compared to the cost and long-term liabilities that the state cannot afford. We are already stretched thin with emergency and wildland fire response funding running thin or being dismantled. We don't need to be opening up new country and causing additional expense. I would like to remind you that with access comes responsibility, and those responsibilities cost.

The Western Sitka Region already supports a thriving economy. Converting this region into an industrial zone puts existing businesses, jobs, and traditional uses at risk. We also need to be honest about what that states of fish and wildlife. Roads that cross salmon-bearing rivers can permanently alter streams, wetlands, and floodplains. We've certainly seen that on the Glenn Highway where I live.

Industrial traffic brings noise, pollution, and easier access that can displace wildlife and diminish hunting and recreation. I walked the whole 22+ miles of the corridor Even though DOT will claim it's unwalkable, and I know there are landforms and features out there that need protecting culturally. We specifically looked at culturally modified trees and found almost 700 culturally modified trees and a 20-foot corridor of that whole 22+ miles. So we know there's a lot of cultural stuff happening out there. Alaskan— Most importantly, this area contains cultural sites and burial grounds that deserve protection, not disturbance.

We have been meeting with other tribes of descendant communities of this site too, and as we— off car— there are many concerns about this road and its intersection with very important cultural significant areas. Alaskans don't need this road to create opportunity. We already have it, and it's worth defending. I'm asking you to reject the West Sitna Access Road and focus on Focus transportation dollars on maintaining and improving the infrastructure we already rely on. Keep the West Coast Sitka fisheries, wildlife, and cultural resources intact for future generations.

Chinan sigiu. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Wade. That brings us to Teal West, followed by Michelle DeWitt. Teal West, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Good evening, my name is Teal West and I'm calling from Sitka. Thank you for the opportunity to testify tonight. I own and run the Sitka Lighthouse and the Sitka Lighthouse Company Store. I'm calling in support of tourism marketing tonight. I represent myself, but more importantly, my community.

I employ and directly do business with over 100 Alaskans each visitor season. I was born and raised in Sitka. I live here year-round and I raised my kids here. It's been nice to see visitors returning to our community after a long winter, and their dollars are going right back into our economy. It's a good reminder of why tourism matters and why marketing the state matters even more.

Our visitors didn't decide to come last week. They decided months ago. That is what state marketing does and why we need the marketing budget fully funded. Tourism brought $5.6 billion into Alaska's economy in 2022 and 2023. Over $181 million of that went directly to the state in 2024.

50,000 Alaskans rely on this industry for a living, but beyond that, the trickle-down effect is much larger, and tourism truly touches most residents here. Sitka is an on-the-road system. You can't drive here. For someone to reach us, they have to know we exist and plan their visits months in advance. Without state marketing, pulling visitors towards Alaska, especially towards our rural communities.

We get skipped. But that said, the most important reason I'm calling is what tourism does for families like mine. My daughter graduates from high school next year, and she's already asking whether she can afford to come back to Alaska after college, if she can build a life here or might have to leave the state for good. Employment in tourism is one of the few answers that I can give her. She can return to work directly in tourism, or she can do what many Alaskans already do.

She can take another job and supplement it with seasonal tourism. Teachers, fishermen, and many young families holding our small rural communities together continue to live in our state only because of tourism dollars. I have also directly experienced that as a commercial fishing— as commercial fishing becomes harder each year to sustain a family on. Tourism is helping many families close the gap, like mine. Tourism marketing is not just a line item for the state budget, so I ask you tonight to please fully fund and allocate a substantial amount towards the marketing of our state.

You will not find a better return or investment, and generations of Alaskans depend on it for years to come. Thank you so much. Thank you, Miss West. Appreciate your testimony. That brings us to Michelle DeWitt, followed by Aaron Marotti.

Michelle DeWitt, if you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Good evening, my name is Michelle DeWitt. I work for Bethel Community Services Foundation and I'm testifying from Bethel this evening. I just wanted to say a note about the importance of the homeless assistance program, the HAP program. I heard that an amendment has been introduced which is You know, very hopeful.

I, I've noticed over the years— I've lived in Buffalo almost 30 years— our safety net here and in many places across the state is very thin. And the small amount of funds that we get in our community from this grant program makes a huge impact, particularly when it comes to preventing people from becoming unhoused or placing people who are unhoused. Those investments make major impacts and save a lot of money and a lot of trauma in the long run when folks become unhoused. I was at the post office just yesterday, and I bumped into somebody who was asking me about HAP funds and how they might access them during an emergency. I— our community foundation doesn't receive those funds, obviously.

I heard from Nikki Shibayashi, our partner agency here in the community. They receive funds, for example. But we're a member of the Housing and Homelessness Coalition, participate heavily in that. And so we are very aware of the impact these dollars have. So I just— I'm speaking tonight to support the full funding of that program and to sustain the small amount of safety net that we do have in this community, especially looking to the future when folks may be facing some really difficult economic challenges with the cost of stove oil, heating fuel, and those kinds of things.

So thank you everyone, I appreciate your time. Thank you, Miss DeWitt. And Representative Jimmy would like to talk to you. Guayana, Miss DeWitt, for all you do for our community out there, and I just appreciate you calling in, being part of the conversation. Guayana.

Thank you. Wonderful. All right. That brings us to Erin Moradi, followed by Deborah Foster. Ms. Moradi, if you'd please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Thank you. Good morning. Good evening, House Finance Committee members. My name is Erin Moradi of Fairbanks, Alaska. I am the executive director of the Interior Alaska Center for Nonviolent Living, or IAC.

The only domestic violence shelter, emergency shelter in Interior Alaska. Last fiscal year, we served over 700 unduplicated unique individuals and provided over 8,000 nights of emergency shelter. We also operate 2 permanent supportive housing units that support individuals and families that have experienced violence, have a disability, and have experienced a chronic lack of housing. I am here to ask for your continued support for the amendment to restore the fiscal year '27 Housing Assistance Program, HAP, funding to match the $10.1 million in fiscal year '26 in order to maintain these critical lifesaving services. In Interior Alaska, HAP funding is essential to keep people safe and housed.

IAC receives approximately $40,000 annually from HAP and uses these funds to support survivors, including help with their moving expenses, rental assistance, and shelter utility costs. These vital funds allow us to respond quickly to urgent needs and support survivors as they take next steps towards safety and stability after fleeing domestic violence. The need for these services has only grown, significantly actually, over time. In Fairbanks, we.

Rising utility costs combined with record cold temperatures this last winter continue to strain our shelter operations. At the same time, limited funding makes it difficult to offer fair, livable wages for advocates doing this critical work, contributing to ongoing workforce challenges. Without restoring HOT funding, these pressures will only intensify, impacting our ability to maintain shelter capacity, retain staff, and support survivors in successfully transitioning into stable housing. TAP is not just a short-term assistance, it's a bridge to long-term stability. It allows survivors to move forward safely, avoid returning to dangerous situations, and build a foundation for their future.

Thank you for your time and for your continued support of victim services across Alaska. I appreciate your consideration as you work through this budget. Thank you, Miss Maradi. Uh, you are popular here at the House Finance Committee. We've got both Representative Stamp and Representative Tomaszewski hoping to get in the queue here.

Representative Stamp. Yeah, thank you, Chair Chagasi, the chair, to Miss Maradi, uh, Aaron and Always good to hear from you. Thank you for your service on our school board up in Fairbanks when you were there. And Brenda Stanfill, your predecessor's predecessor, is a bit of a celebrity in our, our House body. So appreciate you taking over there at Nonviolent Living and advocating.

Thank you. Thank you, Representative Stapp. Representative Tomaszewski. Thank you, Co-Chair Schrag. I guess Representative Stapp stole my thunder there.

I just wanted to thank Ms. Murady for her work in the Nonviolent Living Violent, nonviolent living, and appreciate the work she does there in Fairbanks for all those in need. Thank you. Yeah, thank you to both. Yeah, thank you very much, Miss Maradi. And frankly, thank you from the House Finance Committee to all those that have called in that actively deliver services within our community to those who are most vulnerable and in need.

Thank you. All right, that brings us to Deborah Foster, followed by our very last caller for the night, Evelyn Treffon. But before Before we get to Evelyn, Deborah Foster, you are on deck. If you could please put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony. Yes, please proceed.

Can you hear us?

Hi, can you hear me? Yes, we can hear you. Please proceed. Okay, my name is Deborah Foster and, uh, I'm a resident here in Anchorage, Alaska, and I'm basically testifying and representing myself In addition to a nonprofit I just started, which is called Independent Advocates, and also on behalf of the homelessness and homelessness, you know, just speaking on their behalf, you know, I'm here to urge you not to cut the funding for homeless services because, you know, like the other ladies said, these services You know, they save lives, stabilize families, and they strengthen our community. So, you know, I'm just respectfully requesting that your council preserve and increase funding for homeless programs, including shelter services, outreach housing and support, and rapid rehousing, you know, because these have like an economic impact on our community.

And that's, you know, reducing homelessness saves money by lowering, you know, like the emergency room visits, jail time, and police calls. And, you know, it provides like stable housing, which improves employment outcomes and school performance in children. So ending, you know, the chronic homelessness reduces long-term public health risks. So I just wanted to share Very sensitive story. I have a son, had a son, he was a Navy veteran, disabled, 100% service member.

He was an IT broker and he tried to get help out here. And as a result, he went to Nevada, Las Vegas, I'm sorry, where he's dead now, okay? Because he couldn't get the help and services that he needed right here. He ended up going someplace else and relocated, which happened to have been a veteran facility, and I still don't have the answers yet. I reached out to Sullivan and all the representatives, and I'm still mourning.

Okay. So, as a result of this, I'm still advocating, and the nonprofit that I started is in honor of my son. And I haven't really gotten it off the ground yet, but I'm trying. So, just having the Accessibility, you know, and equity considerations, you know, would help veteran families with children, youth, seniors, and people with disabilities, and those who are living in abusive situations. So I strongly request that they restore the HAP funds and, you know, not cut them and try to help as many people as they could, you know, because I believe that these cuts I mean, they could be unavoidable and protect core emergency services and maintain rapid rehousing slots while they are reviewing the processes.

So, you know, that's pretty much all I have to say, and hopefully they restore the funds for HAP. Thank you. Thank you for your testimony, Ms. Foster. And please don't go yet. Representative Tomaszewski would like a question or a comment.

Representative Tomaszewski. Yes, Miss Foster, thank you for calling in. Thank you for your family's service, and God bless you as you go through your healing process. Yes, I think we would echo those comments. Thank you, Miss Foster.

All right. And with that, we are at our last caller for the night. I'm just double checking the list here. It appears that this is our last caller. Evelyn Tréfond, do you want to bring us home here?

Put your name on the record, any affiliation, and begin with your testimony.

Gwaiianna ko chairs and representatives for the opportunity to testify today. Klinga aakaan Other Wind Tree Fund. I call in today as a board member serving on the Alaska Farmers Market Association and a small business owner in New Zealand. I humbly ask for your support for AFMA's capital request titled Alaska Farmers Market Association Support for Doubling SNAP/FIC/Senior Nutrition Incentive Programs at Farmers Markets. That is basically a long title to say please help support Alaskan farmers markets to enable low-income Alaskans to stretch their program dollars further.

I have owned and operated a small fruit and vegetable market for the past 12 years supporting communities in the Lake Iliamna area. The SNAP Doubling Program through AFMA helped to motivate me to jump through all the hoops to be able to accept SNAP benefits at my market because I wanted to help my neighbors access this funding and stretch their dollars further. In 2022, AFMA launched this pilot program. The initial investment from the legislative allocation has enabled AFMA to strengthen small farms, rural producers, local businesses, and keeps Alaskan dollars in Alaska by directly supporting small Alaskan-owned businesses across the state. With this program, AFMA saw a 272% increase in SNAP redemption at farmers markets since the start of the program.

There has also been over 80,000 redeemed in WIC FMNP in the first 2 years of the program. Additionally, this funding is a direct investment investment to help farmers offset the current high cost of fuel and supplies by collecting more sales at our markets. Through this funding, low-income Alaskans will purchase more and stretch their already tight budgets further. Farmers markets are economic engines in Alaska, with over 30 markets part of AFMA in 2024. They generated $3.1 million in sales and had 312,000 customers shopping at 180 farmers' tables across Alaska.

Thank you very much, Ms. Trefon. And we have Representative Hannan hoping to get a word with you. Representative Hannan. Thank you, Coach Yershawagi. Evelyn, it's just always good to hear you and your continued advocacy to feed your neighbors.

And some of our folks may remember you from advocating for the school lunch programs that you've worked on to make sure the kids in your school get fed even when you didn't have funding from your district. So thank you for your continued advocacy on Alaskans' need to eat. Yes, thank you, Ms. Trifon. And some good news for you, it's my understanding that today in the other body that an amendment was passed to the operating budget that would include this item. So hopefully that comes as good news.

Thank you for your testimony again. We really appreciate it. With that, we have no other testifiers on the schedule. Therefore, we will conclude this hearing on public testimony for SB 214, the capital budget. I want to thank all of our testifiers for their time and willingness to participate in this public process and for their patience in the slight delay in us beginning our meeting.

That concludes our business for today. House Finance in the morning is canceled, but we will come back in the afternoon at 1:30 PM to take up— looking at my schedule here— HB 193, unemployment benefits, and HB 1, speechy as legal tender. With that, This meeting is adjourned at 6:40 PM. We're adjourned.