Quite a couple of weeks, no? On Tuesday, June 16, the Anchorage Assembly held a special meeting to hear yet more public testimony on the proposed Equal Rights ordinance.
While I wrote previously that Acting Mayor Matt Claman would not return to the Assembly as chair a recent legal opinion from the Department of Law opines the opposite view, based in part on commentary associated with Anchorage’s charter. Reasonable minds might disagree but, since Mr. Claman has indicated that his first order of business upon his return in July would be election of a chair, an election in which he does not plan to stand, it seems an inconsequential point.
The Anchorage municipal election has come and gone, sort of, and those who follow local government could be forgiven for asking the question, “now what?” As it turns out, quite a bit.
One of aspects I enjoy about serving on the Anchorage Assembly is the opportunity to work with a wide variety of people to address disparate issues. In doing so I am frequently reminded that whatever our differences we are usually more alike than not and can often find common ground to solve problems. That’s another way of saying that there’s more to folks than media depictions can portray.
I don’t know who said it first but I’m fond of the phrase, “Politics is Alaska’s second favorite indoor sport.” I’ll let readers decide for themselves what the first one is, but my point is that even when there’s not much to talk about people still talk about it (long-winded political office-holder bloggers included). So here goes…
Tuesday evening’s Assembly meeting is shaping up to be a barnburner. Long, potentially contentious and chock full of intrigue. Unless you choose to ignore local government or have been living in a cave you’re surely aware of at least some of the issues before us. But, in the interest of disclosure, here are some highlights: (more…)
During Tuesday’s debate on a series of budget amendments offered by my new favorite Assembly member, Bill Starr, discussions about the Police Department proved most interesting to me. One of the amendments would have cut $1,025,000 from APD’s budget with Mr. Starr reasoning that our addition of officers should result in reduced overtime but, instead, overtime costs have instead been rising. The flaw in that logic is that the Assembly passes a budget while departments retain the flexibility for intradepartmental allocation, meaning a decrement to “overtime” is essentially an unallocated cut.
The Assembly is taking a two-week break to acknowledge election day, November 4, and Veterans Day, November 11, which both fall on Tuesdays. Accordingly I, too, plan a break from blogging until the week of November 17 – look for a post some time after our meeting on the 18th. Thanks to all for reading and, no matter your political persuasion, please take the time to exercise your civic duty by voting. I’m not sure who said it first, but I’m fond of the old saw reminding us that those who don’t vote don’t get to complain!
In my brief tenure on the Anchorage Assembly the topic which has generated the most correspondence from neighbors near and far is whether to continue or cut Anchorage’s Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance, or I/M, program. Those opposed to the program cite improved automotive technology and the lack of recent carbon monoxide (CO) violations of Clean Air Act standards, while supporters note the importance of testing as part of our successful Air Quality Program. I’ve had numerous conversations with folks about the matter so I think it best to explain why I support continued I/M testing. (more…)
The road to increased recycling in Anchorage proved a little longer than expected, but Tuesday night the Assembly passed an areawide recycling ordinance that will implement recycling in schools, public buildings and, for much of Anchorage, at curbsides. Here’s a quick review of how we got from there to here: (more…)
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