Alaska Senate members are planning to reintroduce a bill to restore the state's public pension system, a year after a similar effort failed in the House. The proposed system, slightly modified from the one eliminated in 2006, aims to address concerns about Alaska's competitive disadvantage in hiring and retaining public employees.
Members of the Alaska Senate are planning an effort to restore the state’s pension system for public employees, one year after inaction by the Alaska House killed a prior effort., filed Friday at the state Capitol by Sen.
Cathy Giessel, R-Anchorage, would create a system slightly modified from the one eliminated by lawmakers in 2006. Its early introduction is a sign that pensions, along with education and the price of Cook Inlet natural gas, are expected to garner significant attention in the 34th Alaska State Legislature.Few proposed bills become law in Alaska. In the 33rd Legislature, which ran from 2023 through 2024, legislators and the governor introduced 665 bills combined. Only 89 became law, a passage rate of 13.4%. The 89 enacted bills were the second-fewest of any Legislature since statehood. Only the 31st Legislature, which was shortened by COVID-19, enacted fewer bills.from the hundreds of bills typically introduced when the Legislature convenes. A second round of prefiled bills will be released Jan. 17.Two bills prefiled Friday — one dealing with insurance coverage for elected officials and another dealing with the state’s derelict boat fund — wereEnacting those bills will require the Legislature to pass them again. Also among the prefiled legislation is a different pension revival bill from Sen. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau. Kiehl introduced a similar bill two years ago but that bill also failed to advance.Giessel, who has championed the issue in the Senate, has argued that because Alaska lacks a public pension, it’s at a hiring disadvantage with state and local governments that do. Public employee unions, particularly those representing police and firefighters, have repeatedly testified that employees frequently arrive in Alaska, get trained, then move away because other states offer more stability and benefits. The cost of hiring and training new employees is prohibitive, they have argued in testimony before the Legislature. Opponents of the revived pension idea point to the state’s now-closed pension system, which has a multibillion-dollar unfunded liability, in part because actuaries underestimated the cost of pensions. The state treasury is now liable for those costs, and skeptics worry about a repeat.intended to meet those concerns by reducing health care benefits and increasing the employees’ required contribution rate. If an unfunded gap develops, a special panel is permitted to further boost the required contribution rate. Despite the changes, the pension bill was referred to a subcommittee in the House and failed to advance from that three-person panel after a single hearing held without public notice.The prior House was controlled by a predominantly Republican coalition that opposed the pension bill. This year’s House is expected to be controlled by a predominantly Democratic coalition that also includes a Republican who has been a passionate advocate of a pension revival. “The House will show its commitment to responsible retirement security,” said that Republican, Rep.-elect Chuck Kopp of Anchorage. “I think we could make considerable headway due to the alignment between the House and the Senate,” he said. In the Senate, all 11 senators who voted to advance the pension bill last time are still members, as is Sen. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, who is a member of the majority but was absent from the prior vote. The first stop in the Senate for the pension bill will be the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, headed by Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski and a supporter of the prior bill. Bjorkman said the labor and commerce committee held eight hearings on the bill in 2023. Most bills receive two or three hearings in a policy committee before advancing. “We’ll take a look at it, and we’ll have hearings — probably not as many,” he said. “We’ll move it through after thorough and fair hearings, and I’m happy to consider other ideas as well, but we need to take a look at that retirement issue and make sure that Alaska can move forward in a competitive way.” If the pension bill were to advance through the Legislature, proponents’ biggest hurdle may be convincing the governor. Giessel said she hasn’t yet talked with him about the issue.is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c public charity. Alaska Beacon maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Andrew Kitchenman for questions: info@alaskabeacon.com. Follow Alaska Beacon on
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