This story is republished from dermotcole.com with permission.
A year ago, the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly, led at the time by five members who regularly attack public education, engineered a political scam to cut funding for schools this year.
The five anti-education members — Aaron Lojewski, Tammie Wilson, Jimi Cash, Barbara Haney and Brett Rotermund — reduced the level of public services this year by paying for education last year from different accounts.
Their manipulations, opposed by conservative Mayor Bryce Ward and four assembly members, had the effect of reducing the mill rate, drawing millions from savings, and reducing the borough’s revenue cap by $20 million, guaranteeing a future reduction in services.
This scam created a budget hole that could be filled via the special election Tuesday and repair some of the damage done to our public schools by the failure of the Alaska Legislature, Gov. Mike Dunleavy and the borough assembly to invest in education.
The election Tuesday would replace $10 million of the loss created last year.
The election would reset the tax cap, an action made necessary because five members of the assembly, three of them now former members, were not honest with the public in 2023.
Wilson and Cash, who lost their campaigns for reelection last year, are already running again for the assembly. Lojewski is running for mayor.
They hope that the voters will forget what they did a year ago or be conned into thinking the special election is about defending the tax cap. Their claim that it makes sense to continue deficit spending by reducing savings is more recklessness.
They set up a situation last year that would have the borough spend more than it takes in every year, creating deficit spending and destroying public services.
This election is about reversing the political scam engineered by Wilson, Lojewski, Cash, Haney and Rotermund.
This election is also about saving our schools, the quality of which has everything to do with what kind of future Fairbanks will enjoy or endure.
Here is the list of polling places that will be open Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Here is what the school district says about the proposition.
The Daily News-Miner has published many good guest columns and letters on this election.
This one by former mayors Luke Hopkins, Jim Whitaker and Karl Kassel details the folly of spending reserves: “We do not have years of savings to support ongoing education operating expenses. If we rely on deficit spending alone like the opposition to Prop A, not only will our schools suffer, but our borough will be forced to live on a knifes edge. We will not be able to weather any storm, either naturally or politically created.”
This one by veteran Alaska attorney Mike Hostina looks at the fiscal cliff and how to avoid the fall: “Restoring $10 million of last year’s $19 million reduction in the tax cap will not destroy the tax cap or permit runaway spending. It will give us some flexibility to avoid the fiscal cliff, reduce the impact of chronic state underfunding of the education of our children, and preserve borough services.”
This one by Christian Turman, a parent and articulate advocate for education, says we need to avoid fear and distrust: “In this time of political polarization let’s not make this about party lines. Let’s come together on one thing we hopefully can still agree on: Our children, our schools, and our community are worth investing in.”
This one from businessman Tony Johansen makes the stakes clear: “Unfortunately, over the past 10 years, state and local support for our schools has fallen precipitously, resulting in a mass exodus of researchers, doctors, educators, and other professionals from our community. We are beginning to experience the effects of this exodus. Try to make an appointment with a doctor in town, you may face a long wait. My company, Great Northwest, and every other contractor in Alaska is scrambling to find skilled labor and well-educated managers. A diminished education system is the trail head for a path to man camps, communities devoid of the arts and learning, and the professionals they attract.”
Dermot Cole has worked as a newspaper reporter, columnist and author in Alaska for more than 40 years. Support his work here.
