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Report offers sobering assessment of state spending

If spending remains the same, Alaska would face $920M deficit

Posted: January 15, 2013 - 1:00am

JUNEAU — Alaska would face a budget deficit of $920 million if spending for next year matched that of the current year, a report released Monday states.

The Legislative Finance Division report offers a sobering look at the state’s fiscal situation amid declining oil production and lower oil prices. It was released a day before the start of the new legislative session.

The price of oil would have to be an estimated $105 a barrel for the governor’s proposed new budget to balance — and that is before lawmakers get to work on it. As recently as fiscal year 2010, the break-even price of oil was $64 a barrel, rising to $110 a barrel for the current year, according to the report. The state Revenue Department is forecasting an average oil price of around $109 a barrel for next fiscal year, 2014.

“The rapid increase in the break-even price of oil ... should be cause for concern,” the report states. The report echoes concerns also raised by Parnell’s budget office.

Alaska relies heavily on oil revenues to run, and higher oil prices in recent years have helped to mask the impact of declining oil production. According to the report, Alaska anticipates a budget hole of $410 million in the current budget year — even though lawmakers last year left Juneau anticipating a surplus of $490 million — in part because of lower-than-expected oil prices. That hole is to be filled in by using money in reserves.

Parnell has made clear his desire to limit spending, evidenced by the record budget vetoes he made in 2011 and his efforts last year to get lawmakers to agree to spending caps. He has called on lawmakers to work with him to set spending limits again this year. “A self-imposed, reasonable limit is the key to successful and sustainable spending,” he said in announcing his budget plan in December.

House and Senate leaders say they share concerns about the sustainability of the state’s spending. Senate Majority Leader John Coghill, R-North Pole, for example, said he’d like to see more frugal budgeting, particularly when it comes to the operating budget, the budget that funds the operations of state government. Spending on agency operations has increased an average of 6.5 percent a year for the past 10 years, the report states.

Parnell’s budget director, Karen Rehfeld, said the governor has proposed a “very, very lean budget” as a starting point for lawmakers. He also plans to introduce a proposal to overhaul the state’s oil tax system, a move aimed at encouraging more investment by oil companies and new production.

Rehfeld said in a recent interview that Parnell has continued to focus on priorities, such as resource development and energy concerns, while still managing the budget. As part of a 10-year strategy, the administration is looking at diversifying the state’s revenue base from predominantly oil to a mix of oil and natural gas. It also lays out the challenges that must be considered while providing “an acceptable” level of government services, including tax credits for oil and gas, the unfunded liability for public employee pensions, addressing the high cost of energy for Alaskans and “shoring up” aging state-owned infrastructure.

The Legislative Finance report says continuing the historic rate of growth, or merely staying at the current level of spending, “could produce multi-billion dollar deficits in the near future.”

It points out several pieces of the governor’s budget that lawmakers might want to take a closer look at, noting, among other things, there will likely be pressure to increase funding for education and that partial funding of infrastructure projects, while it allows for more projects in a capital budget, “may come back to haunt the Governor and future legislators.”

____

Follow Becky Bohrer on Twitter at http://twitter.com/beckybohrerap.

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Latitude58
14419
Points
Latitude58 01/15/13 - 07:41 am
10
8

So let's see...

They're projecting a shortfall of $410 million this year.

Next year, we can project a shortfall of $2 billion and $410 million, once the Legislature rubber stamps Governor Parnell's oil tax giveaway. And the year after that the shortfall will be $2 billion and...

For those of you who were fantasizing about a road out of Juneau, keep dreaming. Parnell is handing your road $$ to the CEOs of Exxon, BP, and Conoco instead.

concerned
573
Points
concerned 01/15/13 - 08:11 am
4
4

So latitude

What is your solution for finding the 410 million shortfall? Just curious.

kpawsuh
10138
Points
kpawsuh 01/15/13 - 08:17 am
9
6

Start taxing mining at the

Start taxing mining at the same rate as we do oil. That would be a good start. Heck, all extractive industries.

Latitude58
14419
Points
Latitude58 01/15/13 - 08:19 am
10
5

Not sure I have one, concerned

Just don't add $2 billion to it by rewarding the oil companies with an unnecessary and ineffective tax giveaway.

villagevelveeta
326
Points
villagevelveeta 01/15/13 - 08:32 am
7
5
Jumpstart
552
Points
Jumpstart 01/15/13 - 12:12 pm
3
3

Too much $$$ on road

Too much $$$ on road building, should not be a dedicated fund and the fact is, industry should be footing the bill for roads to resources.

northboy
329
Points
northboy 01/15/13 - 12:45 pm
6
1

Spin it

Unpublished

Start producing or turn in your leases or the taxes will go up. It is called hardball. Parnell needs to grow a pair.

Tammy1234
275
Points
Tammy1234 01/15/13 - 01:06 pm
4
6

Pay higher wages to our state

Pay higher wages to our state employees. 100k and lifetime Bentley health care plans do not attract the brightest minds.

Latitude58
14419
Points
Latitude58 01/15/13 - 01:17 pm
4
3

Say what, Tammy?

You are constantly carping about the salaries teachers and others are paid. What's your point?

glacierdogs
1334
Points
glacierdogs 01/15/13 - 05:20 pm
0
2

Comment

If there is no way to reverse the oil production decline then the PFD should be discontinued right now. Next, municipalities need to be cut loose to fund their own schools, retirement systems, roads and debt service. Commercial fishing interests need to pay for fish management and for exploitation of fish that belong to Alaskans. The tourism head tax needs to go to the state general fund instead of into pork for municipalities. The state workweek needs to increase to 40 hours. Enterprise agencies like the Marine Highways need to become self-supporting. The state needs to sell income producing assets like the RR, and if there are no buyers then the enterprise needs to shut down. The governor needs to avoid Obamacare at all costs. The state capital budget needs to be limited to basic maintenance. Villages with fewer than 100 school students need to eliminate their schools (as those schools are entirely state funded). The so-called Power Cost Equalization program needs to be eliminated right now (if oil production cannot be turned around). That is just the beginning of what will happen if Alaska is looking at an economic future without North Slope oil.

Rangeronetwo
368
Points
Rangeronetwo 01/15/13 - 05:28 pm
2
0

@Latitude58 Where do you

@Latitude58 Where do you think most of the teachers budget goes to? It goes to the teachers pockets and they won't even buy desks for the students anymore!

glacierdogs
1334
Points
glacierdogs 01/15/13 - 05:47 pm
0
2

Additional comment

What a great job Becky Bohrer does with reporting state matters. Pat Forgey would have tried to put his spin on it and no one would have understood the issue at all. Too bad the minorities in the legislature are shrinking and therefore had no job for Pat.

Latitude58
14419
Points
Latitude58 01/15/13 - 06:16 pm
2
1

Not yet, GeeDog

There's still plenty of oil revenue for now. Parnell and the Big Oilys are just trying to panic everyone so we sell the farm in a fire sale. Appears that you fell for it. Or are complicit in the Big Lie, which seems likely.

But soon enough your predictions will come true. Oil is a finite quantity. With 90% of the state's revenue coming from oil revenues, we really do have all of our eggs in one basket.

Parnell and the rest of the clown factory really have no idea how to diversify our economy - we're fishing to the max limit sustainable (and beyond), logging is stalled for decades until the 2nd growth grows big, and maybe some mining, but it's marginal. None of these can replace even a fraction of oil revenue.

Fact is, either we need to shrink drastically, or we need some real out-of-the-box thinking about Alaska Economy 2.0. Something beyond resource extraction. It's not coming from the current corrupt, head-in-the-oily-sand bunch. And your girl Cathy has done nothing to distinguish herself on this front either.

So how are those electrical upgrades coming? Better get them fixed before someone dies in that firetrap.

ForReal
1238
Points
ForReal 01/15/13 - 07:56 pm
0
0

When I worked for the State,

at the end of every fiscal year we all went on a "buying spree" to spend all of the money we had left in our budget; because if your department was able to spend wisely and have money left over, then your department would get that much less for the budget next fiscal year! I always thought that was outrageous! We had to spend, spend, spend so we wouldn't be penalized for our money management. There is no way anyone could run their personal budget like that and not end up bankrupt the first year!

mando
1247
Points
mando 01/15/13 - 09:51 pm
2
0

Federal handouts

Just think how bad it will be if our federal government actually cuts it's spending! Alaska will no longer enjoy the $1.84 return of federal money for every $1.00 of tax revenue sent to the feds! Alaska benefits greatly from being one of the biggest "Welfare Queens" in regards to federal handouts!

jla5134
95
Points
jla5134 01/16/13 - 11:03 am
0
0

Natural Gas extraction aka Fracking

http://www.dangersoffracking.com/

What the Natural Gas industry and Parnell do not want you to know...

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