Activist faces lobbyist in House District 5 race
Both candidates have served on the Haines Borough Assembly, school board; both are commercial fishermen
A long-time political activist will face off against a lobbyist in the election for Alaska House District 5.
Democrat Tim June and Republican Bill Thomas are both from Haines and both have served on the Haines Borough Assembly and local school board. Both candidates also are commercial fishermen.
The district represents residents in Skagway, Haines, Yakutat, Tenakee Springs, Kake, Cordova and several other coastal communities. It was the most heavily contested Southeast Alaska race in the primary, with four Democrats and three Republicans running.
June, a boat builder, has worked on water quality issues, co-founding the Alaska Clean Water Alliance in 1992 and serving as a special assistant on oceans and watersheds for then-Gov. Tony Knowles in 2002. Thomas, a board member for the Native organization Klukwan Inc., has lobbied the Alaska Legislature for the Kensington Mine, the Haines Borough, the North Slope Borough and Kito Inc.
Calling Thomas the "oily candidate," June noted that his opponent has received contributions from employees and spouses of employees of the oil services company Veco.
"I think I should leave it to the voters to draw their own conclusions," June said.
According to state financial disclosure statements Thomas has raised $18,000 to June's $23,830.
"It's no different that him taking money from known environmentalists," Thomas said, adding that where the donations come from is "our personal business."
Thomas received several thousand from Veco employees, about $5,000 from the Republican Party and various donations from cruise ship company executives. The majority of June's contributions were $100 or less, but he did receive support from unions, the Democratic Party and an employee of the Alaska Conservation Foundation.
Thomas said the state should commit more to schools and municipalities, but was unclear on how to raise the revenue. He said he does not support a statewide sales tax and probably would have voted against a proposal to use part of the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend for state government. He did, however, say the public should be allowed to vote to commit funds to education and municipalities.
June said the state should look at oil taxes before turning to the permanent fund to raise revenue.
"The fiscal gap is really just a tax gap," he said. He said the state loses hundreds of millions a year in oil taxes when the price of oil is high. It has recently hit record highs of more than $50 per barrel.
"There are 15 outlying (oil) fields supplying more than half the oil coming through the pipeline," he said. "And 11 of the 15 are paying zero severance tax."
Thomas said he supports reviewing the state's oil taxes, adding: "I have no problem reviewing it if we have to tweak it. I don't believe in tweaking them out of business."
Their positions on aerial herbicide spraying is another topic that distinguishes the two candidates.
As a board member for Klukwan Inc., Thomas supports applying spray herbicides on about 2,000 acres of land on Long Island, near the city of Hydaburg. The chemicals Arsenal and Accord would be used to stop the spread of salmonberries and alder and promote timber growth.
"You can buy it at any store," Thomas said, adding that the Department of Environmental Conservation is reviewing the application. "I'm just saying we should protect the public process and let DEC do its job."
June opposes the plan and traveled throughout Southeast Alaska this spring collecting more than 300 signatures to ban aerial spraying statewide.
• Timothy Inklebarger can be reached at timothy.inklebarger@juneauempire.com.