(Juneau) - The 2nd session of the 24th Alaska State Legislature adjourned, sine die, late Tuesday evening, May 9, 2006, and the first special session of the Legislature began the following day.

The Legislature passed operating and mental health budgets, as well as a capital budget with needed projects for communities across the state. District 36 will benefit from nearly $5 million in capital projects in addition to the capital projects in the Governor's budget. Those projects range from airport improvements and dock replacements, to furniture for the Kodiak senior center and upgrades to fire equipment.

"The Governor may veto some items, but on the whole the package that came out of the Senate and House was very favorable to the communities in my district," said Representative Gabrielle LeDoux (R-Kodiak). "As a Majority, we focused on education, protecting Alaska's families, asserting Alaskan's rights and municipal assistance. We passed legislation that helps build schools and takes care of families. In addition, we saved nearly half of our surplus, $300 million in the public education fund for future education needs, and an addition $300 million in the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation to fund capital projects in years to come."

Included in the FY 07 Capital budget are:

Personal Legislation Passed This Session

HB 83 extends the termination date for the Alaska Seismic Hazards Safety Commission until June 30, 2012. The bill increases the number of commission members from nine members to eleven members. It allows for three members of this commission to be representatives of local government in separate seismically active regions. The bill also allows the commission terms to be staggered.

HJR 9, is a resolution asking the US Congress to honor the judicial process and not pass any legislation that would affect the outcome of the settlement of the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster. Its final version included additional language that urges the United States Department of Justice and the Alaska Department of Law to pursue the $100 million made available for mitigation of unanticipated damages stemming from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Interim Information

Representative LeDoux will be visiting her district as much as possible during the Special Session. Her Kodiak Office, located at the Kodiak Legislative Information Office, 112 Mill Bay Road, opens Monday May 15th. Heather Fincher will run the Kodiak office and the phone number there is (907) 486-8872. For most of the interim Suzanne Hancock will run the Juneau office in the Capitol. The phone number in Juneau is (907) 465-2487.

Closing Thought

At the end of this session, Representative LeDoux mentioned the following under special orders. In what would be his last filmed interview, the renowned Scottish theologian William Barclay was asked, "What have you learned in your long and productive life?" Barclay thought for a moment and said, "I have learned that there are very few things that really matter in life - but those few things matter intensely."

Representative LeDoux commented on the good debate and thoughtful consideration that went into the petroleum production tax. That topic took a great deal of time during the 120-day session, resulted in a floor debate that lasted until 4:30 in the morning, and did matter intensely.

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