JUNEAU — The Alaska House has asked the Senate to meet in a joint session to consider overriding Gov. Bill Walker's vetoes of half of this year's Permanent Fund dividend, and other state spending.
House Speaker Mike Chenault, R-Nikiski, said he sent the letter asking the Senate to meet at noon Friday — the last day the Legislature can vote to override Walker's vetoes before they become permanent, under the Alaska Constitution.
Under the Legislature's rules, Senate President Kevin Meyer, R-Anchorage, can accept the invitation without consulting the rest of the Senate.
Lawmakers can also convene a joint session by a majority vote of both chambers. But Senate Majority Leader John Coghill, R-North Pole, earlier this week ruled Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, out of order when Wielechowski made a motion on the Senate floor to hold a joint session with the House.
Coghill said at the time that his chamber would instead await an invitation from the House.
Meyer, who's been traveling on the East Coast, didn't immediately respond to a phone message Wednesday.
A spokesman for the Republican-led Senate majority, Daniel McDonald, said at noon Wednesday that senators were still discussing the House's invitation and had not reached a consensus about how to respond.