Alaska is at a crossroads. Our state government is spending $10 million of our savings every day. At this rate, in two to three years the Constitutional Budget Reserve -- created 25 years ago to survive a situation precisely like the one we're in -- will have nothing left. Even if the price of oil were to double tomorrow, we would still run out of money before a freshman in high school graduates.
All Alaskans should be worried about this. Our state faces clear fiscal challenges, and we hope our elected officials feel a sense of urgency to act. If we delay, even one year, any future solution will be far more painful to Alaskans. We, members of Our Alaska, think this unfortunate prospect could be just around the corner.
But this does not have to be our future.
The reality is that there are three options available for getting out of our current about $3.8 billion budget deficit and back to a sustainable budget. We can 1) reduce spending, 2) use savings, and/or 3) increase revenue. No single option by itself is enough to bridge our fiscal gap, and to prevent one group from bearing too much of the burden of balancing the budget, all three of these "levers" should be pulled in a coordinated fashion, and soon.
We young Alaskans care deeply about our state, and we will be the ones to live with the consequences of today's actions for the next 50 years. We envision a future Alaska with a stable and prosperous economy, combined with a sustainable state government that keeps Alaska a great place to live, raise a family, and have a rewarding career. This is the future we are excited about, and it is within reach.
Our biggest fear is that through legislative inaction, another year of stalling will further deplete our savings, endangering our ability to crawl out of this fiscal nightmare. Failing to act now makes a future raid on the Permanent Fund and your dividend more likely, as there will quickly be no other option on the table. Once our savings are gone, our options for balancing the budget go from bad to worse.
You can stop this from happening.
We know that the first step is to engage in an outreach campaign so that all Alaskans understand the stark reality of our present fiscal trajectory. Some organizations and businesses are already doing this. We believe more can be done. Although this and other opinion pieces are a good start, traditional media will only get us so far. Now that Our Alaska has met our $10,000 Kickstarter crowdfunding goal in under a week, we will get this message out in ways Alaska has not seen before. Through short and exciting videos, games, web content and other activities, Our Alaska plans to educate and engage with Alaskans around this issue in as many fun and informational ways as possible.
But we can't do it without you. Some Alaskans still do not know the gravity of our situation, believe they will be affected or think their opinions matter. It is your job to have conversations with co-workers, family and friends to help change these misconceptions. The simple truth is that our fiscal situation is dire, everyone will be negatively impacted by inaction and your opinion matters. Our Alaska will do our part by producing content you can share to help break the ice. Alaska is a small state; if everyone commits to talking about this issue with at least 10 people, Alaskans will have the knowledge we need to make our dream of a sustainable future a reality.
Disillusionment does not solve problems. This is our state. Now is the time to preserve and build the Alaska we want to live in.
Kennis Brady, Drew Cason and Jonathon Taylor are some of the members of Our Alaska, a nonpartisan coalition of rising-generation Alaskans collaborating on a shared vision and progress toward a better future for Alaska. You can learn more about Our Alaska by visiting www.ouralaska.us.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary@alaskadispatch.com. Send submissions shorter than 200 words to letters@alaskadispatch.com or click here to submit via any web browser.