There are two conversations unfolding in Juneau right now, but they’re actually the same debate. On the one hand, our politicians are considering whether to increase the Base Student Allocation (BSA), which is the amount of money the Legislature appropriates on a per-student basis to support our kids and schools.
The Legislature has not increased the BSA since 2017, despite rising costs and inflation. As a result, Alaska cannot attract and retain teachers. That means our children suffer and we’re sabotaging Alaska’s future.
The other conversation is around oil taxes. SB 114 would reduce tax holidays (credits) for highly profitable “legacy” fields and require S-corporations like Hilcorp to actually pay taxes in Alaska.
Together, these long-overdue changes would add over a half-billion dollars to the state budget. Last year, Exxon raked in $15 billion and Conoco pocketed more than $18 billion (Hilcorp won’t report its profits, but we do know Hilcorp founder Jeff Hildebrand’s net worth jumped from $2 billion to more than $10 billion since Hilcorp acquired BP’s Alaska assets, according to Forbes).
So, instead of two debates in Juneau, let’s just have one: Should we continue to enrich these behemoth corporations and Texas billionaires, or should we fund our kids’ education?
— Bob Shavelson
Homer
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