State Senate approves new ferry board to help ailing Alaska Marine Highway System

JUNEAU — A new nine-member board will write long-term plans for Alaska’s state ferry system, under new legislation approved Tuesday by the state Senate.

The new ferry board has already been approved by the state House and needs only a procedural vote before advancing to the desk of Gov. Mike Dunleavy for final approval.

The idea was one of 12 pieces of legislation that passed the House or Senate on Tuesday as lawmakers scramble to advance bills before end of the regular session on Wednesday. Except for the budget and a handful of fiscal ideas slated for special sessions this year, bills that do not advance by the end of the day on Wednesday must wait until 2022 for consideration.

The ferry system has repeatedly struggled with long-term planning, and the board members will serve staggered six-year terms, a structure intended to provide stability across multiple governors.

“It’s the highlight of my seven years” in office, said House Speaker Louise Stutes, R-Kodiak.

The lack of long-term ferry planning has led to significant problems with new Alaska-class ferries built in Ketchikan. Those ferries were designed under Gov. Sean Parnell to serve northern Southeast Alaska, but their design was specific to ferry terminals that were never built. The administration of Gov. Bill Walker continued with construction, leaving the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities under Dunleavy to pay for tens of millions of dollars in modifications.

The Department of Transportation is not required to follow the new board’s planning, which caused critics to say the measure does not go far enough in fixing the system’s problems. Despite those concerns, the bill passed the House and Senate unanimously.

“They will have great influence, if this is done right,” said Sen. Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak.

“It may not be the entire answer, but it takes us forward,” he said.