Commonwealth North is Alaska's premier non-partisan public policy forum.
Join us to learn more about critical policy issues facing Alaska.
The Fiscal Policy Study Group focuses on the State of Alaska’s fiscal condition, including revenues, budget, debt, and related topics. It meets on Tuesdays or Thursdays at noon. Check the Events Calendar for upcoming sessions. An archive of recent study sessions is provided in the table below.
Alaska Budget Choices project: Commonwealth North launched the Alaska Budget Choices website in September 2020 to engage Alaskans in exploring the budget options the State of Alaska faces for FY2022. The site explores spending and revenue measures, focusing on those programs that rely most on undesignated general funds.
Learn More: Review selected results from more than 3,000 completed budgets: Alaska Budget Choices: What Alaskans Are Saying.
Date | Topic | Presenter(s) | Documents |
---|---|---|---|
September 14, 2023 | State of Alaska Fiscal Outlook | Commissioner Adam Crum Alaska Department of Revenue | Session Recording Slide Deck ARMB Actuarial Report |
March 31, 2023 | House Ways & Means | Rep. Ben Carpenter | Session Recording Slide Deck |
March 3, 2023 | Constitutionalizing the Dividend | Senator Bill Wielechowski | Session Recording |
February 24, 2023 | A Spending Cap That Works | Senator James Kaufman | Session Recording Senator Kaufman's Spending Cap web page. SJR4 Senate Bill 20 |
January 27, 2023 | Analysis of FY2024 Budget | Alexei Painter | Session Recording Slide Deck Legislative Finance Budget Reports |
January 20, 2023 | FY24 Governor's Budget Proposal | Neil Steininger | Session Recording Slide Deck |
August 12, 2022 | FY23 State Budget | Alexei Painter | Session Recording Slide Deck |
February 24, 2022 | State Retirement Programs - A Fiscal Update | Emily Ricci Kevin Worley | Session Recording Slide Deck |
February 15, 2022 | State Revenue Projections | Comm. Lucinda Mahoney | Session Recording Slide Deck |
February 10, 2022 | Governor's FY2023 Budget | Neil Steininger | Session Recording Slide Deck |
September 24, 2021 | The Cost of Fiscal Uncertainty | Joshua Goodman | Session Recording Slide Deck |
August 20, 2021 | Fiscal Plan for Alaska: Comprehensive Fiscal Plan Work Group | Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins | Session Recording |
Auguast 13, 2021 | Fiscal Plan for Alaska | Sen. Mike Shower | Session Recording Slide Deck |
July 30, 2021 | Fiscal Plan for Alaska: Survey of Alaskans | Matt Larkin | Slide Deck |
July 16, 2021 | Fiscal Plan for Alaska | Sen. Natasha von Imhof | Session Recording Slide Deck |
July 9, 2021 | Fiscal Plan for Alaska | Rep. Adam Wool | Slide Deck |
June 18, 2021 | Fiscal Plan for Alaska - Governor Dunleavy's Plan | Lucinda Mahoney | Session Recording Slide Deck |
April 16, 2021 | Alaska Budget Choices: Responses and Next Steps | Cheryl Frasca and Work Session | Slide Deck Summary Report - Updated July 28, 2021 |
April 9, 2021 | COVID-10 and the Alaska Economy | Mouhcine Guettabi | Session Recording Slide Deck |
February 5, 2021 | Modernization of State Administrative Services | Commissioner Kelly Tshibaka | Session Recording Digitization and Automation Projects |
February 2, 2021 | Constitutional Amendments and Impacts on Long-term Budgets | Neil Steininger, OMB Director Miles Baker, Legislative Director | Session Recording Slide Deck |
January 8, 2021 | State Revenue Projections | Commissioner Lucinda Mahoney | Session Recording Slide Deck |
December 18, 2020 | FY2022 Governor's Budget Briefing | Neil Steininger, OMB Director | Session Recording Slide Deck |
December 16, 2020 | 2021 Legislative Agenda: 14th Annual Legislator Meet and Greet | Mike Bradner Tim Bradner Cheryl Frasca | Session Recording |
May 29, 2020 | State Tax and Revenue Options | Colleen Glover Cheryl Frasca | Slide Deck Project Outline |
May 15, 2020 | Community Perspectives on Taxation | Nils Andreassen | Session Recording |
May 8, 2020 | State Revenue Update | Pat Pitney | Slide Deck |
This report is an update of CWN’s 2015 report. It contains specific recommendations for reducing state spending and is the result of the work of CWN’s Fiscal Policy Study Group.
With Commonwealth North’s long commitment to a sound state fiscal policy and the state faced with a daunting gap between revenue and spending, CWN’s Fiscal Policy Study Group was charged with an examination of the State’s operating budget to identify recommendations to help reduce state spending.
In this Fiscal Policy Report, Commonwealth North summarizes the base line historical perspective, offers new perspective and provides three key findings to help create a foundation for establishment of a sustainable fiscal policy for the State of Alaska.
The report, based on a nine-month study, contains suggestions on management and governance of the Fund. It reviews and critiques past efforts to achieve a statewide consensus for use of non-dividend Fund income.