The Alaska Legislature overrode Governor Mike Dunleavy’s veto of state education funding at a special session on Saturday. Earlier this year, lawmakers approved a $700 increase in the per-student funding formula known as the base student allocation (BSA). Using his line-item veto power, the governor reduced that increase by $200. The override undoes the governor’s veto.
Both of Petersburg’s state lawmakers, Sen. Bert Stedman, a Republican from Sitka, and Rep. Rebecca Himschoot, an independent from Sitka, voted in favor of the override.
Petersburg Superintendent Robyn Taylor was at the Juneau airport when she heard the news. She said the override felt like a “really powerful moment.”
“I had happy tears flowing down my cheeks,” she said. “I’m sure people were looking at me like, ‘What the heck is wrong with this lady?’”
Taylor said the district appreciates the restored funding, but it’s not a substantial increase. Last year, the legislature approved a one-time $680 increase in per-student funding. The new BSA amount is $20 higher than last year.
“So, it’s not that much,” said Taylor. “As with all industries, there’s been a significant increase in operating costs that are more than the $20 per student BSA increase.”
Before the override, the district planned to pull over $700,000 from its reserves to cover costs. Though the district will now see more state funding, Finance Director Shannon Baird said the district won’t be changing their expenditures. Instead, the additional funding will allow the district to use less reserve funds.
Baird said the increase will only cover one-third of what they planned to pull from reserves, which isn’t sustainable long-term.
“We’re in a fortunate situation that we can handle the deficit spending for fiscal year 26,” said Baird. “But in order to maintain the same expenditures, we would need a huge increase in funding for fiscal year 27.”
Both Baird and Taylor said they appreciate Petersburg community members who advocated for education. They say the district will continue to advocate for increased education funding in the next legislative session.
