Gov. Dunleavy vetoes five bills passed after midnight on last day of legislative session

The Alaska State Capitol connected March 25, 2024. (Eric Stone/Alaska Public Media)

Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed 5 bills Thursday that lawmakers passed aft midnight connected nan past time of nan legislative session. Dunleavy said nan bills, which passed connected what was technically nan 122nd time of nan session, violated nan Alaska Constitution’s limit connected nan magnitude of nan legislative session.

“I understand nan Legislature’s desire to support moving into nan early greeting hours of May 16 truthful its members could walk a fewer much bills earlier nan conclusion of nan 33rd session,” Dunleavy said successful a connection emailed to reporters. “After consulting nan Attorney General Treg Taylor, I wished nan only people of action was to adhere to nan Constitution and veto nan bills.”

Article 2, conception 8 of nan Alaska Constitution says nan Legislature must adjourn “no later than 1 100 20 consecutive almanac days from nan day it convenes.” Lawmakers tin widen nan convention by 10 days pinch a two-thirds vote. The law limit was added by a voter-approved law amendment successful 1984.

But successful 1986, legislative leaders virtually stopped nan timepiece connected nan past time of nan session, Day 120, successful bid to walk 29 bills up of nan law deadline. That led to a suit challenging whether nan bills were valid — whether they ran afoul of nan law limit connected nan magnitude of nan session.

In 1989, successful a lawsuit called Alaska Christian Bible Institute v. State, nan Alaska Supreme Court recovered that nan law magnitude of nan convention was really 121 days alternatively than 120. The justices recovered that nan first time didn’t count nether nan Constitution’s language.

In 2006, voters approved a 90-day convention limit enshrined successful authorities law. That is routinely ignored. It’s mostly thought that courts would defer to nan law 121-day limit if a situation were to beryllium brought.

That’s each according to “Alaska’s Constitution: A Citizen’s Guide” by Gordon Harrison, a publication from nan Legislative Affairs agency explaining nan history and usability of nan state’s governing document.

All of nan bills Dunleavy vetoed were passed aft midnight — making it Day 122, 1 time later than nan deadline, without a ballot to widen nan session. Alaska governmental blogger Jeff Landfield had promised to situation nan bills successful court if they were signed into law.

The bills passed aft midnight screen a assortment of subjects. Most would make elemental but consequential changes to authorities law. 

House Bill 29 from Rep. Kevin McCabe, R-Big Lake, would forestall security companies from discriminating against elected officials. McCabe said successful a telephone question and reply that he introduced nan measure aft learning his liability security supplier would not waste him a argumentation aft he was elected to nationalist office.

“It’s an important bill,” he said aft nan veto was announced. “Much arsenic I wanted HB 29 to pass, I deliberation it’s appropriate. I deliberation what he [Dunleavy] did was appropriate.”

House Bill 19 would destruct what sponsor Rep. Louise Stutes, R-Kodiak, described arsenic redundant registration requirements for ample vessels documented by nan Coast Guard. 

House Bill 122, from Rep. Frank Tomaszewski, R-Fairbanks, would let nan state-owned Alaska Railroad Corp. to issue $75 cardinal successful further gross bonds to switch an aging rider dock and terminal successful Seward and require that nan caller dock beryllium compatible pinch authorities ferries.

“The existing rider dock and terminal installation play a important domiciled successful supporting tourism, commerce, and proscription on nan scenic Alaska Railroad route. However, owed to deterioration and aging, these accommodation require contiguous attention,” Tomaszewski wrote successful a statement attached to nan bill.

House Bill 189, from House Labor and Commerce Committee chair Rep. Jesse Sumner, R-Wasilla, would let group complete 18 to service alcohol. Alaska is 1 of conscionable a fistful of states that requires servers to beryllium 21 aliases older.

“The existent authorities rule places unnecessary limitations connected our labour pool, particularly during highest tourer seasons erstwhile request is highest,” leaders of nan Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce said successful a letter supporting nan bill.

House Bill 189 besides incorporated a connection from Rep. Andrew Gray, D-Anchorage, that would besides require bars to station signs indicating that intoxicant tin origin crab successful summation to existing signage indicating its imaginable to origin commencement defects.

The past of nan bills, House Bill 203, besides sponsored by Sumner, would let employers to salary wages pinch a type of debit paper known arsenic a payroll card.

In an question and reply up of nan vetoes, Gray said he was conflicted astir nan bills passed aft midnight.

“Find maine an Alaskan connected nan thoroughfare who’s going to beryllium upset that nan Legislature worked an other hr this year, that we went overtime by 1 other hour,” Gray said. “I conscionable don’t deliberation you’re going to find that person.”

But Gray said ineligible experts had advised him that a law situation would beryllium apt to succeed.

Lawmakers tin telephone themselves into typical convention to effort to override nan vetoes aliases re-pass nan bills. The editorial committee of nan state’s largest newspaper, nan Anchorage Daily News, precocious urged Dunleavy to telephone a typical session to re-pass nan bills.

But, instead, Dunleavy told lawmakers to effort again adjacent twelvemonth and reintroduce nan bills astatine nan commencement of nan adjacent legislative convention successful January.