As of 2020, Anchorage faced a financial cliff of $658.7 million, leading Truth in Accounting (TIA) to label it a “sinkhole city” because the municipal government did not have enough assets to cover […]
Anchorage’s Fiscal Health Receives a ‘D’ Grade
Anchorage School District Payroll Analysis, 2018–2020
This payroll analysis will examine the annual salaries, benefits, and total compensation for different groups of Anchorage School District employees in school years 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. The Anchorage School District’s searchable payroll database […]
Major Win for Alaska Students
Yesterday, something truly historic occurred. Nine years after Alaska Policy Forum began calling attention to our state’s poor student outcomes, and proposed adopting “the Florida reading reforms” as a remedy, legislators have finally […]
Alaska’s Unemployment Insurance Taxes, Ranked
Unemployment insurance taxes (UI taxes) have significant effects on a state’s business climate, and unfortunately, Alaska’s system ranks 43rd out of 50, according to a recent report by the Tax Foundation. UI is […]
Private School, State Reimbursement: Family Choice
by Jodi Taylor, Alaska Policy Forum Board Chair Alaskan parents have a legitimate right to choose the school that is the best fit for their children, even if that is a private school. […]
Interested In Knowing How Your Legislators Voted On Their Own Pay Cut?
Alaska Policy Forum’s simple Legislative Vote Tracker tool allows you to easily see how your state representative and senator vote on bills. For example, 57 out of 60 state legislators voted in January […]
WEBINAR: Costs and Risks of Alaska Pension Changes
In 2006, the state of Alaska moved from one type of retirement system (defined benefits pension-DBP) for state employees to a 401(k)-style defined contribution retirement plan. The reason for this switch was concerns […]
Alaska’s Congressional Special Election Disgrace
The special election to fill the remainder of late Congressman Don Young’s term is a perfect storm of confusion for most Alaskans, devastating trust in our elections. The special statewide primary election to […]
Cash for Alaska’s School Districts: Updated
The state of Alaska has published the Alaska K–12 Education COVID-19 Federal Relief Funding Dashboard to make transparent how much federal COVID-19 relief funding school districts received and how the funds are being spent. In […]
Background on Federal COVID-19 Education Relief Funds
Alaska has received hundreds of millions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief funds, most of which have gone straight to public school districts. Collectively to date, schools have nearly $401 million in COVID-19 […]
Video: Former Principal Supports Read by 9
Only one in four Alaska fourth grade students are reading on grade level. But there is a prescription for this problem. Debra Van Dyke was formerly principal at Fort Yukon School in the […]
Alaska’s Tax Freedom Day
March 25 was Alaska’s Tax Freedom Day (TFD)—the day Alaskans and businesses in Alaska had worked enough days to pay all state and local taxes for the year. This is the earliest state […]
Appeals Court Backs Izembek Land Exchange
This article was originally published by The Heartland Institute on April 14, 2022. A three-judge panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overruled a lower court’s rejection of a land exchange […]
Intensive Teacher Training: Science-Based Instruction to Help Alaska’s Students
Reading by age nine is a crucial element of academic and professional success for Alaska’s students. Students who enter fourth grade reading fluently can learn the material; students who do not enter fourth […]
Coalition Letter: Empower American Workers By Protecting Freedom
Alaska Policy Forum joined nearly 50 groups on a coalition letter in support of the Employee Rights Act (ERA) of 2022. The ERA would require workers to consent for union dues deductions, protect […]
Election Integrity in Alaska
The ability to vote in a simple, fair, and secure election is one of the most basic civil rights in America. It is incredibly important that Alaskans trust the process and outcomes of […]