January 16, 2026
Second Session of the 34th Alaska Legislature Begins January 20, 2026
Next week marks the start of the 2026 legislative session, which will begin on Tuesday, January 20 at 1:00 p.m. when both the House and Senate are scheduled to gavel in.
Since this is the second year of the two-year legislative cycle, all of the bills introduced last year that have yet to pass are still “alive” this year, meaning the legislature can pick up right where it left off at the end of last session. However, there are a few things that are different from last year, including some new legislators, different caucus leadership, and the latest budget proposal from Governor Dunleavy for Fiscal Year 2027.
New House and Senate Members
Senators Shelley Hughes (R-Palmer) and Mike Shower (R-Wasilla) recently resigned from their seats in order to run for governor and lieutenant governor, respectively. This left two vacant seats in the Senate, which were filled by Representatives Cathy Tilton (R-Wasilla) and George Rauscher (R-Sutton), who were both appointed by the governor. The vacancies in the House created by the departure of Reps. Tilton and Rauscher were filled by two new members, Steve St. Clair (R-Wasilla) and Garret Nelson (R-Sutton), who were also appointed by Governor Dunleavy and confirmed by a vote of their colleagues.
Minority Caucuses Select New Leaders
The House Minority Caucus, made up of 19 republican members, selected Representative DeLena Johnson (R-Palmer) to be their new minority leader. With Rep. Johnson now leading the caucus, she intends to give up her seat on the House Finance Committee and be replaced by her fellow caucus member, Rep. Elexie Moore (R-Wasilla).
On the Senate side, the six-member Senate Minority Caucus selected Senator Mike Cronk (R-Tok) to be the new leader of their caucus. Senator Cronk currently serves on the Senate Finance Committee and is expected to keep that committee seat, but there will be some other changes to committee membership in both the Senate and House now that both bodies have new members. After the legislature convenes next week, one of the first actions they take will be to finalize committee assignments.
Governor Proposes FY27 Budget
Last month, the governor released his proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, FY27, which begins on July 1, 2026. His budget reflects the challenging fiscal environment the state continues to grapple with, which has led to reduced funding for state services and very few dollars available for infrastructure needs in the state’s capital budget.
Of the funding requests approved by the UA Board of Regents, only a portion of the compensation increase request was funded by the governor, with $6.5 million out of the $15.2 million total state funding request included in his budget. This document provides a helpful overview of the differences between the budget approved by the Board of Regents and the proposal put forth by the governor.
The governor did include approximately $130 million in his budget to replenish the Higher Education Investment Fund (HEIF), which is a critical fund for students who rely on scholarships and needs-based grants in order to fund their education. Last year, the legislature used the HEIF to cover the state’s budget deficit, but the long-term health of the HEIF hinges on that money being repaid. This is an issue that’s very important to both current and future students, as well as faculty, staff, and communities across the state that are working hard to keep Alaskan students in Alaska.
The legislature will begin examining the governor’s proposed budget next week. The UA team looks forward to working closely with the legislature and the governor as the budget process gets underway.
What We’re Watching
Wednesday, January 21
- 1:30 p.m. - House Finance: Presentation: Production Forecast, Department of Natural Resources.
Thursday, January 22
- 1:30 p.m. - House Finance: Presentation: Revenue Forecast, Department of Revenue.
Friday, January 23
- 1:30 p.m. - House Finance: Overview: Governor’s FY27 Operating Budget.
- 1:30 p.m. - Senate Labor & Commerce: House Bill 78: Retirement Systems; Defined Benefit Option.
Helpful Resources
To learn more about issues important to the University of Alaska and UA priorities for the upcoming legislative session, take a look at the UA Advocacy Materials page. We’ll continue to keep you up to date with our weekly Capitol Report on what’s happening in Juneau.
For more information, contact Director of State Relations for the University of Alaska System Chad Hutchison, cell 907-378-3946, email clhutchison@alaska.edu. You can also follow the University of Alaska Government Relations on our Twitter page.