Alaska lawmakers fail to override Gov. Mike Dunleavy's education bill veto

Klaameyer said he was still optimistic about the prospect of “a second bite at the apple” — through crafting another education bill that passes with the governor’s approval.

“But my question would be, why now all of a sudden is there this optimism for compromise when we haven’t seen the ability to compromise this whole time, except for on SB 140?”

In a statement on Monday, Dunleavy thanked the Legislature for their “commitment to implementing new education reforms that put Alaska families first.”

“Let it be clear to school boards and associations: education funding will be prioritized and available – I support solutions that move us forward,” Dunleavy said.

Senate Bill 140 included a $680 increase to the state’s $5,960 Base Student Allocation. School advocates for months have been saying that it would take around double that amount to account for seven years without significant increases to the per-student formula.

Caroline Storm, director of the Coalition for Education Equity, said that without a permanent increase to the state’s per-student funding formula, the coalition planned to file a lawsuit against the state for violating its constitutional obligation to adequately fund Alaska schools.

“When we don’t support our teachers — not with bonuses but with actual support mechanisms — then we are not providing an adequate public education system. When we are sending our kids to school in a condemned building, that’s not an adequate public education system,” said Storm.

Opponents of the effort to override the veto cited Dunleavy’s threat to cut the funding from the budget even if the bill were to become law.

“If this joint session votes to override Gov. Dunleavy today, we are almost guaranteed there will not be a BSA increase of $680 as the governor can still veto any amount of the appropriation he pleases,” said Rep. Tom McKay, an Anchorage Republican who was one of several lawmakers who had voted for the bill’s passage last month, then reversed course on Monday.

McKay introduced a new bill Monday that he said could provide another avenue for lawmakers to address education funding before the end of the legislative session in May. That measure includes many of the provisions that existed in Senate Bill 140, along with the governor’s teacher bonus plan.

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