On March 18 the effort to overturn a Governor’s veto of a large compromise education package failed by one vote. The Governor’s veto was sustained by a vote of 39-20. A two-thirds vote (40) of the Legislature is needed to override a veto.

Senate Bill 140 was truly bipartisan. It passed the Alaska House of Representatives on February 22 by a vote of 38-2 and passed the Alaska State Senate on February 26 by a vote of 18-1.

SB 140 included the largest single increase in education funding in Alaska’s history and much more.

* $500 per K-3 student with a reading deficiency. (Alaska Reads Act)

* Increasing the funding for correspondence school students to mirror the base funding for brick-and-mortar school students.

* Increased funding for pupil transportation.

* A dedicated position within the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development to help Alaska’s charter schools, including assistance in preparing charter school applications.

On March 19, Sen. Tobin was joined by two of her colleagues in the Alaska Senate to discuss the failure to override the Governor’s veto.

Sen. Jesse Kiehl is a Democrat. Before being elected to the State Senate in 2019, Sen. Kiehl was a longtime legislative aide. Jesse Kiehl served over 7 years on the Juneau Assembly and currently sits on the powerful Senate Finance Committee.

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman is a Republican from Nikiski. Sen. Bjorkman is in his first term in the State Senate and has a well-deserved reputation for bipartisanship. Sen. Bjorkman is an experienced classroom teacher who has brought invaluable insights to the effort to pass education legislation.

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