Borough Assembly considers ballot measures, Arctic Winter Games

The Mat-Su Borough Assembly voted on three high profile issues during their regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday evening.

First, the Assembly voted not to proceed with an initiative that could have changed the way the Borough is managed.  Currently, the Borough operates using the strong manager form of government.  The initiative would have given local voters the option of choosing a strong mayor form of government in November.

A strong mayor form of government would mean that much more of the Mat-Su Borough’s operational decisions would move from the hired borough manager to the elected mayor.  As it is, the mayor’s powers are very limited, with a veto of assembly actions being the most significant.

The question has already appeared once on the ballot, in 2010, when voters in the Mat-Su Brough rejected the strong mayor form of government.  But Assembly Member, Jesse Sumner, stated he wanted to reintroduce the possibility for 2021.

Changing to a first class borough would grant the Mat-Su additional authority, including the ability to form a police force and implement health mandates.

A significant number of residents testified against the possibility of changing the Mat-Su Borough from a Second Class Borough to a First Class Borough.  Many who testified saw the change as advocating for “big government.”  Had the measure passed, the question would have appeared on the November ballot for voters to decide.  The Assembly instead voted to postpone the measure indefinitely.

The Assembly also approved a bid to host the 2024 Arctic Winter Games in the Mat-Su.  The Arctic Winter Games is an athletic competition of nearly 2,000 athletes from Arctic nations, held once every two years.  The 2022 games will be held in Grand Prairie, Canada.  The last time the event was held in Alaska was in 2014, when it was hosted by the city of Fairbanks.