Mat-Su Assembly Members Offer Twelve Budget Amendments

After the Mat-Su Borough Assembly’s final public hearing on the borough budget on Thursday, three assembly members submitted a total of twelve proposed amendments.  The first amendment listed is a three percent increase to the borough’s portion of funding for the Mat-Su Borough School District’s operating budget.  The increase amounts to about $1.5 million.  The amendment was submitted by Assembly Member Matthew Beck, who sits on the joint School Board and Borough Assembly committee.  Beck also submitted an amendment re-establishing municipal block grants for the cities of Palmer, Wasilla, and Houston, totaling about $120,000.  Beck’s other two amendments would provide a $90,000 planning grant to the City of Wasilla and transfer $50,000 to the Youth Court program.  All of Assembly Member Beck’s amendments involve relatively small increases to the areawide mill rate.

Assembly Member Dan Mayfield is proposing a handful of amendments around emergency services.  He is proposing an areawide mill rate increase to buy three new ambulances for the borough, to hire three paramedics and five EMTs, to add two Fire Service Area Assistant positions, and to reshuffle the staffing structure in the Mat-Su Central Fire Service Area.

The amendments submitted by Assembly Member Vern Halter, whose district includes the Upper Valley, deal primarily with the borough’s solid waste division.  Halter proposes a small increase to the non-areawide mill rate in order to transfer funds to solid waste and to provide start-up costs and operational support for recycling programs based at borough transfer sites.  Halter is also proposing a $100,000 payment from the Willow Fire Service area toward a loan taken from the borough.

Meetings are currently scheduled for Monday and Wednesday, with a third scheduled for May 20th, if needed.