New bill would move capital from Juneau to Willow...again

A bill to move the state capital to the Northern Susitna Valley was introduced on Wednesday.

House Bill 311 is sponsored by Representatives Christopher Kurka and David Eastman.

In addition to a provision that crosses out Juneau and replaces it with Willow in state statute, the bill would also repeal existing requirements for moving the capital.  Currently, voters must approve moving the capital as well as approve spending the funds necessary to do so.  In addition, current state statute requires that any move of the capital be narrowed down to a short list of possible sites by a commission.  That new site must then be approved by voters.

This is not the first time moving the capital from Juneau to Willow has been considered.  In 1974, Alaska voters approved a measure to move the capital out of Southeast and onto the road system.  In 1976, Alaskans voted for Willow as the new capital over Larson Lake and Mount Yenlo.

In 1982, however, a ballot initiative to pay for that move failed. The cost of moving the capital was estimated at more than 2.8 billion dollars in 1982, more than eight billion dollars, today.

House Bill 311 received four committee referrals, giving it an uphill journey to make it to the House floor for a final vote.