School bond debt reimbursement looms large again for Mat-Su Borough

At the regularly scheduled Talkeenta Community Council meeting Monday night, Assembly member Tam Boeve updated the Council on the financial crisis facing the Borough, for fiscal year 2022 and beyond.

In past years, communities across Alaska relied on State reimbursements to help pay off bonds used for public school facilities.  Traditionally, the state paid 70% of the Borough’s school bond debt, while the Borough paid 30%.

But last year, Governor Mike Dunleavy vetoed all state support for school bond debt reimbursement, replacing the money with Federal support from the CARES Act.

Looking forward to fiscal year 2023, the Governor’s budget more than doubles what the Borough can expect to pay, not just on new bonds, but existing school bonds as well.

This has led the Assembly to call a special meeting to discuss how to make up the shortfall.  Ms. Boeve said there are a variety of options being discussed, such as land sales, a general sales tax, increased property taxes, among other options. 

Borough Code allows for the shortfall to be added to the mill rate for local property taxes, potentially increasing property taxes by 15%.  Ms. Boeve encouraged the community to attend the special session to hear the complete list of options and to make their voices heard. 

Borough Manager, Mike Brown, originally presented the issue to the Assembly on January 5th, conveying that he hoped the Assembly, would share the issue with constituents, hear which options might be favored and develop a funding model from there. 

The Special Meeting of the Assembly, to discuss how to fund existing and future school bond debt, will be held on February 16 at 4:00 p.m.