The Weekly Top 3

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of November 29, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we outline what we believe HB4003 - what seems to be the House leadership's leading fiscal bill coming into the next session - really does (2:01); 2) we discuss former Gov Walker's recent - and highly...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of November 22, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we outline the key criteria we intend to use in deciding which candidates to support this coming election cycle (1:56); 2) we discuss the potential impact on Alaska of President Biden and other countries' d...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of November 15, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss why a recent op-ed by Sen. Robb Myers reminds us a lot of Gov Hammond's themes behind the PFD (1:58); 2) we explain our frustration with the bill that House Ways & Means appears to be readyin...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of November 8, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss how the fiscal battle this coming regular session over the anticipated excess oil revenues is shaping up (1:52); 2) we take a wayyyy too early look at the impact of redistricting on Alaska fiscal polic...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of November 1, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we explain why we have a lot of questions about the Administration's recently released Preliminary Fall 2021 Rev F'cast (2:25); 2) we discuss what we will be looking for in DOR's new "Fiscal M...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of October 25, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we explain how the legislature's House Coalition has consistently masked from the public critical information in its analysis of various proposed fiscal solutions (2:20); 2) we dig down into the information...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind here at Alaskans for Sustainable Budgets - for the week of October 18, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we take a look at what's happening (or not) in the Special Session (2:02); 2) we explain why we think the Fall Rev F'cast - due in December - will surprise many and have a big impact not only on next ye...

This week Alaska Public Media's "Talk of Alaska" focused on the Permanent Fund Dividend. We are reposting the podcast of the discussion here. Permanent Fund Dividends will arrive soon, but the plan to pay for them going forward hasn’t materialized. Legislators have yet to agree on a solution, despite a fourth special legislative session and a list of recommendations made by a bipart...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of October 11, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) the Walker/Drygas campaign offers some troubling insight into their PFD and, through it, their fiscal policy (2:09); 2) after defying the odds to develop an agreed set of proposals, legislative leadership seems intent on avoiding the recommend...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of October 4, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) the legislature's Alaska House Coalition effectively admits it is fine with inflicting collateral damage on MIDDLE income Alaska families (1:58); 2) yes, oil prices are up but no, Alaska's fiscal situation isn't saved (21:08); an...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 — our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week — for the week of September 27, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) why we think House Democrats are leaving MIDDLE income Alaska families out in the cold (2:03); 2) why we don’t see many signs of progress leading up to Monday’s start of the 4th Special Session (21:20); and 3) why its not just us that are co...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of September 20, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) how much of the FY22 budget is being paid for by PFDcuts - we think it will shock most (1:57); 2) the public abandonment by the House Ways & Means Committee Chair of the efforts of the Comprehensive Fiscal Working Group (17:59); and 3) w...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of September 13, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) where are we headed on the PFD as this session comes to an end (1:49); 2) the additional arguments the Governor should be using to push back on PFD cuts (11:15); and 3) we explain how both the legislature and Administration are using distort...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 — our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week — for the week of September 6, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) the Administration restarts discussions on revenue, but then immediately rules out the very approach that has the lowest adverse impact on Alaska families & the Alaska economy (1:54); 2) as the FY22 budget mess moves to the Senate, we exp...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 — our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week — for the week of August 30, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) yes, the state’s fiscal situation is a result of a “lack of guts to make the decisions,” but the real question is who is it that is lacking (2:13); 2) we discuss what it will take for the 2022 election, unlike the previous ones the last decade,...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of August 23, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we do some numbers that show the extent of the #AKfiscal challenge, why the legislature has resorted to bigger and bigger PFDcuts and why that will continue without substitute revenues (2:01); 2) we explain why the US District Court's deci...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of August 16, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss a weekend op-ed by the Anchorage Daily News editorial board, which completely ignores #WhoPays, the issue that ISER Head Ralph Townsend told the legislature's Fiscal Policy Working Group earlier this month is the "single mo...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of August 9, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) the Governor shows some movement in the Administration's presentation to the Fiscal Policy Working Group, but we explain why, in our view, he's limiting the options too narrowly (2:05); 2) in his presentation to the Working Group, ISER...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of August 2, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss what the legislature's Fiscal Policy Working Group is missing so far in its public analysis so far (1:56); 2) we explain why Rep Wool's HB37 isn't much of a compromise once you fill in the missing part (18:26); and 3) w...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of July 26, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss Sen. Hoffman's hint about where the legislature's Fiscal Policy Working Group may be headed as well the comments we intend to file (1:50); 2) we make our point about the gaping hole in Gov Dunleavy's fiscal policy in gra...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of July 19, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1)we discuss the lessons we draw from CNBC's recent ranking of Alaska as 50th - dead last - for business (2:03); 2) we explain why we think funding the PCE and PFD are essentially the same issue (21:01); and 3) we discuss a slide left out of Se...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of July 12, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss the three things we hope the legislature's new Comprehensive Fiscal Policy Working Group keeps front and center in its deliberations (1:56); 2) we explain why we think the Governor continues to fall far short on proposing a comple...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of July 5, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss two ADN op-eds that, for various reasons, miss the mark on Alaska's fiscal situation (1:54); 2) we explain how a recent BBC story badly misunderstands what went on in Alaska's last election cycle (11:58); and 3) in preparation...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of June 28, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we discuss the final outcome of the budget during this special session (1:49); 2) we explain why some who claim to be "pro business" are really "pro business executives" instead, and why that's a huge difference (19:44);...

Welcome to The Weekly Top 3 - our look at the top 3 things on our mind this week - for the week of June 21, 2021.This week our Top 3 issues are these: 1) we explain our thoughts on how to resolve the current budget impasse (1:55); 2) we explain why we think, in its weekend editorial on fiscal issues, the ADN failed badly to live up to the standards of objectivity and balance usually expected of ed...