Governor Mike Dunleavey’s office released the latest round of vetoes to the state budget yesterday (Thursday) afternoon, and several local projects got the ax.
Safety and security projects at the Sterling Area Senior Citizens Center to the tune of $42,800 was cut. The explanation given was that “The State's fiscal reality dictates a reduction in expenditures across all agencies.” It was the stated reason for most of the vetoes.
Dunleavy also vetoed $15,000 to earthquake proof the library shelving in the children’s reading room at the Kenai City Library.
In Soldotna, patrol vehicles will go without new video cameras after the governor axed $70,000 from the budget.
Broadly, several programs that benefit the people of the Central Peninsula were also cut. The Alaska Housing Finance Corporation’s energy-saving and weatherization program had $5 million cut, as was $3.6 million in homeless assistance. The $1 million state match for public and community transportation was cut, and the University of Alaska’s earthquake monitoring network was cut by $2.5 million.
