Jesse Bjorkman

The proposal also funds security upgrades at the Kenai Courthouse.

Senate Bill 93, signed into law last month by Gov. Mike Dunleavy, increases the maximum payout from the fishermen’s fund to $15,000. The fund is generated from fishing license fees and serves injured commercial fishermen.

The bill would provide free lifetime state parks passes to disabled veterans. Nikiski Sen. Jesse Bjorkman prefiled the bill in January, and it had three hearings in March and April.

The legislature failed to override Gov. Dunleavy's veto of a $680 per-student funding increase by just one vote. The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District will now craft a budget with no legislative funding increase in advance of a May 1 deadline to present a balanced budget.

Senate Bill 171 would align the in-state hunting and fishing license requirements with PFD eligibility. Sen. Jesse Bjorkman says it would help preserve in-state bag limits and hunting opportunities for residents.

Since it convened last Tuesday, the Alaska Legislature has considered an override of the governor’s 2023 education funding veto, and a bill containing a modest BSA increase. Kenai Peninsula residents weighed in on that bill, many saying the increase was not good enough to counter inflation and keep schools functioning.

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman and Rep. Sarah Vance have both prefiled bills for the upcoming legislative session.

Senator Jesse Bjorkman and Representatives Ben Carpenter and Justin Ruffridge attended a discussion Monday, where Kenai Peninsula Borough School District board members discussed the district's legislative priorities, and heard from lawmakers about theirs.

Department of Transportation officials talked the Sterling safety corridor, Kenai Spur, Cooper Landing Bypass and more in a legislative town hall Thursday.

The bill would put lumber grading in the hands of local producers. It flew through the legislature this spring, and was signed into law Wednesday.