Rosemarie Alexander

Today is the deadline to become a candidate to represent Juneau’s House District 32 in the Alaska Legislature.

Tongass Democrats opened the application period on Wednesday for registered House District 32 Democrats who want to replace Rep. Beth Kerttula.

After 15 years in the seat, Kerttula resigned last week to take a fellowship at Stanford University’s Center for Ocean Solutions.

Tongass Democrats’ chair, Nancy Courtney, says letters of intent and resumes should be emailed to tongassdemocrats@gmail.com.

She says a committee has been organized to go through the resumes and pare down the list. Those making it to the first round will be asked to respond to a questionnaire, and some will be selected for personal interviews.  Courtney says a list of three nominees will be sent to Gov. Sean Parnell by February 4^th.

The governor then has 30 days to appoint someone from the list. That person must be confirmed by House Democrats.

When Kerttula was first elected to office in 1998, she represented House District 4, which was primarily downtown Juneau, Douglas, and out to the airport.  After the 2010 census, the district was expanded to include Petersburg, Tenakee Springs, Skagway and Gustavus.

The district will change again for the next election, with downtown Juneau, Douglas, Haines and Skagway together in House District 33.  Juneau’s Mendenhall Valley, Auke Bay and beyond will be House District 34. Petersburg will be paired with Sitka in House District 35.

 

Juneau’s teachers’ union and school district officials say they’re optimistic both sides will accept the tentative agreement reached Wednesday night.

Final details will not be forthcoming until early next week, when the proposal goes to teachers, according to Sara Hannan, spokesperson for the Juneau Education Association negotiating team.

“In that final round, we were going back and forth with counter proposals verbally and agreed that night that until we have it all in writing, we wouldn’t release it,” Hannan says. “But we have to release it and our bylaws require we release it to our members in writing for a full week before they can vote on it.”

Alaska statutes require that initial proposals, last best offers, tentative agreements before ratification as well as final agreements are public documents and can be released to the public.

Hannan says the two-year tentative agreement improves teacher salaries and benefits.

“Our team believes that our teachers will see small improvements in language, monetary benefits including wages and health benefits, and personal leave,” she says.

On Tuesday, Superintendent Glen Gelbrich told the district budget committee that negotiators were weighing an offer that would increase the budget about $1.3 million.

“That included the offer that was on the table at the time with our teachers association and the implications that that offer would have for our other employee groups as well,” Gelbrich says. “And all I can say is that  just in terms of the amount there will be a modest change to that number, based upon the (latest) agreement.”  

It’s expected the tentative agreement will go to teachers early next week, with a vote scheduled seven days later.  Then the school board will vote.

The last year of bargaining has been marked by impasse, failed mediation, and arbitration.  Teachers have been working without a contract since June, when the previous one expired.

The arbitrator’s advisory report is expected early next month.  Maybe it won’t be needed. Both Hannan and Gelbrich are confident both sides will approve the proposal.

NOTE:  This story updated Friday afternoon with new information.

 

 

 

Juneau teachers and the school district have reached a tentative agreement.

While negotiating teams have not yet signed the proposal, teachers were informed by email last night (Wednesday) that final details will be forthcoming.

Juneau Education Association spokesman Dirk Miller calls it a “tentative, tentative agreement.”

“They’ll be meeting early next week to dot the i’s and cross the t’s on it, but I think we’re going forward.  And then membership will get a chance to look at it next week.”

Once the tentative agreement goes to JEA members, Miller says they will have seven days before they vote on it.

The teachers’ union presented a new proposal to the school district two weeks ago, the district countered and the two sides went back into negotiations, with both saying they felt there could be a positive outcome.  Teachers have been working without a contract since June.

Miller says he has no details of the tentative agreement, but at Tuesday’s school budget meeting, Superintendent Glen Gelbrich said the latest offer from the Board of Education would increase the budget about $1.3 million, including salaries and benefits.

 

Tongass Democrats are now taking applications to replace Juneau Rep. Beth Kerttula, who has resigned.

Kerttula represents House District 32, which includes Juneau, Petersburg, Skagway, Gustavus and Tenakee Springs. The 15-year legislator is taking a position at the Center for Ocean Solutions at Stanford University. Her last day is Friday.

Potential candidates must be registered Democrats and live in the district.

Nancy Courtney is chairman Tongass Democrats. She says letters of intent and resumes should be emailed to tongassdemocrats@gmail.com.

The deadline to apply is Jan. 27. Then a committee will go through the resumes, pare down the list and send a questionnaire to those who make the first round.

“We will go through that process and applicants get to respond. Then we’ll pair that down some more and we’ll go through the interview process,” Courtney says.

The party plans to send a list of three nominees to Gov. Sean Parnell no later than Feb.  4^th.

Kim Metcalfe was chairman of Juneau Democrats when former Juneau Sen. Kim Elton resigned his seat during the 2009 session. She says the party received lots of applications.  Metcalfe plans to apply for the nomination to Kerttula’s seat.

Metcalfe was born and raised in Juneau.  She’s never run for office but has been involved in politics most of her adult life.

“My dad served in the territorial legislature in 1951 and ’55, and even as kids we were running around town putting posters up, so I think it’s in my blood.  I’d like to serve the people of Juneau, very concerned about the issues.  I think it’s an important time in legislative history, Alaska history, so I’d like to be part of it,” Metcalfe says.

Metcalfe is a business agent for the Alaska State Employees Association and has worked in state government.  For 15 years she ran the Legislative Reporting Service, which tracked bills as they moved through the House and Senate.

Legislative aide Jesse Kiehl has also said he’ll apply for the party nomination. He works for Juneau Sen.  Dennis Egan and before that worked for Elton.

Kiehl was elected to the non-partisan Juneau Assembly in 2011.  If he was appointed, he would have to resign his seat.

“I still enjoy my Assembly service; it’s a great group of people to work with,” Kiehl says. “And there’s a tinge of regret in maybe moving away from a non-partisan environment to the legislature, which is sometimes played as team sports. But hopefully I can bring some of that approach and make a little difference here and there to do a little good.”

Gov. Parnell has 30 days to make an appointment once the seat is vacated. That would be Feb. 23.  Courtney says his selection must be confirmed by House Democrats.

 

Rep. Beth Kerttula’s position will be the first for an elected official at the Stanford University Center for Ocean Solutions.

As KTOO has reported, the Juneau Democrat is going back to her Alma Mater as a Visiting Fellow at the center, which is a collaboration of marine research organizations connected with Stanford as well as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. The research institute specializes in ocean exploration and ocean exploration technology.  The Stanford center also works with other universities and government research agencies.

It’s a major change for Kerttula, who has been advocating for her district, her state, her party for the past 15 years.

Now she’ll be in a non-partisan position.

I’ll have to learn those boundaries.

The Center for Ocean Solutions wants that legislative background, says Executive Director Meg Caldwell. She is also director of Stanford Law School’s Environmental and Natural Resources Law & Policy Program.

Kerttula will be the only visiting fellow at the center who can bring the views, insights, and experience of a state lawmaker to coastal research.

We can’t replicate that here. That’s an incredible sort of resource for us.

Before she ran for office, Kerttula worked for the state of Alaska on oil, gas and other coastal issues in the attorney general’s office. She says that coastal  experience cannot be over-estimated, because it’s “a critical piece of understanding a lot about the way our nation treats oceans and the ability to bring that information back to other policy makers was really the key in terms of my going back to Stanford.”

Other fellows at the center are scientists. Caldwell says Kerttula’s background as a legislator will help make their research more useful to decision makers.

“Beth is going to be able to help us understand the perspectives of decision makers in elected positions and the unique challenges and constraints that they have,” Caldwell says, “and how we can be more effective in engaging with them, in sharing our research findings.”

Kerttula describes her role as a conduit between legislatures and science policy makers, bringing them together to discuss ocean policies.

Years ago, Kerttula pushed the first bill on cruise ship pollution through the Alaska legislature, and at the time it was the toughest in the nation.  While she has continued to work on coastal legislation, “one of the frustrating things for me has been the lack of information and science that we get at the legislative level. So my hope is to sort of be this interface between policy makers and scientists and be able to help us get great answers for what happens (to) our oceans,” she says.

Not only is Alaska the largest state in the nation, it also has thousands of more miles of coastline than any coastal state.

“With Alaska, we are the coastline for the country,” she says. “And with the Arctic opening, these issues just really have gone to the forefront.”

Kerttula’s fellowship at the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions begins Feb. 3.  At the end of the first year, she has an option to renew for a second year.

Then, she says, she will bring back a new perspective on ocean policy that will certainly have an impact on Alaska.

Juneau Rep. Beth Kerttula is resigning her seat to take a position at Stanford University.

The House Minority Leader announced her new job Tuesday afternoon in a speech on the floor of the Alaska House of Representatives.

She will be a Visiting Fellow at the Center for Ocean Solutions at Stanford.

Anchorage Rep. Chris Tuck has been selected by the Democratic caucus as the new minority leader. He has previously served as the minority whip. Rep. Max Gruenberg, also of Anchorage, will move from Democratic Floor Leader to minority whip.

Kerttula says the Stanford position is a perfect fit for her background as a legislator, an attorney, and her years of work on coastal zone policy.  As a fellow at the Center for Ocean Solutions, she will serve as a legislative expert on ocean issues.

Kerttula says the House Democratic caucus is strong, but it is difficult to leave in the middle of the legislature.

Friday will be Kerttula’s last day on the job. During the vacancy period, the House Minority will have nine members.  The Legislature’s internal rules require the minority have 10 members to be officially recognized.

Before her announcement, she met with Republican House Speaker Mike Chenault about the shrinking minority.

“He’s a very thoughtful guy and he’s always been very fair to the minority and recognizes our place and voice.” 

Chenault and Kerttula have scheduled a joint news conference immediately following the House floor session.

This is the second Democrat the House Minority has lost during the 28th Legislature. Last January, Lindsey Holmes of Anchorage changed her party affiliation to Republican.

Kerttula was first elected in 1998, and has served as minority leader since 2006. She had the first legislation on cruise ship pollution.

After she departs the Legislature, the Alaska Democratic Party will provide Gov. Sean Parnell with a list of nominees for the seat. Parnell will have 30 days to make an appointment.

Juneau Assembly member Jesse Kiehl says he is interested in the nomination. He  is legislative assistant for Juneau Sen. Dennis Egan and worked for former Juneau Sen. Kim Elton, when he resigned his seat in 2009 to take a position with the Obama Administration.

At the time, Juneau Democrats put only Kerttula’s name forward, and Kerttula was rejected by then Gov. Sarah Palin.  The appointment was strung out until the end of the session, when Egan was finally selected.  Juneau was unrepresented in the Senate  for the entire session.