The Alaska House of Representatives voted to pass a bill that would establish a board tasked with finding solutions to keep the ferry system reliable, affordable and sustainable. House Bill 63 unanimously passed and would establish the nine-member Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board, which would be composed of the deputy commissioner of the Department of Transportation, four members appointed by the governor, two by the speaker of the house and two by the senate president.
District 31 Rep. Sarah Vance, “It provides a balance of all the voices that the public has been saying ‘we want to be heard’. The governor gets to appoint, the presiding officers get to appoint members and there’s an opportunity for the regional representation to be there as well as expertise in the different fields that need to have a voice in this process. So, all of that was worked into this bill that said ‘we need people who are experts in different fields’ and bringing all of these voices to the table so that we can look at the best way possible. This isn’t just a government operations board. This is something that the regional communities, the people who are looking at the economy, they’re looking at how well an efficient the vessels are being run, all of those voices get to be at the table for this board to make sure that we are all on the same page moving forward for an effective and efficient marine highway system.”
The board will be tasked with preparing a short-term and a comprehensive long-range plan for development and improvement of the Alaska Marine Highway System. It will be revised and updated at least every five years.
House Bill 63 unanimously passed with 37 yeas and 0 nays. It now heads to the Senate for consideration.
(Transcribed audio courtesy of KTOO 360TV).