Senate Bill 56, also known as the extension of the state’s Disaster Declration by Governor Mike Dunleavy, has been a subject of much dispute on social media and water coolers in Alaska. Is it necessary? Is there an ulterior motive? Will it forcibly close local businesses? Does it aim to increase the fear of Alaskans about the pandemic, or is it more sensible than that?
Senate President Peter Micciche of Soldotna spoke to KSRM earlier this week to offer details on the bill: “We are evaluating Senate Bill 56. We are not sure that we need an extension, and what I’ve asked my team is not to make any mistakes. If there’s part of the extension that we need, first of all, we’re not going to give an extension ’til September 30. We’re just not. If there’s something Dunleavy needs right now, we’ll consider it, but what we’re tryin to do is find a way to give it in another statue that does not actually extend the COVID-19 Disaster Emergency.”
He added: “We believe, right now, that it looks like we can give similar authority in a separate bill that expires that is not a ‘technical’ Disaster Emergency, because we worry that it’s being used and being misunderstood around the state as though [the Legislature] are the ones responsible for some of the business closures. People have been confused about that since day one.”
Micciche made it clear on multiple occasions that he wanted to separate what the state has done versus what individual Alaskan municipalities have done. As an example, he mentioned the situation for businesses in Anchorage, where Micciche blamed the “leftist” agenda there for the failure of businesses during the pandemic. Similarly, he noted that the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District did not close schools due to a state mandate, so any further Disaster Declarations would not lead to such measures, as they stem from the local level.