Dear Neighbor,

I am pleased to share that the House passed House Bill 78 on a vote of 21-19, sponsored by Majority Leader Chuck Kopp, to re-establish a defined benefit pension option for Alaska's public employees.

The lack of a competitive pension system has led to a growing exodus of Alaskans seeking better opportunities elsewhere, leaving our schools without experienced teachers and placing our economy at greater risk. HB 78 presents a one-time opportunity to create a sustainable pension system that will attract and retain dedicated workers, providing them with the stability and predictability needed to build their futures here in Alaska.

How HB 78 Works:

• New Enrollment: Employees hired on or after July 1, 2025, will be enrolled in the new defined benefit pension plan, with the choice to opt into a defined contribution plan if they prefer.
• Option for Current Employees: Public employees hired after 2006 and currently in the defined contribution system will have a one-time opportunity to choose to join the new defined benefit plan.
• Dedicated Funding: Contributions to the new pension plan will come from employees, employers, and retirees, ensuring it is funded without the need for new taxes.
• Separate Tier: HB 78 establishes a completely new pension tier, meaning there will be no changes to the benefits of current retirees or the existing legacy pension system.
• Financial Stability: Regardless of how much money someone contributes to their defined contribution plan, inflation and market downturns can drastically depreciate the value of that money overtime. Defined benefits offer a stable solution that is not reliant on the whims of the market.

You can watch my speech about HB 78 in this clip.

Municipal Action on Homelessness

I am deeply concerned about the public safety situation in Anchorage. Untreated drug addiction and mental health issues, property crime, and dangerous illegal encampments pose a serious threat to our city’s future. With 75 vacancies in the Anchorage Police Department and chronic underfunding of mental and behavioral health care, we do not have nearly adequate public safety infrastructure. Fortunately, we’re making progress in the legislature, and the Mayor and Assembly are rolling out aggressive new policies and programs to improve public safety as well. Their plan focuses on five main areas that need immediate attention, issues like abatement and adequate shelter, as well as underlying issues like access to mental health services.

Enforcement

This plan emphasizes public safety by increasing support for mobile response teams, and expanding capacity to enforce the law and combat increased rates of crimes like theft, trespassing, and drug crimes. The Assembly introduced legislation that criminalizes setting fires on public and private lands, which is critical with the impending fire season. A joint state and municipal effort was coordinated with the Department of Transportation to clear large encampments that encroach on state-managed lands and roadways.

Abatement & Outreach

The city is implementing a more aggressive plan to abate illegal camps, and is doubling staffing on the camp clearing crews. You can use this form to report a camp in your area.

Crisis Care & Behavioral Health

To support individuals facing behavioral health crises, the Municipality is deploying teams of behavioral health clinicians and paramedics. Mobile intervention teams offer immediate assistance and collaborate with the Anchorage Fire Department and Anchorage Safety Patrol to ensure a safe environment for individuals experiencing intoxication. Additionally, the Anchorage Police Department is developing a pre-arrest diversion program that allows individuals with active addictions to choose treatment over incarceration or prosecution.

Shelter

Maintaining year-round shelter should reduce the explosion of illegal camps this summer. The Municipal budget for 2025 included funding to maintain a year-round shelter with 300 beds through the end of the year. While the 56th Avenue shelter winds down, they are working on establishing smaller shelters throughout the city. Pilot projects like microunits are in the works and there will be designated parking on a municipal-owned site for people living in their cars.

Congressional Republicans' Starvation Budget

The U.S. House is advancing a budget reconciliation proposal supported by Congressman Begich that would slash SNAP funding, likely leaving tens of thousands of Alaskans without food assistance. Cutting federal funds for SNAP by 30% would harm 34,000 families in Anchorage alone. In the YK Delta, these cuts would eliminate food support for approximately 14,000 Alaskans, or roughly one in two families. 

Congressional Republicans are eliminating food aid for the poorest Americans to finance tax cuts for the ultra-rich. The budget reconciliation package would cut taxes for the wealthiest 1% by an average of $65,000 per household, adding $2.5 trillion to the budget deficit even after accounting for SNAP and other cuts. Starving children in order to finance millionaires’ tax cuts is a moral abomination. If that wasn't disturbing enough, “DOGE” obtained the private information of every SNAP recipient in our state, accounting for nearly 70,000 Alaskans. They claim this is to consolidate the sensitive information of every American into one database for “efficiency,” but this is a blatant attempt at surveillance and to identify people to deport en masse, regardless of their immigration status.

House Republicans’ budget reconciliation package will also create a maze of paperwork for Medicaid enrollees to maintain their health coverage, likely eliminating thousands of Alaskans’ coverage through absurd and unnecessary bureaucracy. Medicaid and SNAP cuts will shift millions of dollars onto our state budget, making it more difficult to afford state-funded core services. Having discussed issues like this one-on-one with Congressman Begich when he was in Juneau, I think he is aware of the impacts and simply lacks a conscience. I hope that the US Senate blocks the US House’s “starvation budget.”

I am optimistic the legislature will adjourn on time and pass a balanced budget. 

As you probably know, I will be voting to override if the Governor chooses to veto HB 57, the bipartisan education bill that passed with support from 48 of 60 legislators. Thanks to the Anchorage School Board for acting swiftly to restore positions where possible, protecting key staffing positions at all schools and essential programs like language immersion.

See you around the neighborhood,

Zack

Representative Zack Fields - House District 17

Serving Downtown, South Addition, Forest Park, North Star, and Fairview