Alaska Senate

Alaska Senate
Alaska Legislature
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Term limits
 None
History
New session started
 January 17, 2017
Leadership
Pete Kelly (R)
Since January 17, 2017
Majority Leader
Peter Micciche (R)
Since January 17, 2017
Minority Leader
Berta Gardner (D)
Since January 17, 2015
Structure
Seats 20
Political groups

Majority caucus

Minority caucus

Length of term
 4 years
Authority Article 2, Alaska Constitution
Salary $50,400/year + per diem ($200/day, in session)
Elections
Last election
 November 8, 2016 (10 seats: districts B, D, F, H, J, L, N, P, R, T)
Next election
 November 6, 2018 (10 seats: districts A, C, E, G, I, K, M, O, Q, S)
Redistricting Alaska Redistricting Board
Meeting place
State Senate Chamber
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, Alaska
Website
Alaska State Senate

The Alaska Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or rejecting gubernatorial appointments to the state cabinet, commissions and boards.

With just twenty members, the Alaska Senate is the smallest state upper house legislative chamber in the United States. Its members serve four-year terms and each represent an equal amount of districts with populations of approximately 35,512 people, per 2010 Census figures. They are not subject to term limits.

Powers and legislative process

The Alaska Senate shares the responsibility for making laws in the state of Alaska. Bills are developed by staff from bill requests and information from the bill's sponsor. Bills undergo three or four readings during the legislative process. After the first reading, they are assigned to committee. Committees can amend measures or hold legislation and prevent it from reaching the Senate floor. Once a committee has weighed in on a piece of legislation, the bill returns to the floor for second hearing and a third hearing, which happens just before the floor vote on it.[1]

Once passed by the Senate, a bill is sent to the opposite legislative house for consideration. If approved, without amendment, it is sent to the governor. If there is amendment, however, the Senate may either reconsider the bill with amendments or ask for the establishment of a conference committee to work out differences in the versions of the bill passed by each chamber. Once a piece of legislation approved by both houses is forwarded to the governor, it may either be signed or vetoed. If it is signed, it takes effect on the effective date of the legislation. If it is vetoed, lawmakers in a joint session may override the veto with a two-thirds majority vote (three-fourths majority is required if it is an appropriations bill).[1]

The Alaska Senate has the sole responsibility in the state's legislative branch for confirming gubernatorial appointees to positions that require confirmation.

Committees

Current committees include:[2]

Current composition

Affiliation Party
(Shading indicates majority caucus)
Democratic Republican Total Vacant
End 29th legislature 5 1 14 20 0
Begin 30th legislature 5 1 14 20 0
April 6, 2017[3] 13 1
January 8, 2018[4] 13 19 1
February 22, 2018[5] 14 20 0
Latest voting share 25% 75%

Past partisan compositions can be found on Political party strength in Alaska.

Membership

Qualifications and terms

Senators must be a qualified voter and resident of Alaska for no less than three years, and a resident of the district from which elected for one year immediately preceding filing for office.[6] A senator must be at least 25 years old at the time the oath of office is taken.[6]

Senators may expel a member with the concurrence of two-thirds of the membership of the body.[6] This has happened only once in Senate history. On February 5, 1982, the Senate of the 12th Legislature expelled Bethel senator George Hohman from the body. Hohman was convicted of bribery in conjunction with his legislative duties on December 24, 1981, and had defiantly refused to resign from his seat. Expulsion was not a consideration during the 2003–2010 Alaska political corruption probe, as Ben Stevens and John Cowdery were the only Senators who were subjects of the probe and neither sought reelection in 2008.

Legislative terms begin on the second Monday in January following a presidential election year and on the third Tuesday in January following a gubernatorial election.[7] The term of senators is four years and half of the senators are up for election every two years.[7]

Leadership

The President of the Senate presides over the body, appointing members to all of the Senate's committees and joint committees, and may create other committees and subcommittees if desired. Unlike many other states, the Lieutenant Governor of Alaska does not preside over the Senate. Instead, the Lieutenant Governor oversees the Alaska Division of Elections, fulfilling the role of Secretary of State. Only two other states, Hawaii and Utah, have similar constitutional arrangements for their lieutenant governors. The other partisan Senate leadership positions, such as the Majority and Minority leaders, are (usually) elected by their respective party caucuses to head their parties in the chamber.

Current leadership

PositionNamePartyResidenceDistrict
PresidentPete KellyRepublicanFairbanksA
Majority LeaderPeter MiccicheRepublicanSoldotnaO
Minority LeaderBerta GardnerDemocraticAnchorageI

Members of the 30th Senate

Alaska State Senate
30th Alaska Legislature, 2017–2018
DistrictNamePartyResidenceAssumed
office		Next
election
APete KellyRepublicanFairbanks20132018
BJohn CoghillRepublicanNorth Pole20092020
CClick BishopRepublicanFairbanks20132018
DDavid WilsonRepublicanWasilla20172020
EMike ShowerRepublican20182018
FShelley HughesRepublicanPalmer20172020
GAnna MacKinnonRepublicanEagle River20132018
HBill WielechowskiDemocraticAnchorage20072020
IBerta GardnerDemocraticAnchorage20132018
JTom BegichDemocraticAnchorage20172020
KMia CostelloRepublicanAnchorage20152018
LNatasha von ImhofRepublicanAnchorage20162020
MKevin MeyerRepublicanAnchorage20092018
NCathy GiesselRepublicanAnchorage20112018
OPeter MiccicheRepublicanSoldotna20132018
PGary StevensRepublicanKodiak20032020
QDennis EganDemocraticJuneau20092018
RBert StedmanRepublicanSitka20032020
SLyman HoffmanDemocraticaBethel19952018
TDonny OlsonDemocraticGolovin20012020

^a Caucuses with the Republican-led majority

Past composition of the Senate

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Legislative Process, Alaska Legislature (accessed April 25, 2013)
  2. ↑ "Alabama Senate Committees". Open States. Sunlight Foundation. 2014-04-09. Retrieved 2014-04-09.
  3. ↑ Republican Mike J. Dunleavy (District E) leaves the Republican caucus over a budget dispute.
  4. ↑ Republican Mike J. Dunleavy (District E) resigns to focus on his run for governor.
  5. ↑ Republican Mike Shower appointed and confirmed to succeed Dunleavy.
  6. 1 2 3 Alaska Handbook to State Government (accessed April 25, 2013)
  7. 1 2 Article 2 of the Alaska Constitution, Lieutenant Governor's Office (accessed April 26, 2013)

Coordinates: 58°18′08″N 134°24′38″W / 58.302198°N 134.410467°W / 58.302198; -134.410467

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