JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - The Alaska Senate has voted down a proposed state income tax, making official the Republican-led majority’s long-stated opposition to the measure.
Bills usually don’t reach the floor if they lack support. But Republican senators said they wanted to leave no doubt in Alaskans’ minds where the Senate stood.
Senate President Pete Kelly said the Senate would not “penalize Alaskans for having a job.”
House Speaker Bryce Edgmon characterized the vote as a setback. Edgmon leads a House coalition that has seen a broad-based tax, like an income tax, as a key piece for a plan to address Alaska’s multibillion-dollar deficit.
He says he thinks there might be room for negotiation on other revenue options.
The centerpiece of both the House and Senate plans involves structured draws from Alaska’s oil-wealth fund.
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