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Governor Parnell appoints 80 Alaskans to boards and commissions

February 14, 2012 by ·

Governor Sean Parnell has sent the names of 80 Alaskans to the Alaska Legislature for confirmation. The people, who live in communities all over the state, were appointed by the governor to various state offices, boards and commissions.

Top on the list is Parnell’s recent appointment for state Attorney General, Michael Geraghty, of Anchorage, who was appointed the first of February.

Alaska Attorney General Designee Michael Geraghty, of Anchorage

Alaska Attorney General Designee Michael Geraghty, of Anchorage

Parnell said in a press release that he was pleased to present the 60 names to the legislature and is proud of the people who stepped up to serve the public.

Service on a board or commission, said Parnell, provides an opportunity for Alaskans to take ownership of their government.”

Last week’s appointments include a range of boards and commissions, from the Alaska State Board of Accountancy to the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Commission.

While many of those appointed live in Anchorage, residency ranges far and wide from Ketchikan to Unalaska and Dillingham, to Fairbanks.

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Now, I’m not going to harp on this, but those of you who are regular listeners to The LegHead Report know that I’m always suggesting that you consider putting your name in for appointment to one of the state’s boards or commission.

This recent batch of 80 Alaskans is just a part of the many appointments made throughout the year. If you figure there are more than 100

Alaska Boards and Commission Graphic

Microssoft Graphic

boards and commissions, and each has—oh say, eight members—that makes 800 total that get appointed or reappointed every three years or so.

That means—there’s a lot of opportunity out there for someone interested in having a direct say in state policy making.  As the governor said, it’s a great way for Alaskans to take ownership of their government.

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Resources:

Maggie’s Quick Tip:  If you ever go to look up info on Alaska Boards and Commissions…the tricky part to finding it on the state’s website is to look under “Office of the Governor”.

It’s easy to get lost in one department or another, each with its associated boards and commissions. But you want Office of the Governor which will lead you to all the various boards and commissions associated with the State of Alaska.

Press release from Governor Parnell’s office announcing appointments

List of Active Alaska boards and commissions and Fact Sheets on each – This page also contains links to rosters of members on each and the state’s website for each of the boards and commissions.

Information on Alaska boards and commissions

How to Apply by Fax or Mail

Send a completed boards and commissions application, a resume and a brief letter explaining your desire to serve the State of Alaska, to:

  • Office of Governor Sean Parnell
    Attention: Jason Hooley, Director of Boards & Commissions
    P.O. Box 110001, Juneau, Alaska 99811-0001
  • To contact the Boards and Commissions office
    By phone: (907) 269-7450
    By facsimile: (907) 269-7461
    By email: boards@alaska.gov

For more information, contact the staff of the Office of Boards and Commissions at (907) 269-7450 or at boards@alaska.gov.

 

Filed Under: Boards and Commissions

Automatic updates are easy way to keep up with legislative activities

February 12, 2012 by ·

Here is an easy way to keep tabs on what’s going on in the Alaska Legislature.

Sign up for email notices or RSS feeds of activities.

The various caucuses in both the House and Senate regularly send emails and notices on what their group is doing. And the legislature’s official website has programs that can keep you posted by email.

But my favorite is the House Majority’s Bill Activity releases.

To give you an idea of how informative these little jewels are, here is a quick rundown on the one I got this morning. Generally they tell you the number and name of a bill, give a brief description, tell you which committees its moving from and to, and include a contact person and number for more details.

The way I use these it to give them a quick scan and see if anything catches my eye. If so, I’ll follow up, and if it’s particularly interesting, I’ll let you know about it in one of my LegHead Reports.

Here’s a rundown of the bills mentioned in today’s release:

  • HB 184 dealing with Fish Business Taxes and Municipalities
  • HB 235 deals with vehicle rentals and service contracts
  • HB 253 outlaws controlled substances called “bath salts”
  • HB 311 deals with filings with the Alaska Public Offices Commission or APOC
  • And finally, HCR 10, a resolution encouraging the use of waste as an energy source.

See, that didn’t take long and now we’ve learned a bit about fish taxes,  car rentals, controlled substances, political filings and plans in the works to use garbage and other wastes as energy.

Now a lot of bills going through the system will never make it out of one committee or the other, but it’s good to know what issues the legislature is considering. And, if one piques your interest, you can follow up or maybe even make a comment on it to your legislators.

Now, how easy was that?

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council

February 10, 2012 by ·

 

  • How it works

  • How you can work with itFisherman from NPFMC site

 

The trick to using the NPFMC’s website is to not get overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of information, all the legal documents and all the weird words.

You can scan or search for what you’re looking for, or if you’re just checking things out,  look for something that interests you. Then go from there.

 

Link to NPFMC’s website

How to get involved with Council and what it does?

Guide to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council & FAQ

Trawler from NPFMC site