Issue Position: Alaskan Jobs

Issue Position

Alaska's working people have built this state into what it is today. I believe that Alaskan dollars must be put toward Alaskan workers and families. I will fight to lower out-of-state employment on the North Slope, and create a sustainable capital budget that allows Alaska to plan for our future and for new infrastructure. We cannot lay off Alaskan workers while we are in a recession. Further, I will work to lower student debt, and create an incentive for the next generation of our leaders to come home and build Alaska's future. We must keep Alaskan jobs in Alaska and create a place where young entrepreneurs have a fresh start free from the burdens of student loans

Jobs and the Economy

Alaska's budget must be sustainable, steady, and predictable so that Alaska's economy and the jobs of everyday working Alaskans are strong, diverse, and local.

Alaskan jobs are too precious and vital to see them come and go with the price of oil. I believe that Alaskan dollars must be put toward Alaskan workers and families.

That is why Alaskan hire will be a priority for me, because when we hire local, that money stays in our economy, it strengthens local business, and local families. Local hire for work on the North Slope, on road construction, and on our military bases is critical for giving Alaskans a bright future and reversing Alaska's current recession.

But it takes more than just local hire and a sustainable budget. We can help Alaskans of all ages prepare for the workforce by strengthening job training programs which have been cut drastically over the past four years. We have critical shortages in nurses, teachers, and construction workers to build our military bases, teach our students, care for our communities and prepare for the coming gas line. Strong jobs training in our high schools, community, and four year colleges and apprenticeship programs will ready young Alaskans to not only enter the workforce, but become essential parts of our local economies and start their own businesses.

By providing strong jobs training, young workers can not only enter the workforce, but have the tools necessary to start new businesses and become essential parts of our local economies.

Developing Alaska's Resources

I believe that we must work to increase the throughput of oil through the pipeline so that Alaska can transition to a new economy and energy infrastructure.

Responsibly developing our resources for the maximum benefit of Alaskans, must take into account the delicate balance of delivering revenue and jobs to our state while addressing the environmental impacts. The faster we expand our green energy infrastructure, the more resources we can deliver to market and earn revenue to build our state.

I support Alaska's mining industry, from Fort Knox and Pogo here in the Interior, to the rare earth element mines that are exploring their opportunities in Southeast Alaska. These mines are not located in as sensitive an environmental area as the proposed Pebble Mine, which is one of many reasons that I completely oppose the Pebble Mine. Our Bristol Bay salmon fishery is too important to have it damaged from the world's largest copper mine, which will result in a toxic sludge holding pond that will stay there hundreds of years after the mine closes.

Alaska's rich resources must be developed for the health and future of our state, and thousands of Alaskans. We must do this in a responsible, logical, and transparent manner so that future generations continue to have access to our abundant wealth and breathtaking state.

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