Alaska Politics and Public Policy
750 pages, 7 x 10
8 maps
Hardcover
Release Date:15 Sep 2016
ISBN:9781602232891
Alaska Politics and Public Policy
The Dynamics of Beliefs, Institutions, Personalities, and Power
University of Alaska Press
Politics in Alaska have changed significantly since the last major book on the subject was published more than twenty years ago, with the rise and fall of Sarah Palin and the rise and fall of oil prices being but two of the many developments to alter the political landscape.
This book, the most comprehensive on the subject to date, focuses on the question of how beliefs, institutions, personalities, and power interact to shape Alaska politics and public policy. Drawing on these interactions, the contributors explain how and why certain issues get dealt with successfully and others unsuccessfully, and why some issues are taken up quickly while others are not addressed at all. This comprehensive guide to the political climate of Alaska will be essential to anyone studying the politics of America’s largest—and in some ways most unusual—state.
This book, the most comprehensive on the subject to date, focuses on the question of how beliefs, institutions, personalities, and power interact to shape Alaska politics and public policy. Drawing on these interactions, the contributors explain how and why certain issues get dealt with successfully and others unsuccessfully, and why some issues are taken up quickly while others are not addressed at all. This comprehensive guide to the political climate of Alaska will be essential to anyone studying the politics of America’s largest—and in some ways most unusual—state.
The foremost work on the politics of Alaska. . . . A sorely needed addition to Alaska’s political discourse in challenging times.
The end result of this enormous body of facts and commentary is an encyclopedic work
The authors of Alaska Politics and Public Policy do an admirable job of breaking down the extremely complex and often contradictory aspects of Alaskan politics, policy, and residents' attitudes. Their writing style avoids too much jargon, and when specific language is needed, they provide useful definitions. . . . Certainly, as a resource on understanding contemporary issues in Alaskan political culture, this book is a must-read for academics, students, and politicians concerned with the state and its future.
Clive S. Thomas taught political science for thirty years at the University of Alaska in Juneau. In 1988, he established the Alaska Universities Legislative Internship Program, which he ran for twenty-five years. He is now a senior fellow at the Foley Institute for Public Policy and Public Service at Washington State University.
Extended Chapter Contents
List of Maps, Tables, Figures, and Boxes
Foreword
Victor Fischer
Preface
Acknowledgments
PART I
ALASKA POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY: AN INTRODUCTION
About Part I
Chapter 1: Understanding Alaska and Its Political Environment
Clive S. Thomas and Laura C. Savatgy
Chapter 2: The Fundamentals of Alaska Politics:
Influences, Characteristics, Issues, and Power
Clive S. Thomas and Mary Sattler
Chapter 3: Making Public Policy in Alaska: An Overview of the
Process and Its Political Dynamics
Fran Ulmer and Clive S. Thomas
PART II
MAJOR INFLUENCES SHAPING ALASKA'S POLITICS
AND ITS POLICY ENVIRONMENT
About Part II
Chapter 4: Alaska's Constitution: Shaping the Foundations and
Development of Politics, Government, and Public Policy
Gordon S. Harrison with Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 5: Alaska's Political Culture: The Confluence of Individualism,
Dependence, and Pragmatism
John P. McIver and Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 6: Alaska's Political Economy: Structure and Power Dynamics
Britteny A. Cioni-Haywood
Chapter 17: The State Courts and Alaska Politics: Independence,
Public Accountability and Political Influence
Michael L. Boyer
Chapter 18: Alaska's Local Government System, Public Policies, and
State Local Power Dynamics
Kevin C. Ritchie
Chapter 19: Understanding Alaska's State Budget: The Process
and Its Political Dynamics
Alison Elgee
Chapter 20: The Media and Public Opinion in Alaska: How Influential?
Mike Doogan, Laura C. Savatgy, and Clive S. Thomas
PART IV
ISSUES AND POLICIES GENERATED BY THE POLITICAL
ECONOMY OF THE OWNER STATE
About Part IV
Chapter 21: Natural Resources and the Owner State:
Economic and Political Realities and Policy Dynamics
Anthony T. Nakazawa, Robert F. Gorman, George Goldman, and Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 22: The Politics of Alaska's Environment: Reconciling Conflicts
Ronald G. Clarke with Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 23: Fisheries Politics and Policy Making:
The Move from General to Restricted Access
Robert W. King
Chapter 24: Oil and Gas Issues and Policies: The Risks and
Rewards of Being an Energy· Producing State
Douglas B. Reynolds
Chapter 25: The Alaska Permanent Fund and the Permanent Fund
Dividend: The Owner State's Experiment in Managing Petroleum Wealth
Scott Goldsmith
PART V
ISSUES AND POLICIES REGARDING STATE SERVICES DELIVERY
About Part V
Chapter 26: Education- K- 12 and the University:
Meeting the Needs of all Alaska Students?
Diane B. Hirshberg, Bemice M. Joseph, Alexandra Hill, and Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 27: Social Services and Corrections: Intergovernmental,
Public and Private Policy Making, and Power Dynamics
Patrick M. Cunningham
Chapter 28: Transportation and Infrastructure: The Influence of Local and
Special Interests in an Intergovernmental Policy-Making Environment
Billy G. Connor, Anthony T. Nakazawa, and Clive S. Thomas
PART VI
POLITICS, ISSUES, POLICIES, AND POLITICAL POWER IN ALASKA:
PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES
About Part VI
Chapter 29: Assessing the Past and Present Performance of Alaska's
Political and Governmental System
Clive S. Thomas and Laura C. Savatgy
Chapter 30: Choices and Prospects for Reform: A New Era or More of the Same?
Clive S. 11romas and Anthony T. Nakazawa
Glossary of Terms, Concepts, and Acronyms
Further Reading and Research Resources
About the Editor and the Contributors
Index
EXTENDED CHAPTER CONTENTS
PART I: ALASKA POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY: AN INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1: Understanding Alaska and Its Political Environment
1. Analyzing Alaska Politics: A Focus on the Behavioral Perspective
2. Politics, Government, Public Policy, and Related Terms and Concepts
3. Alaska's Political Geography
4. Alaska's Exceptionalism: An Initial Exploration
5. From the Past to the Present: Alaska's Political Development
6. Conclusion: Moving from the General Political Environment to
the Specifics of Alaska Politics
Chapter 2: The Fundamentals of Alaska Politics: Influences, Characteristics, Issues, and Power
1. Defining Characteristics and Influences
2. Alaska as a Western State
3. The Traditional Influences on Western and Alaska Politics
4. Recent Developments in Western and Alaska Politics
5. The Contemporary Characteristics of Alaska Politics
6. Major Alaska Issues and Public Policies and Their Increasing Interrelationship
7. Where Does Political Power Lie in Alaska?
8. Conclusion: How the Dynamics of Beliefs, Institutions, Personalities, and Power
Shape Alaska Politics
Chapter 3: Making Public Policy in Alaska: An Overview of the Process
and Its Political Dynamics
1. Understanding the Policy-Making Process: Four Theoretical
Perspectives and their Practical Value
2. Alaska's Policy Environment and Public Policy-Making Process:
Internal and External Forces, Formal and Informal Influences
3. The Policy Makers: Their Motives and Goals
4. The Policy Makers: What Shapes Their Specific Choices on
Policy Preferences?
5. Success and Failure in Policy Making: Two Case Studies and Dealing
with a Power Deficit.
6. How Different is Alaska's Public Policy-Making Process?
7. Conclusion: Beliefs, Institutions, Personalities, and Power,
and Alaska's Public Policy Process
PART II: MAJOR INFLUENCES SHAPING ALASKA'S POLITICS
AND ITS POLICY ENVIRONMENT /
Chapter 4: Alaska's Constitution: Shaping the Foundations and Development of
Politics, Government, and Public Policy
l. The Major Content of Alaska's Constitution: How Different is it?
2. Historical Background and the Provisions of the Original
"Model" Constitution
3. Constitutional Amendments
4. The Constitution and Contemporary Political Issues
5. Conclusion: Alaska's Constitution Past and Present, Political
Issues, and Public Policies
Chapter 5: Alaska's Political Culture: The Confluence of Individualism,
Dependence, and Pragmatism
I. The Concept of Political Culture and Related Terms
2. Varying Explanations of Political Culture in the American States and their
Application to Alaska
3. Specific Political Attitudes as an Aspect of Political Culture: Partisanship
and Ideology
4. Understanding Alaska's Political Culture: The Challenges and a
Comprehensive Approach
5. What Has Shaped Alaska's Political Culture?
6. The Major Elements of Alaska's Political Culture and Their Complexity
7. Is Corruption and a Low Level of Public Ethics Part of
Alaska's Political Culture?
8. The Interplay Between Alaska's Political Culture, the Nature of Its
Democracy, and Its Public Policies
9. Alaska's Political Culture Compared to Other States
10. Conclusion: How Useful is Political Culture as a Means for
Understanding Alaska Politics and Public Policy Making?
Chapter 6: Alaska's Political Economy: Structure and Power Dynamics
1. Essential Economic Terms
2. Myths and Misconceptions versus the Realities of Alaska's Economy
3. Alaska's Economy Compared to Other States and the Nation
4. A Closer Look at Alaska's Economy-In Reality, the State's Two Economies
s. Prospects for Alaska's Economic Future: Economic Development
and Economic Diversity
6. The Juncture of Economics and Politics: The Dimensions of
Alaska's Political Economy
7. Shifting Political Power Relationships in Alaska's Political Economy
8. Conclusion: From Structure and Political Power Dynamics to
External Economic Relations and Economic Policy Options
Chapter 7: Alaska's Political Economy: Outside Forces, Economic Viability,
and Public Policy Options
1. Essential Terms and Concepts
2. A Recap of the Major Characteristics of Alaska's Economy and an
Explanation of the State's Free Trade Status
3. Alaska's Trade with the Outside Economy: Selected Statistics
and Some Comparisons with Other States
4. The Effects of Outside Economic Forces on Alaska's Economy
5. The Consequences of Alaska's Dependence on World Resource Markets
6. Alaska's Political Economy: Constraints and Challenges, Opportunities,
Public Pressures, and Policy Approaches
7. Conclusion: Understanding Alaska Politics Through Its Political Economy
Chapter 8: Alaska's State Revenues: Economic Reality Colliding with Political Pressures
1. Key Revenue Terms and Concepts
2. Alaska's State Revenues Compared with Other States
3. A Short History of Alaska's Own Source State Revenues
4. The Problem of Dependence on Oil Revenues and Federal Funds
5. Dealing with Alaska's Unstable State Revenues: Alternative Revenues
and the Idea of a Fiscal Plan
6. Closing the Fiscal Gap: The Pros and Cons of Combining New Taxes
with Permanent Fund Earnings
7. Economic Reality Colliding with Political Pressures
8. Conclusion: The Political Economy of Alaska's State Revenues
Chapter 9: Alaska Natives and the State's Political Economy: Changing Power Relationships
1. Key Terms and Essential Background
2. A Unique Status: Alaska Natives and the Evolution of Native American
Relations in the United States
3. Advocating for and Securing Native Political Goals: The Pursuit
of Self-Determination in a Complex Political Economy
4. Internal Politics: The Effects of Institutional Proliferation and Fragmentation
of Governance
5. The Place and Influence of Natives in Alaska State Politics
6. Subsistence: A Microcosm of Alaska Native Politics and of Natives in State
and Federal Politics
7. Can a Sustainable Alaska Native Economy be Developed that Does
Not Undermine Native Culture?
8. Conclusion: The Changing Role of the Native Community in Alaska's
Political Economy
Chapter 10: Federal Influences and Intergovernmental Relations:
Constraints, Conflicts, and Benefits
1. The Basics of Federalism and Intergovernmental Relations
2. Alaska's Contemporary IGR: Influences on the System
3. Alaska's Contemporary IGR: 1l1e Structure and Interactions of
a Multifaceted System
4. 1l1e Evolution of the Structure and Politics of Alaska's IGR
5. Perspectives on the Alaska-Federal Relationship
6. 1l1e Politics of Contemporary Federal Relations with Alaska Governments
7. Alaska's IGR System in Comparative Perspective
8. Conclusion: 1l1e Balance Sheet of Constraints, Conflicts, and Benefits and the
Persistence of Political Rhetoric
Chapter 11: Alaska and the World: The Achievements, Potential and Limits of Public
Policy and Private Initiatives
1. The Range of Public International Interactions of the States
2. Public Policies and Private Initiatives: A Short History of Alaska's
International Activities
3. Alaska and Canada
4. The International Whaling Commission
s. The Arctic and Circumpolar North
6. Alaska and the Russian Far East in the Post-Soviet Era
7. The General Characteristics of Alaska Interactions with the World and
Explaining and Evaluating State Government's Policy Approach
8. Conclusion: The Ideal versus the Practical Reality
Chapter 12: The Role and Operation of Government in Alaska:
Myths, Practicalities, and the Owner State
1. Perspectives on the Attitudes of Americans and Alaskans to Government
2. The Role of Government in Alaska Compared with Other States
3. Delving into the Debate about the Role and Performance of Government:
Some Key Terms and Concepts
4. The Search for Governmental Efficiency: Approaches and Problems
in Alaska and in Other States
s. Explaining the Alaska Perspective on the Role of Government
and Its Practical Political Consequences
6. Conclusion: Myths, Practicalities, and the Owner State
PART Ill: DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING PUBLIC POLICY:
THE INTERACTION OF BELIEFS, INSTITUTIONS, PERSONALITIES, AND POWER
Chapter 13: The Role of Political Parties: Weak Organizations, Strong Caucuses,
Intermittent Bipartisanship
1. Some Preliminaries About Political Parties and Interest Groups as Major
Vehicles of Political Participation
2. Party Systems in the States and Alaska's Political Parties
3. The Role and Status of Political Parties in State Politics
Compared with Alaska
4. Comparing the Role of Parties in Public Policy Making
in Alaska and Other States
5. Alaska's Parties in Government and Public Policy Making
6. Conclusion: The Place of Political Parties in Alaska's Public
Policy-Making Process
Chapter 14: Campaigns and Elections: The Interaction of Weak Partisanship, Ideology,
Personality, and Pragmatism
1. Types of Campaigns and Elections, the Right to Vote,
and Their Legal Framework
2. Factors Influencing Alaska's Campaigns and Elections: An Overview
3. Campaigns- Most Politics Is Local, Involving Friends and Neighbors
4. Campaign Finance: Regulations, Sources, and Spending
5. Elections: Voter Turnout, Electoral Patterns Since Statehood,
and Who Gets Elected and Why?
6. The 2010 U.S. Senate Race and the 2014 Gubernatorial Election
7. Assessing the Connection between Campaigns and Elections
and Alaska Public Policies
8. Conclusion: The Interaction of Weak Partisanship, Ideology, Pragmatism,
and Personality
Chapter 15: Interest Groups, Lobbying, and Lobbyists, and Their Effects on Democracy in Alaska
1. Key Definitions and Explanations
2. Interest Groups as Political Organizations- Past and Present
3. The Practical Consequences of the Paradoxical Role of Interest Groups
and Lobbyists
4. Understanding State Interest Group Systems: Where Does Alaska Fit?
5. Interest Group Strategies and Tactics in Alaska
6. Lobbyists and the Lobbying Community in Alaska
7. Three Perspectives on Interest Group Power
8. Lobbying and Money in Alaska
9. Concerns About Interest Groups and Their Regulation
10. Conclusion: Interest Groups, lobbying, Lobbyists, and Alaska's Democracy
Chapter 16: The Legislature, the Governor, and the Bureaucracy: Conflict, Cooperation,
Personalities, and Power
1. An Overview of the Formal Organization and Processes of the
Legislature and Executive versus the Practical Political Reality
2. The View from the Executive Branch: The Governor, the Governor's Office,
and the Bureaucracy
3. The View from the Legislature: Operational and Political Dynamics,
and Anticipating Gubernatorial Action
4. The Legislative-Executive Political, Policy, and Power Dynamic
s. Two Case Studies: A Legislative-Executive Cooperative Success
and a Political Standoff
6. Legislative-Executive Relations in Alaska Compared with Other States
7. Conclusion: Conflict, Cooperation, Personalities, and Power
Chapter 17: The State Courts and Alaska Politics: Independence, Public Accountability,
and Political Influence
1. Judicial Independence, Impartiality, and the Court System's
Political Role: An Overview
2. Influences that Shaped and Continue to Affect the Structure and Roles
of Alaska's Third Branch of Government
3. The Organization of Alaska's Court System Compared with Other States
4. Provisions for Independence, Impartiality, and Accountability:
Judicial Selection and Retention in Alaska and in Other States
5. The Judiciary and Alaska Politics and Public Policy
6. Conclusion: Independence, Public Accountability, and Political Influence
Chapter 18: Alaska's Local Government System, Public Policies, and State-Local Power Dynamics
1. Important Terms and Concepts and the Unique and "Model" Alaska Local
Government System
2. A Short History of Local Government in Alaska Before Statehood
3. The Founders' Provisions and Vision for Alaska Local Government
4. Alaska's Contemporary Local Government System: The Founders'
Vision Only Partially Realized
5. Explaining Alaska's Stymied Local Government System and its
Impact on State Politics, Government, and Policy
6. Major Contemporary Local-State Policy Issues
7. Further Observations on the Dynamics of State-Local Power Relationships
8. Conclusion: Local Government-State Government Relations and
the Dynamics of Alaska Politics and Public Policy
Chapter 19: Understanding Alaska's State Budget: The Process and Its Political Dynamics
1. A Primer for Understanding the Budget and the Budget Process
2. Alaska's Recent State Budgets: Revenues and Expenditures
Compared with Other States
3. A Short History of Alaska's State Budget: Increasing Size and Shifts in
Revenues and Expenditures
4. Approaches to Preparing. Approving, Implementing. and Evaluating
State Budgets, and Alaska's Spending Plan
5. The Politics of State Budgets
6. Alaska's Budget Politics: Long· Term and in Particular Years
7. Three Case Studies to Illustrate Alaska's Budget Politics
8. The Third Branch in the Appropriations Process: The Role of the Courts
9. Alaska's Spending on Specific Programs Compared with Other States
l 0. Alaska's Version of the Central Paradox of Budget Politics
II. Conclusion: The Budget Process as a Reflection of Alaska's
Political Economy
Chapter 20: The Media and Public Opinion in Alaska: How Influential?
l. The Role of the Media and of Journalists
2. The Role of Public Opinion
3. The Interrelationship of the Media and Public Opinion
4. Conclusion: How Influential and What of the Future?
PART IV: ISSUES AND POLICIES GENERATED BY THE POLITICAL
ECONOMY OF THE OWNER STATE
Chapter 21: Natural Resources and the Owner State: Economic and Political
Realities and Policy Dynamics
l. Major Terms, Geography, and Historical Timeline
2. Natural Resource Issues and Public Policy in Alaska: A Historical
and Contemporary Overview
3. Alaska's Contemporary Natural Resources Policy Community
4. The Essence of Natural Resource Politics: The Dimensions of Conflict
and Political Power Dynamics
5. Comparisons with Other States
6. Alaska Land Policy Decision Making: Complexities and Conflicts
7. Working Lands: Mining, Forestry, and Agriculture
8. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge- ANWR
9. Conclusion: Linking Land Issues with Other Areas of Natural
Resource Politics and Policy Making
Chapter 22: The Politics of Alaska's Environment: Reconciling Conflicts
1. Forces Driving Alaska's Environmental Politics
2. The Origins of Alaska's Contemporary Environmental Politics and Policy:
Landmark Developments, Laws, and Incidents
3. Five Case Studies
4. Sustainable Development: A Solution for Alaska?
5. Ongoing Challenges, Pending Issues, and Future Prospects
6. Conclusion: Reconciling Development and Environmentalism and State
and National Interests
Chapter 23: Fisheries Politics and Policy Making: The Move from General to Restricted Access
1. Fisheries for Dummies: The Jargon and Operation of the Alaska Fishery
and Its User Groups
2. The Evolving Economics and Politics of Alaska's Fisheries
3. The Current Dimensions of Alaska's Fish Politics and Policy Making:
Intergovernmental and User Group Cooperation and Conflict
4. The Fisherman's Problem and Fisheries Management and Regulation
5. Four Case Studies and Experience in Other Countries
6. Assessing the Alaska Fisheries Policy Experience: From Populist to
Bureaucratic and Special Interest Democracy
7. Into the Future: More of the Same?
8. Conclusion: To What Extent do the Characteristics of Alaska Politics
Explain Fisheries Politics and Policy since Statehood?
Chapter 24: Oil and Gas Issues and Policies: The Risks and Rewards of
Being an Energy Producing State
l. Some Preliminaries: The Language and Operation of the Oil and Gas
Industry and Major Elements of its Political Economy
2. The Opportunities and Challenges of Oil and Gas Economies and the
Range of Regimes
3. A Short History of Alaska's Oil and Gas Development
4. The Political Economy of Alaska's Oil and Gas Fiscal System: Types of ~
Taxes, Tax Regimes, and Their Political Dynamics
5. Oil Development: The Effects and the Responses
6. Major Ongoing Issues, Challenges, and Uncertainties
7. Observations on the Political Influence of the Oil Industry in Alaska
and the Issue of Political Corruption and Ethics
8. Conclusion: Alaska's Political Economy with and Without Oil and Gas
Chapter 25: The Alaska Permanent fund and the Permanent Fund Dividend:
The Owner State's Experiment in Managing Petroleum Wealth
l. Key Explanations: The Concept of SWFs, the Resource Curse, and
the Permanent Fund as an Endowment
2. Establishing the Alaska Permanent Fund: The Impetus and the Politics
3. Establishing of the Permanent Fund Dividend Program: Constraints on
the Owner State and Political Ambivalence
4. The Development of the Fund and the PFD
5. A Comparative Perspective: Other SWFs
6. The Effects of the Fund and the PFD on Alaska's Political Economy
7. Attitudes of Alaskans to Policies Relating to the Fund and the PFD
8. The PFD: A Political Success Story or Not?
9. Future Opportunities, Challenges, and Policy Choices: An Overview
I0. Conclusion: Explaining the Essence of the Development and Politics
of the Permanent Fund and PFD
PART V: ISSUES AND POLICIES REGARDING STATE SERVICES DELIVERY
Chapter 26: Education-K-12 and the University: Meeting the Needs of a U Alaska Students?
1. K- 12 Education in Alaska: Development, Organization, Operation,
and Unique Features
2. Higher Education in Alaska: The History, Organization, and
Characteristics of an Underdeveloped System
3. Alaska's Education Politics: The Policy Community and the Dynamics
of the Policy-Making Process
4. Education as a Political Force in Alaska, Past and Present
5. Alaska's K- 12 Policy Issues
6. Higher Ed Policy Issues in Alaska
7. Into the Future: A Proposed Education Policy Plan versus the
Likely Political Reality
8. Conclusion: Politics and the State's Ability to Meet the Education Needs
of all Alaska Students
Chapter 27: Social Services and Corrections: Intergovernmental Public and Private
Policy Making and Power Dynamics
1. A Social Services Primer: Terminology, Programs and Their Implementation,
and Alaska's Social Services Political Environment
2. 1be Health Care System in Alaska: Ongoing Challenges
3. Corrections: Old Policies, New Realities, and pragmatic Changes
4. Interpersonal Violence: Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse
5. 1be Politics and Power Dynamics of Alaska Social Services Issues and Policies.
6. Conclusion: The Future of Social Services Politics and Policy: A New Era
or More of the Same?
Chapter 28: Transportation and Infrastructure: The Influence of Local and
Special Interests in an Intergovernmental Policy-Making Environment
1. Important Terms, Acronyms, and Laws
2. The Hopes, Realities, and Challenges of Alaska's Transportation
System: An Overview
3. The Development of Transportation Systems and their Public Policy Focus:
Contrasting the Nation and the Other States with Alaska
4. Transportation Issues After the 1960s: Development versus
Quality of Life Concerns
5. The Dynamics of Transportation Politics and Policy Making in
Contemporary Alaska
6. Paying for it All: How Transportation is Funded in Alaska
7. A Tale of Two Bridges: The Complexities of Transportation Politics
8. Current Transportation Issues Across the States and in Alaska: An Overview
9. The Particulars of Contemporary Transportation Issues in Alaska
10. Conclusion: The Political Economy of Transportation in Alaska
PART VI: POLITICS. ISSUES, POLICIES, AND POLITICAL POWER IN ALASKA:-
PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES.
Chapter 29: Assessing the Past and Present Performance of Alaska's
Political and Governmental System
1. The Link Between Political, Policy, and Governmental Capacity and Political
Development
2. The Alaska Lifestyle and the State's Political Capacity
3. The Problem of Political Capacity: In General and for Alaska
4. The Ramifications of Constraints on Alaska Political Capacity:
The Unfulfilled Perspective
5.The Ramifications of Constraints on Alaska Political Capacity:
The Pragmatic Perspective
6. Alaska and Political Leadership- Past and Present
7.The Outside Image of Alaska- Past and Present.
8. Conclusion: From Past and Present Political Capacity to Likely
Future Political Developments
Chapter 30: Choices and Prospects for Reform: A New Era or More of the Same?
1. Alaska's Political Future and Possible Reforms
2. Ten Challenges, Choices, and Prospects for the Future
3. Ten Possible Political Reforms
4. Conclusion: What Are the Prospects for Reform?
Glossary of Terms, Concepts, and Acronyms
Further Reading and Research Resources
About the Editor and the Contributors
Index
List of Maps, Tables, Figures, and Boxes
Foreword
Victor Fischer
Preface
Acknowledgments
PART I
ALASKA POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY: AN INTRODUCTION
About Part I
Chapter 1: Understanding Alaska and Its Political Environment
Clive S. Thomas and Laura C. Savatgy
Chapter 2: The Fundamentals of Alaska Politics:
Influences, Characteristics, Issues, and Power
Clive S. Thomas and Mary Sattler
Chapter 3: Making Public Policy in Alaska: An Overview of the
Process and Its Political Dynamics
Fran Ulmer and Clive S. Thomas
PART II
MAJOR INFLUENCES SHAPING ALASKA'S POLITICS
AND ITS POLICY ENVIRONMENT
About Part II
Chapter 4: Alaska's Constitution: Shaping the Foundations and
Development of Politics, Government, and Public Policy
Gordon S. Harrison with Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 5: Alaska's Political Culture: The Confluence of Individualism,
Dependence, and Pragmatism
John P. McIver and Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 6: Alaska's Political Economy: Structure and Power Dynamics
Britteny A. Cioni-Haywood
Chapter 17: The State Courts and Alaska Politics: Independence,
Public Accountability and Political Influence
Michael L. Boyer
Chapter 18: Alaska's Local Government System, Public Policies, and
State Local Power Dynamics
Kevin C. Ritchie
Chapter 19: Understanding Alaska's State Budget: The Process
and Its Political Dynamics
Alison Elgee
Chapter 20: The Media and Public Opinion in Alaska: How Influential?
Mike Doogan, Laura C. Savatgy, and Clive S. Thomas
PART IV
ISSUES AND POLICIES GENERATED BY THE POLITICAL
ECONOMY OF THE OWNER STATE
About Part IV
Chapter 21: Natural Resources and the Owner State:
Economic and Political Realities and Policy Dynamics
Anthony T. Nakazawa, Robert F. Gorman, George Goldman, and Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 22: The Politics of Alaska's Environment: Reconciling Conflicts
Ronald G. Clarke with Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 23: Fisheries Politics and Policy Making:
The Move from General to Restricted Access
Robert W. King
Chapter 24: Oil and Gas Issues and Policies: The Risks and
Rewards of Being an Energy· Producing State
Douglas B. Reynolds
Chapter 25: The Alaska Permanent Fund and the Permanent Fund
Dividend: The Owner State's Experiment in Managing Petroleum Wealth
Scott Goldsmith
PART V
ISSUES AND POLICIES REGARDING STATE SERVICES DELIVERY
About Part V
Chapter 26: Education- K- 12 and the University:
Meeting the Needs of all Alaska Students?
Diane B. Hirshberg, Bemice M. Joseph, Alexandra Hill, and Clive S. Thomas
Chapter 27: Social Services and Corrections: Intergovernmental,
Public and Private Policy Making, and Power Dynamics
Patrick M. Cunningham
Chapter 28: Transportation and Infrastructure: The Influence of Local and
Special Interests in an Intergovernmental Policy-Making Environment
Billy G. Connor, Anthony T. Nakazawa, and Clive S. Thomas
PART VI
POLITICS, ISSUES, POLICIES, AND POLITICAL POWER IN ALASKA:
PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES
About Part VI
Chapter 29: Assessing the Past and Present Performance of Alaska's
Political and Governmental System
Clive S. Thomas and Laura C. Savatgy
Chapter 30: Choices and Prospects for Reform: A New Era or More of the Same?
Clive S. 11romas and Anthony T. Nakazawa
Glossary of Terms, Concepts, and Acronyms
Further Reading and Research Resources
About the Editor and the Contributors
Index
EXTENDED CHAPTER CONTENTS
PART I: ALASKA POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY: AN INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1: Understanding Alaska and Its Political Environment
1. Analyzing Alaska Politics: A Focus on the Behavioral Perspective
2. Politics, Government, Public Policy, and Related Terms and Concepts
3. Alaska's Political Geography
4. Alaska's Exceptionalism: An Initial Exploration
5. From the Past to the Present: Alaska's Political Development
6. Conclusion: Moving from the General Political Environment to
the Specifics of Alaska Politics
Chapter 2: The Fundamentals of Alaska Politics: Influences, Characteristics, Issues, and Power
1. Defining Characteristics and Influences
2. Alaska as a Western State
3. The Traditional Influences on Western and Alaska Politics
4. Recent Developments in Western and Alaska Politics
5. The Contemporary Characteristics of Alaska Politics
6. Major Alaska Issues and Public Policies and Their Increasing Interrelationship
7. Where Does Political Power Lie in Alaska?
8. Conclusion: How the Dynamics of Beliefs, Institutions, Personalities, and Power
Shape Alaska Politics
Chapter 3: Making Public Policy in Alaska: An Overview of the Process
and Its Political Dynamics
1. Understanding the Policy-Making Process: Four Theoretical
Perspectives and their Practical Value
2. Alaska's Policy Environment and Public Policy-Making Process:
Internal and External Forces, Formal and Informal Influences
3. The Policy Makers: Their Motives and Goals
4. The Policy Makers: What Shapes Their Specific Choices on
Policy Preferences?
5. Success and Failure in Policy Making: Two Case Studies and Dealing
with a Power Deficit.
6. How Different is Alaska's Public Policy-Making Process?
7. Conclusion: Beliefs, Institutions, Personalities, and Power,
and Alaska's Public Policy Process
PART II: MAJOR INFLUENCES SHAPING ALASKA'S POLITICS
AND ITS POLICY ENVIRONMENT /
Chapter 4: Alaska's Constitution: Shaping the Foundations and Development of
Politics, Government, and Public Policy
l. The Major Content of Alaska's Constitution: How Different is it?
2. Historical Background and the Provisions of the Original
"Model" Constitution
3. Constitutional Amendments
4. The Constitution and Contemporary Political Issues
5. Conclusion: Alaska's Constitution Past and Present, Political
Issues, and Public Policies
Chapter 5: Alaska's Political Culture: The Confluence of Individualism,
Dependence, and Pragmatism
I. The Concept of Political Culture and Related Terms
2. Varying Explanations of Political Culture in the American States and their
Application to Alaska
3. Specific Political Attitudes as an Aspect of Political Culture: Partisanship
and Ideology
4. Understanding Alaska's Political Culture: The Challenges and a
Comprehensive Approach
5. What Has Shaped Alaska's Political Culture?
6. The Major Elements of Alaska's Political Culture and Their Complexity
7. Is Corruption and a Low Level of Public Ethics Part of
Alaska's Political Culture?
8. The Interplay Between Alaska's Political Culture, the Nature of Its
Democracy, and Its Public Policies
9. Alaska's Political Culture Compared to Other States
10. Conclusion: How Useful is Political Culture as a Means for
Understanding Alaska Politics and Public Policy Making?
Chapter 6: Alaska's Political Economy: Structure and Power Dynamics
1. Essential Economic Terms
2. Myths and Misconceptions versus the Realities of Alaska's Economy
3. Alaska's Economy Compared to Other States and the Nation
4. A Closer Look at Alaska's Economy-In Reality, the State's Two Economies
s. Prospects for Alaska's Economic Future: Economic Development
and Economic Diversity
6. The Juncture of Economics and Politics: The Dimensions of
Alaska's Political Economy
7. Shifting Political Power Relationships in Alaska's Political Economy
8. Conclusion: From Structure and Political Power Dynamics to
External Economic Relations and Economic Policy Options
Chapter 7: Alaska's Political Economy: Outside Forces, Economic Viability,
and Public Policy Options
1. Essential Terms and Concepts
2. A Recap of the Major Characteristics of Alaska's Economy and an
Explanation of the State's Free Trade Status
3. Alaska's Trade with the Outside Economy: Selected Statistics
and Some Comparisons with Other States
4. The Effects of Outside Economic Forces on Alaska's Economy
5. The Consequences of Alaska's Dependence on World Resource Markets
6. Alaska's Political Economy: Constraints and Challenges, Opportunities,
Public Pressures, and Policy Approaches
7. Conclusion: Understanding Alaska Politics Through Its Political Economy
Chapter 8: Alaska's State Revenues: Economic Reality Colliding with Political Pressures
1. Key Revenue Terms and Concepts
2. Alaska's State Revenues Compared with Other States
3. A Short History of Alaska's Own Source State Revenues
4. The Problem of Dependence on Oil Revenues and Federal Funds
5. Dealing with Alaska's Unstable State Revenues: Alternative Revenues
and the Idea of a Fiscal Plan
6. Closing the Fiscal Gap: The Pros and Cons of Combining New Taxes
with Permanent Fund Earnings
7. Economic Reality Colliding with Political Pressures
8. Conclusion: The Political Economy of Alaska's State Revenues
Chapter 9: Alaska Natives and the State's Political Economy: Changing Power Relationships
1. Key Terms and Essential Background
2. A Unique Status: Alaska Natives and the Evolution of Native American
Relations in the United States
3. Advocating for and Securing Native Political Goals: The Pursuit
of Self-Determination in a Complex Political Economy
4. Internal Politics: The Effects of Institutional Proliferation and Fragmentation
of Governance
5. The Place and Influence of Natives in Alaska State Politics
6. Subsistence: A Microcosm of Alaska Native Politics and of Natives in State
and Federal Politics
7. Can a Sustainable Alaska Native Economy be Developed that Does
Not Undermine Native Culture?
8. Conclusion: The Changing Role of the Native Community in Alaska's
Political Economy
Chapter 10: Federal Influences and Intergovernmental Relations:
Constraints, Conflicts, and Benefits
1. The Basics of Federalism and Intergovernmental Relations
2. Alaska's Contemporary IGR: Influences on the System
3. Alaska's Contemporary IGR: 1l1e Structure and Interactions of
a Multifaceted System
4. 1l1e Evolution of the Structure and Politics of Alaska's IGR
5. Perspectives on the Alaska-Federal Relationship
6. 1l1e Politics of Contemporary Federal Relations with Alaska Governments
7. Alaska's IGR System in Comparative Perspective
8. Conclusion: 1l1e Balance Sheet of Constraints, Conflicts, and Benefits and the
Persistence of Political Rhetoric
Chapter 11: Alaska and the World: The Achievements, Potential and Limits of Public
Policy and Private Initiatives
1. The Range of Public International Interactions of the States
2. Public Policies and Private Initiatives: A Short History of Alaska's
International Activities
3. Alaska and Canada
4. The International Whaling Commission
s. The Arctic and Circumpolar North
6. Alaska and the Russian Far East in the Post-Soviet Era
7. The General Characteristics of Alaska Interactions with the World and
Explaining and Evaluating State Government's Policy Approach
8. Conclusion: The Ideal versus the Practical Reality
Chapter 12: The Role and Operation of Government in Alaska:
Myths, Practicalities, and the Owner State
1. Perspectives on the Attitudes of Americans and Alaskans to Government
2. The Role of Government in Alaska Compared with Other States
3. Delving into the Debate about the Role and Performance of Government:
Some Key Terms and Concepts
4. The Search for Governmental Efficiency: Approaches and Problems
in Alaska and in Other States
s. Explaining the Alaska Perspective on the Role of Government
and Its Practical Political Consequences
6. Conclusion: Myths, Practicalities, and the Owner State
PART Ill: DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING PUBLIC POLICY:
THE INTERACTION OF BELIEFS, INSTITUTIONS, PERSONALITIES, AND POWER
Chapter 13: The Role of Political Parties: Weak Organizations, Strong Caucuses,
Intermittent Bipartisanship
1. Some Preliminaries About Political Parties and Interest Groups as Major
Vehicles of Political Participation
2. Party Systems in the States and Alaska's Political Parties
3. The Role and Status of Political Parties in State Politics
Compared with Alaska
4. Comparing the Role of Parties in Public Policy Making
in Alaska and Other States
5. Alaska's Parties in Government and Public Policy Making
6. Conclusion: The Place of Political Parties in Alaska's Public
Policy-Making Process
Chapter 14: Campaigns and Elections: The Interaction of Weak Partisanship, Ideology,
Personality, and Pragmatism
1. Types of Campaigns and Elections, the Right to Vote,
and Their Legal Framework
2. Factors Influencing Alaska's Campaigns and Elections: An Overview
3. Campaigns- Most Politics Is Local, Involving Friends and Neighbors
4. Campaign Finance: Regulations, Sources, and Spending
5. Elections: Voter Turnout, Electoral Patterns Since Statehood,
and Who Gets Elected and Why?
6. The 2010 U.S. Senate Race and the 2014 Gubernatorial Election
7. Assessing the Connection between Campaigns and Elections
and Alaska Public Policies
8. Conclusion: The Interaction of Weak Partisanship, Ideology, Pragmatism,
and Personality
Chapter 15: Interest Groups, Lobbying, and Lobbyists, and Their Effects on Democracy in Alaska
1. Key Definitions and Explanations
2. Interest Groups as Political Organizations- Past and Present
3. The Practical Consequences of the Paradoxical Role of Interest Groups
and Lobbyists
4. Understanding State Interest Group Systems: Where Does Alaska Fit?
5. Interest Group Strategies and Tactics in Alaska
6. Lobbyists and the Lobbying Community in Alaska
7. Three Perspectives on Interest Group Power
8. Lobbying and Money in Alaska
9. Concerns About Interest Groups and Their Regulation
10. Conclusion: Interest Groups, lobbying, Lobbyists, and Alaska's Democracy
Chapter 16: The Legislature, the Governor, and the Bureaucracy: Conflict, Cooperation,
Personalities, and Power
1. An Overview of the Formal Organization and Processes of the
Legislature and Executive versus the Practical Political Reality
2. The View from the Executive Branch: The Governor, the Governor's Office,
and the Bureaucracy
3. The View from the Legislature: Operational and Political Dynamics,
and Anticipating Gubernatorial Action
4. The Legislative-Executive Political, Policy, and Power Dynamic
s. Two Case Studies: A Legislative-Executive Cooperative Success
and a Political Standoff
6. Legislative-Executive Relations in Alaska Compared with Other States
7. Conclusion: Conflict, Cooperation, Personalities, and Power
Chapter 17: The State Courts and Alaska Politics: Independence, Public Accountability,
and Political Influence
1. Judicial Independence, Impartiality, and the Court System's
Political Role: An Overview
2. Influences that Shaped and Continue to Affect the Structure and Roles
of Alaska's Third Branch of Government
3. The Organization of Alaska's Court System Compared with Other States
4. Provisions for Independence, Impartiality, and Accountability:
Judicial Selection and Retention in Alaska and in Other States
5. The Judiciary and Alaska Politics and Public Policy
6. Conclusion: Independence, Public Accountability, and Political Influence
Chapter 18: Alaska's Local Government System, Public Policies, and State-Local Power Dynamics
1. Important Terms and Concepts and the Unique and "Model" Alaska Local
Government System
2. A Short History of Local Government in Alaska Before Statehood
3. The Founders' Provisions and Vision for Alaska Local Government
4. Alaska's Contemporary Local Government System: The Founders'
Vision Only Partially Realized
5. Explaining Alaska's Stymied Local Government System and its
Impact on State Politics, Government, and Policy
6. Major Contemporary Local-State Policy Issues
7. Further Observations on the Dynamics of State-Local Power Relationships
8. Conclusion: Local Government-State Government Relations and
the Dynamics of Alaska Politics and Public Policy
Chapter 19: Understanding Alaska's State Budget: The Process and Its Political Dynamics
1. A Primer for Understanding the Budget and the Budget Process
2. Alaska's Recent State Budgets: Revenues and Expenditures
Compared with Other States
3. A Short History of Alaska's State Budget: Increasing Size and Shifts in
Revenues and Expenditures
4. Approaches to Preparing. Approving, Implementing. and Evaluating
State Budgets, and Alaska's Spending Plan
5. The Politics of State Budgets
6. Alaska's Budget Politics: Long· Term and in Particular Years
7. Three Case Studies to Illustrate Alaska's Budget Politics
8. The Third Branch in the Appropriations Process: The Role of the Courts
9. Alaska's Spending on Specific Programs Compared with Other States
l 0. Alaska's Version of the Central Paradox of Budget Politics
II. Conclusion: The Budget Process as a Reflection of Alaska's
Political Economy
Chapter 20: The Media and Public Opinion in Alaska: How Influential?
l. The Role of the Media and of Journalists
2. The Role of Public Opinion
3. The Interrelationship of the Media and Public Opinion
4. Conclusion: How Influential and What of the Future?
PART IV: ISSUES AND POLICIES GENERATED BY THE POLITICAL
ECONOMY OF THE OWNER STATE
Chapter 21: Natural Resources and the Owner State: Economic and Political
Realities and Policy Dynamics
l. Major Terms, Geography, and Historical Timeline
2. Natural Resource Issues and Public Policy in Alaska: A Historical
and Contemporary Overview
3. Alaska's Contemporary Natural Resources Policy Community
4. The Essence of Natural Resource Politics: The Dimensions of Conflict
and Political Power Dynamics
5. Comparisons with Other States
6. Alaska Land Policy Decision Making: Complexities and Conflicts
7. Working Lands: Mining, Forestry, and Agriculture
8. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge- ANWR
9. Conclusion: Linking Land Issues with Other Areas of Natural
Resource Politics and Policy Making
Chapter 22: The Politics of Alaska's Environment: Reconciling Conflicts
1. Forces Driving Alaska's Environmental Politics
2. The Origins of Alaska's Contemporary Environmental Politics and Policy:
Landmark Developments, Laws, and Incidents
3. Five Case Studies
4. Sustainable Development: A Solution for Alaska?
5. Ongoing Challenges, Pending Issues, and Future Prospects
6. Conclusion: Reconciling Development and Environmentalism and State
and National Interests
Chapter 23: Fisheries Politics and Policy Making: The Move from General to Restricted Access
1. Fisheries for Dummies: The Jargon and Operation of the Alaska Fishery
and Its User Groups
2. The Evolving Economics and Politics of Alaska's Fisheries
3. The Current Dimensions of Alaska's Fish Politics and Policy Making:
Intergovernmental and User Group Cooperation and Conflict
4. The Fisherman's Problem and Fisheries Management and Regulation
5. Four Case Studies and Experience in Other Countries
6. Assessing the Alaska Fisheries Policy Experience: From Populist to
Bureaucratic and Special Interest Democracy
7. Into the Future: More of the Same?
8. Conclusion: To What Extent do the Characteristics of Alaska Politics
Explain Fisheries Politics and Policy since Statehood?
Chapter 24: Oil and Gas Issues and Policies: The Risks and Rewards of
Being an Energy Producing State
l. Some Preliminaries: The Language and Operation of the Oil and Gas
Industry and Major Elements of its Political Economy
2. The Opportunities and Challenges of Oil and Gas Economies and the
Range of Regimes
3. A Short History of Alaska's Oil and Gas Development
4. The Political Economy of Alaska's Oil and Gas Fiscal System: Types of ~
Taxes, Tax Regimes, and Their Political Dynamics
5. Oil Development: The Effects and the Responses
6. Major Ongoing Issues, Challenges, and Uncertainties
7. Observations on the Political Influence of the Oil Industry in Alaska
and the Issue of Political Corruption and Ethics
8. Conclusion: Alaska's Political Economy with and Without Oil and Gas
Chapter 25: The Alaska Permanent fund and the Permanent Fund Dividend:
The Owner State's Experiment in Managing Petroleum Wealth
l. Key Explanations: The Concept of SWFs, the Resource Curse, and
the Permanent Fund as an Endowment
2. Establishing the Alaska Permanent Fund: The Impetus and the Politics
3. Establishing of the Permanent Fund Dividend Program: Constraints on
the Owner State and Political Ambivalence
4. The Development of the Fund and the PFD
5. A Comparative Perspective: Other SWFs
6. The Effects of the Fund and the PFD on Alaska's Political Economy
7. Attitudes of Alaskans to Policies Relating to the Fund and the PFD
8. The PFD: A Political Success Story or Not?
9. Future Opportunities, Challenges, and Policy Choices: An Overview
I0. Conclusion: Explaining the Essence of the Development and Politics
of the Permanent Fund and PFD
PART V: ISSUES AND POLICIES REGARDING STATE SERVICES DELIVERY
Chapter 26: Education-K-12 and the University: Meeting the Needs of a U Alaska Students?
1. K- 12 Education in Alaska: Development, Organization, Operation,
and Unique Features
2. Higher Education in Alaska: The History, Organization, and
Characteristics of an Underdeveloped System
3. Alaska's Education Politics: The Policy Community and the Dynamics
of the Policy-Making Process
4. Education as a Political Force in Alaska, Past and Present
5. Alaska's K- 12 Policy Issues
6. Higher Ed Policy Issues in Alaska
7. Into the Future: A Proposed Education Policy Plan versus the
Likely Political Reality
8. Conclusion: Politics and the State's Ability to Meet the Education Needs
of all Alaska Students
Chapter 27: Social Services and Corrections: Intergovernmental Public and Private
Policy Making and Power Dynamics
1. A Social Services Primer: Terminology, Programs and Their Implementation,
and Alaska's Social Services Political Environment
2. 1be Health Care System in Alaska: Ongoing Challenges
3. Corrections: Old Policies, New Realities, and pragmatic Changes
4. Interpersonal Violence: Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse
5. 1be Politics and Power Dynamics of Alaska Social Services Issues and Policies.
6. Conclusion: The Future of Social Services Politics and Policy: A New Era
or More of the Same?
Chapter 28: Transportation and Infrastructure: The Influence of Local and
Special Interests in an Intergovernmental Policy-Making Environment
1. Important Terms, Acronyms, and Laws
2. The Hopes, Realities, and Challenges of Alaska's Transportation
System: An Overview
3. The Development of Transportation Systems and their Public Policy Focus:
Contrasting the Nation and the Other States with Alaska
4. Transportation Issues After the 1960s: Development versus
Quality of Life Concerns
5. The Dynamics of Transportation Politics and Policy Making in
Contemporary Alaska
6. Paying for it All: How Transportation is Funded in Alaska
7. A Tale of Two Bridges: The Complexities of Transportation Politics
8. Current Transportation Issues Across the States and in Alaska: An Overview
9. The Particulars of Contemporary Transportation Issues in Alaska
10. Conclusion: The Political Economy of Transportation in Alaska
PART VI: POLITICS. ISSUES, POLICIES, AND POLITICAL POWER IN ALASKA:-
PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES.
Chapter 29: Assessing the Past and Present Performance of Alaska's
Political and Governmental System
1. The Link Between Political, Policy, and Governmental Capacity and Political
Development
2. The Alaska Lifestyle and the State's Political Capacity
3. The Problem of Political Capacity: In General and for Alaska
4. The Ramifications of Constraints on Alaska Political Capacity:
The Unfulfilled Perspective
5.The Ramifications of Constraints on Alaska Political Capacity:
The Pragmatic Perspective
6. Alaska and Political Leadership- Past and Present
7.The Outside Image of Alaska- Past and Present.
8. Conclusion: From Past and Present Political Capacity to Likely
Future Political Developments
Chapter 30: Choices and Prospects for Reform: A New Era or More of the Same?
1. Alaska's Political Future and Possible Reforms
2. Ten Challenges, Choices, and Prospects for the Future
3. Ten Possible Political Reforms
4. Conclusion: What Are the Prospects for Reform?
Glossary of Terms, Concepts, and Acronyms
Further Reading and Research Resources
About the Editor and the Contributors
Index
