Alaska House Majority Coalition

It has been a busy week! I was in Sitka for Southeast Conference and then went to Anchorage for the bill signing ceremony of Senate Bill 40, a bill establishing Black History Month in statute. My first bill signing took place at the Martin Luther King memorial. I appreciate this bill establishing every February as Black History month; it is educational and celebrates our diversity. Senator Elvi Gray-Jackson’s words touched me. Here are some of her remarks:

I was very sorry to see the governor veto programs that keep Alaskans healthy. One of these programs is the Medicaid Adult Preventative Dental, which provides dental benefits to over 30,000 Alaskans. If you or someone you know are eligible and need dental care, I encourage you to seek out care immediately as the program expires September 30.

School started this week, which means school zones are now in effect in the morning before school and in the afternoon when kids are coming home from school. The Municipality of Anchorage passed an ordinance, AO No. 2019-51(S), that prohibits cell phone use while driving through a school zone.

Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives in the World Trade Center attacks 18 years ago today. To many it feels like it was yesterday, but it was nearly a generation ago. Today’s high school students weren’t even born when the attack occurred. Take time today to remember what happened and to speak with young family members who were not yet born or were too young to understand it. 9-11 forever changed this country and plunged the United States into war in Iraq that is ongoing today.