Representative
David Guttenberg

My staff:
Meredith Cameron
Ron Clarke

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Rep.David.Guttenberg
@legis.state.ak.us

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Proud to serve
District 8:
Anderson; Cantwell; Chena; Clear; Denali Park; Ester; Geist; Goldstream No. 2; Healy; Pike; University Campus; University Hills; and University West

March 26th, 2012

Friends and Neighbors,

Less than three weeks remain in the 27th Legislative Session and we still have many big issues in front of us. This week the House Finance Committee will focus on education funding and shortfalls. The Senate Finance Committee has been working on the Capital Budget and we hope that bill will be coming over to the House so that we have adequate time to work on our additions.

Legislature Passes Bill to Speed Up Return of Property Held as Evidence

The Legislature unaimously passed SB 30 “Return Of Seized Property” aimed at speeding up the process of returning property. Before the passage of this bill, personal property, such as your car that was broken in to, could be held as evidence for months or even years. This created all sorts of hardship on victims in dealing with insurance and reclaiming their property.

Goldstream Lighting Project Community Meeting Opportunity

The Department of Transportation has a project to install streetlights at locations in the Goldstream area, including the intersection of Murphy Dome Road. Last fall this issue was brought to my attention by neighbors who had heard about this project and had concerns. DOT was not going to hold a public meeting about this project and that was unacceptable. After pressure from area residents, DOT has finally agreed to a public meeting.

Date: Thursday, March 29th, 2012
Time: 6-8pm
Location: Noel Wien Public Library

This meeting is a great opportunity to learn more about the project ask questions and voice your concerns. Details of the project are available at http://dot.alaska.gov/nreg/spot/ . If you are unable to attend the meeting, I encourage you to contact DOT to submit your comments to the project manager, Colleen Ackiss, by calling 907-451-5179 or emailing colleen.ackiss@alaska.gov .

Susitna Hydro Project Public Meetings

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will hold public scoping meetings this month for the proposed Sustina-Wantana Hydroelectric Project. These meetings are the first step in a required federal Environmental Impact Statement for the project. The EIS determines whether, and under what conditions, to issue a license for the project.

For Interior residents this project has major implications. The project would have a capacity of 600 megawatts and meet half of the electricity requirements expected in the future for communities now connected to the regional power grid. Construction would get underway in 2017 and under the present schedule it could be in operation by 2023. At its peak, about 1,000 people would be employed in construction, with an additional 2,000 support jobs. The most recent cost estimate is $4.34 billion, which could be lower as the project managers look for efficiencies and concrete suppliers. If you can, please attend the meeting or submit comments.

Public Hearings:

In Fairbanks:

Date: Thursday, March 29th, 2012
Time: 6-9pm
Location: Westmark Hotel

In Cantwell:

Date: Thursday, March 29th, 2012
Time: 6-10pm
Location: Cantwell Community Hall

Deadline for Comment is April 27, 2012. Please submit comments to:

Online Submittal:

http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp

Mail:

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
888 First Street NE
Washington, D.C., 20426
Reference: Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project, Docket Number P-14241

Additional information on the project is available at:

http://www.susitna-watanahydro.org/

Thank you for reading and please feel free to call my office and share your ideas.

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