I applaud the Anchorage Assembly and Mayor Mark Begich for their strong opposition to state Sen. Ben Stevens' continued attempts to change the makeup of the AMATS policy committee. And I encourage the Assembly to hold firm in its resistance to Stevens' legislative power grab. I wholeheartedly agree with Assembly Chair Dick Traini that Stevens' actions are obvious attempts to "hijack the AMATS process," as he seeks to shift the committee's balance of power by adding two legislators.
One can't help but wonder why Ben Stevens insists on getting so involved with municipal affairs when the Alaska Legislature performs so poorly in addressing its own business. As letter writer John Baker recently commented ("Ben Stevens' aim is to keep money from being spent on Coastal Trail," March 12), it likely has to do with Stevens' opposition to the Coastal Trail extension. It appears he's going to do everything he can to derail that project, even though it's an Anchorage issue, not a legislative one.
I would suggest that Stevens could more wisely spend his energies -- and show some true leadership, which is in such short supply down in Juneau -- by addressing the state's fiscal problems in a way that's fair to the majority of Alaskans (for instance, by imposing an income tax). And again I encourage Anchorage's political leaders to continue fighting Stevens' AMATS legislation, which is bad stuff.
-- Bill Sherwonit
Anchorage