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CLARION
Showers 41/23 More weather on Page A-2
P E N I N S U L A
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2015 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 45, Issue 118
50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday
Wish list sent to feds
Question Are you facing a tax penalty for not having health insurance? n Yes n No To place your vote and comment, visit our Web site at www. peninsulaclarion. com. Results and selected comments will be posted each Tuesday in the Clarion, and a new question will be asked. Suggested questions may be submitted online or e-mailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
Borough ranks federal priorities By KELLY SULLIVAN Peninsula Clarion
In the news
at the penalties for not having coverage, which he says have averaged around $600, but have been as high as $2,000. “People are getting really surprised, because a lot of them hadn’t been paying attention and didn’t realize the situation it was going to create,” Duffield said. Duffield said the IRS, under
The Kenai Peninsula Borough is asking for minimal federal financial assistance for the 2016 fiscal year. In the borough’s 2015 Federal Priorities approved by the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly Feb. 2, the Payment in Lieu of Taxes and Secure Rural Schools were listed as necessary forms of revenue for the Kenai Peninsula, said borough mayor Mike Navarre. The Payment in Lieu of Taxes and Secure Rural Schools are two federal programs that provide significant support for the borough, Navarre said. Every year there is the chance that the government will lessen the amount of money they fund states in these programs, he said. “The federal government owns approximately six million acres within the Kenai Peninsula Borough, which is 60 percent of the total land area in the borough,” according to the list of priorities. Those lands are located within the Lake Clark, Katmai and Kenai Fjords National Parks, the Kenai and Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuges and the Chugach National Forest, according to the list. The borough provides services in these areas where tax collection is not an option, Navarre said. Receiving revenue from these taxes is important for maintaining those services, he said. What money that is received goes directly into the borough’s General Fund. Beyond monetary requests, the borough also asked for managerial focus on projects such as the “Cooper Landing Bypass,” Navarre said. It is an expensive project, and one of
See TAX, page A-6
See LIST, page A-6
Committee plans to resume Maw hearing later this week
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JUNEAU (AP) — The Senate Resources Committee plans to continue its confirmation hearing of Roland Maw to the state Board of Fisheries. The hearing began Monday but not everyone who had signed up to testify was able to do so during the allotted time. Committee chair Cathy Giessel said committee members probably have some additional questions, too. She continued the hearing until Friday. Maw had been a finalist for state fish and game commissioner. But his application died after the Board of Game voted to give him an interview and the Board of Fisheries declined. Gov. Bill Walker later appointed Maw to the board to replace Karl Johnstone. Johnstone resigned after being told he would not be reappointed when his term expired. Maw’s appointment is subject to legislative confirmation.
Inside ‘We felt the heat, I can tell you that. It was a little scary. It was like an atomic bomb went off.’ ... See page A-5
‘Part of the decision making process is, ‘Do you have a chance?’’ ... See page A-4
Index Opinion.................. A-4 Nation/World.......... A-5 Business................ A-6 Sports.....................A-7 Classifieds............. A-9 Comics................. A-12 Pet Tails............... A-13
Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com To subscribe, call 283-3584.
Bead and banter
Right: Elizabeth Ward, who owns ‘Bead It’ with her husband Jimmy Ward, chats with Amiel Severson Monday in Soldotna. Severson said she comes consistently but refers to herself as an “irregular” customer. Above: Ward said she and her husband purchased ‘Bead It’ five months ago and are still working on pricing and organizing the store. The couple’s two children work with them in the store most days. Photos by Kelly Sullivan/ Peninsula Clarion
Tax season brings surprises Penalties for lack of health insurance come as a shock By IAN FOLEY Peninsula Clarion
Due to new laws and other factors, this tax season has caused surprises for some taxpayers. While there are many questions about filing 2014 returns, there are just as many people and organizations trying to help answer them. Jim Duffield, CPA for Lib-
erty Tax Service in Kenai, said one reason this tax season is unlike past years is due to the Affordable Care Act. “Every tax season is crazy,” Duffield said. “This one is definitely different. It’s different in the fact that the Affordable Care Act — everyone calls it Obamacare — is finally in, what we would call, full swing.” For 2014 tax returns, Duf-
Board to meet on possible emergency pot regulation By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
JUNEAU (AP) — The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board plans to meet next week to decide whether to consider an emergency regulation defining what constitutes a public place for purposes of the new marijuana law. The board plans to meet Feb. 24, the day the voterbacked initiative to legalize recreational use of pot takes effect. The initiative bans public consumption but does not define “public.” The board’s director, Cynthia Franklin, said the board reviewed the initiative to see if any other area absolutely needed to be addressed to avoid confusion or chaos as the law takes effect. She said that issue stood out. The board will decide if that constitutes an emergency for writing a rule that would be in
effect for 120 days, she said. If it decides that, she said she expects the board will look at the definition for public that’s already included in state law for criminal offenses. Under the initiative, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board is in charge of writing regulations for the industry unless the Legislature creates a new board. Franklin said the alcohol board doesn’t have the technical authority to make rules related to marijuana until Feb. 24. Lawmakers have been working on legislation to update state laws in line with the initiative, but Senate Majority Leader John Coghill, R-North Pole, said he didn’t see a bill passing both houses by Feb. 24. A rewrite of a bill is expected this week in the Senate Judiciary Committee, he said Monday during the Senate majority’s weekly news conference.
field said people need to show documentation of health coverage during the year. If an individual didn’t have health coverage, they could be subject to a tax penalty. According to a Gallup Poll, 13.4 percent of Americans were uninsured near the end of 2014. Duffield said that some local people have been shocked
Some lawmakers worry about cost of Medicaid expansion By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
JUNEAU — A subcommittee hearing on Gov. Bill Walker’s proposal to expand Medicaid coverage revealed few new details Monday, with several members expressing concern about the cost and the federal government not honoring its commitment. In states opting for expansion, the federal government is expected to fund 100 percent of coverage costs for newly eligible individuals through 2016, with the level stepping down to 90 percent by 2020. The federal match for existing Medicaid is 50 percent. Rep. Dan Saddler, who chairs a Health and Social Services subcommittee comC
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prised of House Finance members, asked Health Commissioner Valerie Davidson if the federal government’s ability to uphold its end of the bargain gave her pause. Davidson said she is comfortable with Alaska moving forward with expansion. She noted that the federal contribution rate after 2016 would be similar to that of infrastructure projects, like roads or runways. The state needs to look at investing in health care as another important investment in Alaska, she said. The state has told the fed-
eral Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that if the federal contribution rate falls below 90 percent, Alaska would no longer participate, she said. But Rep. Lance Pruitt, R-Anchorage, questioned if the state would truly just stop providing care to those who fell within the expansion population if that happened. Walker has made expansion a priority, and his administration is trying to win over lawmakers concerned about the cost as the state grapples with a projected multibilliondollar budget deficit. Medicaid, which helps provide health and long-term care to low-income Alaskans, is a driver of the state’s budget. See COST, page A-6