The 'Alaska Legislature' is the
state legislature of the
U.S. state of
Alaska. It is a
bicameral institution, consisting of the
lower Alaska House of Representatives, with 40 members, and the
upper house Alaska Senate, with 20 members. With a total of 60 lawmakers, the Alaska Legislature is the smallest bicameral state legislature in the
United States, due to factors including the geographic size of the state, and the state's small population.
The Alaska Legislature meets in the
State Capitol building in
Juneau.
Meetings
Annual sessions begin in January and are limited by statute to 120 calendar days. Special sessions of 30 calendar days may be convened by a consensus of two-thirds of the each house.
[1]
In the 2006 elections, a voter initiative was passed that reduced the statutory length of the session to 90 days. Current legislation would make changes to accommodate a 90 session. However, the fate of a 90 day session in Alaska remains to be determined.
Non-professional legislature
Unlike other state legislatures with longer sessions, the comparatively short Alaska Legislature session allows many lawmakers to retain outside employment, especially in the state's many
seasonal industries, such as
fishing and
tourism. In this, the Alaska Legislature retains some of the
volunteer nature that characterized most state legislatures until the middle of the
20th century. This has led to recurring but minor controversy around the potential for
conflict of interest inherent in legislators' outside employment.
[2]
See also
★
Alaska State Capitol
★
Alaska House of Representatives
★
Alaska Senate
★
List of Alaska State Legislatures
★
25th Alaska State Legislature (2006-2007), the current state legislature
★
Alaska political corruption probe
References
1. Alaska House of Representatives
2. Alaska editorial: Let a commission help decide legislator's pay
★
Legislative Affairs' Alaska Legislature Website
External links
★
Alaska Legislature
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