Legislators are converging on Juneau for the second special session that starts on Wednesday, as they attempt to avert a government shutdown.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy has cited the failure of a vote related to the budget bill in announcing the shutdown. Four more House members would have to vote for the budget to go into effect on July 1 to prevent the shut down on that day.
State officials are assessing which state services will continue and which will cease if the government shuts down, according to a spokesperson for the governor.
State workers received a 13-page “2021 Government Shutdown FAQ” on Tuesday that provides details about how the shutdown will affect them. According to the document, employees who are required to work during the shutdown will be paid. But workers who are laid off or furloughed will not be paid for the time they’re out of work.
Workers will continue to have health insurance in July. But laid-off workers won’t have health insurance in August, according to the document, if the shutdown continues that long.
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Andrew Kitchenman is the state government and politics reporter for Alaska Public Media and KTOO in Juneau. Reach him at akitchenman@alaskapublic.org.
