Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance on Monday proposed a one-time education tax levy to raise $12 million for the Anchorage School District, saying the district’s financial crisis was too urgent to wait for a broader city revenue package. LaFrance said she was asking the Assembly to set aside her previously proposed 3% sales tax in order to focus the spring ballot on the school levy. If eight Assembly members approve the measure by Jan. 27, it would go to voters on April 7.
The levy would add $27.40 per $100,000 of assessed property value for Anchorage homeowners if approved by voters. ASD Superintendent Jharrett Bryantt said the proceeds would go entirely to teaching positions and student services, though the $12 million levy would not fully close the district’s $83 million budget gap.
“Over the last several months, we have been having a vital conversation around the municipality’s long-term fiscal health and the need to diversify our revenue, but the crisis facing our schools is too urgent to wait,” LaFrance said at a news conference Monday morning.
What the levy would fund
Bryantt said the levy money would go entirely toward reducing high class sizes — the top concern parents have raised with the district.
“If voters approve this levy, I will commit to directing these dollars to teaching positions and essential student services,” Bryantt said. “Manageable class sizes are at the top of the list of what our parents desire for their children.”
State law caps how much Anchorage can levy for education, and the city typically taxes to that limit. However, a per-student funding increase passed by the state Legislature last year raised the ceiling, making the additional levy legally possible, Bryantt said.
Why the district is in crisis
Bryantt said the Anchorage School District has faced mounting financial pressure over the past decade from inflation, declining enrollment, and a large exodus of teachers. The Alaska Legislature last year approved a $700 per-student funding increase, overriding a veto from Gov. Mike Dunleavy, but Bryantt said the increase did not fully restore what schools had lost.
“While the $700 increase did provide relief, it did not fully restore what schools have lost,” Bryantt said. “As a result, even though we’re in the process of making significant reductions outside of the classroom, deeper than we’ve cut in many, many years, ASD is still facing difficult choices for the ‘26-‘27 budget.”
The Assembly’s role
Assembly members planned to introduce the levy proposal at their Tuesday night meeting. Assembly Vice Chair Anna Brawley co-sponsored the measure along with members Erin Baldwin Day and Felix Rivera. Brawley said she was also willing to set aside her own proposed 2% bed tax increase to keep the April ballot focused on education.
“I know this conversation is not over, and so for my part, I am happy to set aside the revenue measure for the time being,” Brawley said. “But I will work with my colleagues, with the mayor, and with others in the community, to really continue that conversation and bring forward, you know, what kind of city do we want to be in the future.”
Levy’s limits and the city’s broader fiscal outlook
The $12 million levy would not fully address the district’s $83 million shortfall. Bryantt said he hoped it would hold the district over while state leaders work on a longer-term solution, noting that an expected change in the governor’s office could bring a new approach.
“We do anticipate that there will be a change in state leadership as we look ahead towards the governor’s race, and we are yearning for a long-range fiscal vision and fiscal plan for the state and specifically for education,” Bryantt said.
LaFrance cautioned that shelving the sales tax does not resolve the city’s broader financial problems.
“We are still approaching the fiscal cliff, and the municipality faces budget gaps in the next few years,” she said. “We will be presenting scenarios for potential service cuts.”
LaFrance said the levy offered a more immediate revenue path than the sales tax, which she said would not generate funds for one and a half to two years, while levy revenue would be available faster.
Anchorage’s municipal election is scheduled for April 7.