HJR 41: Urging the use of northern design principles and full-cost accounting techniques for publicly funded construction projects in Alaska.
00HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 41 01 Urging the use of northern design principles and full-cost accounting techniques 02 for publicly funded construction projects in Alaska. 03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 WHEREAS Alaska is the only state in the United States where most of its land mass 05 is located within arctic and subarctic environmental conditions; and 06 WHEREAS this physical location so far north on our planet creates unique challenges 07 for public infrastructure and economic development; and 08 WHEREAS winter can last as long as eight months on the North Slope and six 09 months in southcentral Alaska with corresponding lengthy periods of cold, ice, snow, and 10 darkness; and 11 WHEREAS lengthy winters create higher demands for energy and other utilities; and 12 WHEREAS many public facilities constructed during the past 25 years were built with 13 minimal consideration of long-term affordability; and 14 WHEREAS public buildings, such as schools, community facilities, and housing
01 projects, throughout Alaska are faced with a significant backlog of deferred maintenance 02 projects; and 03 WHEREAS the state and local communities must eventually address the nearly 04 $1,500,000,000 in deferred maintenance to public buildings; and 05 WHEREAS materials and building techniques in Alaska should reflect Alaska's arctic, 06 subarctic, and rainforest regions; and 07 WHEREAS future deferred maintenance could be minimized by integrating northern 08 design principles and full-cost accounting techniques into publicly funded construction 09 projects; and 10 WHEREAS full-cost accounting is a technique of economic analysis that identifies and 11 makes explicit those costs that are long term, such as operation and maintenance, and those 12 costs that are related, such as the health of individuals; and 13 WHEREAS seasonal affective disorder, or "cabin fever," is a well-documented 14 physical condition that can cause depression, irritability, and other mental obstacles to 15 individual productivity; and 16 WHEREAS buildings can be sited to maximize access to the sun, increase the 17 occupants' exposure to light, and improve individual health while reducing health care 18 expenditures; and 19 WHEREAS other more mature northern communities recognize that long winters 20 require distinct social, physical, and cultural adaptations in order to ensure economic 21 prosperity; and 22 WHEREAS there is a need for Alaska to develop a more cohesive regional identity 23 in the design of its communities and in the minds of its people and to clarify its special sense 24 of place in the minds of the international public; 25 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests that all federal agencies 26 funding construction projects in Alaska modify their design and procurement policies to create 27 Alaska-specific designs reflecting northern design principles; and be it 28 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests that all state 29 agencies responsible for funding construction projects modify their policies to reflect northern 30 design principles; and be it 31 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests that federal and
01 state agencies use full-cost accounting techniques as key evaluation criteria for publicly funded 02 construction projects that are to be operated, maintained, or supported by state funds. 03 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Daniel R. Glickman, 04 Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture; the Honorable William M. Daley, Secretary 05 of the U.S. Department of Commerce; the Honorable William S. Cohen, Secretary of the U.S. 06 Department of Defense; the Honorable Richard W. Riley, Secretary of the U.S. Department 07 of Education; the Honorable Bill Richardson, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy; the 08 Honorable Donna E. Shalala, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 09 the Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 10 Development; the Honorable Bruce Babbitt, Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior; 11 the Honorable Janet Reno, Attorney General of the United States; the Honorable Alexis M. 12 Herman, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor; the Honorable Rodney E. Slater, 13 Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation; the Honorable Robert E. Rubin, Secretary 14 of the U.S. Department of the Treasury; the Honorable Togo D. West, Jr., Secretary of the 15 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; the Honorable Carol M. Browner, Administrator, U.S. 16 Environmental Protection Agency; Admiral James M. Loy, Commandant of the U.S. Coast 17 Guard; the Honorable William C. Apgar, Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal Housing 18 Commission, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Lieutenant General 19 Russell C. Davis, Chief of the National Guard Bureau of the U.S. Department of the Air Force 20 and the U.S. Department of the Army; the Honorable David J. Barram, Administrator of the 21 U.S. General Services Administration; the Honorable William J. Henderson, Postmaster 22 General of the U.S. Postal Service; Franklin D. Raines, Chair, Federal National Mortgage 23 Association; the commissioners of the departments of the State of Alaska; Stephanie J. Cole, 24 Administrative Director of the Alaska Court System; Mark Hamilton, President of the 25 University of Alaska; Daniel R. Fauske, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, 26 Alaska Housing Finance Corporation; Governor Bill Sheffield, President and Chief Executive 27 Director, Alaska Railroad Corporation; the members of the Board of Regents of the University 28 of Alaska; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. 29 Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska 30 delegation in Congress.