HJR 23 Alaska House · 34th Legislature (2025-2026)

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of Alaska requiring the governor to submit a balanced budget to the legislature.

HJR 23 proposes amending Alaska's Constitution to require the governor to submit a balanced budget to the legislature each year. Specifically, it would prevent the governor from proposing a budget or general appropriation bill where spending exceeds projected revenue for the next fiscal year, excluding funds in the budget reserve. The amendment must be approved by voters at the next general election before taking effect. This directly affects the governor's budget submission process and the legislature's review of state spending.

Issues: ✓ Budget & Taxes

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Apr 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Apr 28, 2025 Last action May 19, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

HJR 23 → CSHJR 23(JUD) · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was reclassified as a committee substitute, shifting sponsorship from individual representatives to the House Judiciary Committee and simplifying the referral process. The core policy text was significantly rewritten to clarify that the governor's balanced budget requirement applies only to funds available for appropriation, explicitly excluding the budget reserve fund and excess permanent fund income from the calculation.

Scope change

The amendment's applicability was narrowed by adding a specific effective date of January 1, 2027, ensuring the new balanced budget rules apply only to future budgets rather than retroactively.

TECHNICAL

Changed the bill status from 'House Joint Resolution' to 'Committee Substitute for House Joint Resolution' and updated the sponsor list to reflect the House Judiciary Committee.

DEFINITION

Replaced the term 'anticipated revenue' with 'available fund balances' and added a specific definition excluding the budget reserve fund and excess permanent fund income.

TIMELINE

Added a new section establishing January 1, 2027, as the effective date for the amendment's application to governor's budgets.

REQUIREMENT

Rewrote the constitutional amendment language to provide clearer instructions on what the governor must submit and how the budget requirement is calculated.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 23, 2026

Committee

(H) REFERRED TO FINANCE

lower

Mar 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

(H) Moved CSHJR 23(JUD) Out of Committee

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

(H) Moved HJR 23 Out of Committee

lower

1 primary · 6 co-sponsors