Rep.George Rauscher, R-Sutton, wrote the bill and said in April that it was a matter of fairness and transparency for workers. He had worked in a warehouse, he said, and the issue was personal to him.
Dunleavy vetoed the bill Aug. 29, but the veto message wasn’t published until this week.
the message, Dunleavy said he vetoed HB 88 “because it creates excessive regulation of state businesses, thereby thwarting business development and economic opportunities in Alaska.”
Through a spokesperson, the governor’s office declined additional comment.
House Bill 88 would have applied to larger warehouses with 100 or more employees, a relatively small number in Alaska but growing, especially near the busy Anchorage Ted Stevens International Airport. This includes new facilities like the Amazon warehouse that recently opened in Anchorage, designed to support the company’s e-commerce operations in the state.
The veto was Dunleavy’s seventh for a policy bill in 2024 and 12th since being elected in 2018. He has since signed two other vetoes, for a total of 14 during his two terms in office. Those figures do not include his annual budget vetoes.
Since Dunleavy took office, legislators have never overridden one of his vetoes.
In a written statement published on social media Thursday, Teamsters Local 959 said it was disappointed by the governor’s veto.
The union, one of the state’s largest, said it will continue to advocate for workers’ rights.
Teamsters Local 959, one of Alaska’s largest unions, expressed disappointment with Governor Dunleavy’s veto of HB 88 in a written statement on social media. The union vowed to continue its advocacy for workers’ rights despite the setback.
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