Unalaska, AK – The state House and Senate gaveled in another special session last night. One of the Legislature's two priorities for the meeting is to reach a resolution on how oil companies should pay taxes to the state. Governor Frank Murkowski has proposed a bill that would require the companies to pay a tax based on 20 percent of their total profits in Alaska. Some members of the Legislature have other ideas. Senator Lyman Hoffman of Bethel and Representative Carl Moses of Unalaska, both of whom represent the Aleutians region in the Legislature, spoke with KIAL last week about the upcoming session. The two lawmakers sit on the finance committees of the Senate and the House, respectively, which means that they are among the members who are considering the governor's proposal.

Hoffman urged the Legislature to take inflation into account when considering the tax plan. Moses described the tax increase as inevitable, but said that increasing Alaska's dependence on oil revenue could mean trouble for the state.

Click on the MP3 link to hear Hoffman and Moses, respectively, share their thoughts on the issue.