Frequently Asked Questions
Table of Contents
- Who are my Legislators?
- How do I contact my Legislator via e-mail? by phone? by mail?
- What is the composition of the Alaska Legislature?
- How does a bill become a law?
- How do I find information about a bill if all I know is a general topic?
- Is there a way of tracking bills?
- When does the Legislative session convene? adjourn?
- How do I contact my local Legislative Information Office?
- Where can I find a list of the House and Senate standing committees?
- How do I send a Public Opinion Message (POM)?
- Are there Capitol tours?
Who are my Legislators?
Click on the following link to find your Legislators by District or by community.
How do I contact my Legislator?
You may contact your Legislator by mail, e-mail, phone, fax or by sending a Public Opinion Message. For a list of Legislators and their contact information click here: Legislator List.
For information regarding Public Opinion Messages click here: Public Opinion Message. If you would like to know how to address your Legislator click here: Addressing your Legislator
Email: The format for an e-mail address is as follows:
Represenatives: Rep.First.Last@akleg.gov
Example: Rep.John.Doe@akleg.gov
Senators: Sen.First.Last@akleg.gov
Example: Sen.John.Doe@akleg.gov
What is the composition of the Legislature?
The Alaska Legislature is composed of two bodies: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives consists of 26 Republicans and 14 Democrats. Of the forty Representatives, 13 are women and 27 are men. The Senate consists 13 Republicans and 7 Democrats. Of the twenty Senators, 4 are women and 16 are men. For short biographies of your Legislators, click on one of the following links:
House of Representatives Senate
How does a bill become a law?
A bill becomes a law by going through an introduction, reading, referral, hearing and voting process known as the Legislative Process. Click on the link for a detailed description of this process.
How do I find information about a bill if all I know is a general topic?
Our Legislative home page includes a link to the Bill Action and Status Inquiry System (BASIS). If you know the general topic of the bill, select subject summary from the box on the right hand side of the page and choose from a list of general topics. From there, you can read the short titles of bills to find the one that matches what you are looking for.
Is there a way of tracking bills?
You can track bills through the Bill Action and Status Inquiry System (BASIS). Information at this site includes, but is not limited, to bill histories, sponsor statements, committees of referral, and committee schedules. You can also access the full text of bills here.
When does the Legislative session convene? adjourn?
The legislature convenes at the capital each year on the third Tuesday in January at 1:00 p.m. Each legislature has a duration of two years and consists of a "First Regular Session" that meets in the odd-numbered years, and a "Second Regular Session" that meets in the even-numbered years, and any special session that the governor or legislature calls. The first and second regular sessions are each 90 days long.
How do I contact my local Legislative Information Office?
From the Legislative home page, click on the link toLegislative Information Offices and then click on the directory at the top of the page. Here you will find addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers, e-mail addresses, and links to individual LIO web pages.
Where can I find a list of the House and Senate standing committees?
From the Legislative home page, click on the link to Information Documents and then to Committee Members List. You can also find committee information in BASIS.
How do I send a Public Opinion Message (POM)?
You may now send your own Public Opinion Messages (POM)! Your name and address that you use needs to be the one that is on your voter registration card. To access the program, click here: http://www.akleg.gov/poms. If you have problems or questions, contact your local Legislative Information Office.
To have your Legislative Information Office send your POM, call your local LIO. You may also fill out the Public Opinion Message form and fax it to your local Legislative Information Office.
Click here for a self-guided Capitol Tour brochure. Also on this web site is a Capitol Tour video. For questions about tours of the Capitol call 907-465-3800.