Lisa Murkowski

I think that this is under dispute.

The promise has been made that it is forthcoming.

Nearly one out of two women and one out of four men in Alaska have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime.

We need to do better. I know that we will.

In parts of my State, it is an absolute crisis.

We must ensure that our policies support the needs of tribal communities.

I got my flush toilet today. For eight years we had been working to get Buckland hooked up to water and sewer.

One-third of the homes in rural Alaska do not have a flush toilet, do not have running water.

I think you've done a good job just in terms of outlining some of the things that we hope to work on as a committee from a very broad perspective.

I think you would all agree with us on that.

I think this is critically important for us to look at.

I think there is a real effort to try to figure out a longer term solution and how we might construct that is going to require an effort that is collaborative.

I think Senator Baucus doesn't want to be in the position of year after year trying to figure out how we piece this together.

Continued appropriations are no more certain for counties than are payments made from commodity receipts.

Bridge funding for a long time. That bridge is getting real long.

I'm weary, just weary of having to go back to constituents at home again who are looking at their communities and recognizing that from year to year they don't really know what's going to happen to them.

How we rob Peter to pay Paul, to use Senator Barrasso's expression here.

I have suggested that if you've got a Federal Government that's $16 and a half trillion in debt and we need other ways to find this reliable, steady funding stream that you've talked about, Chief.

You've heard the frustration clearly here. You all each have said that there is support for reauthorization of Secure Rural Schools, support for PILT and appreciation as to why the need, why the necessity.

But the public also needs some jobs or they can't live there.

I'll continue on what we're going to do to increase the harvest.

I additionally wish to thank Senator Murkowski for her hard work over the years on SRS and forest health issues.

These payments are literally payments in lieu of taxes to compensate our local governments for the loss in tax revenue caused by this change in policy.

Maybe we need to look to collaborate a little bit more because we're so snarled up on road less right now in Alaska.

When they don't know where 64 percent of their budget is going to be coming from on a year to year basis, it causes a great deal of stress.