Petersburg Pilot -

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Lawmakers are a step closer to moving out of office space in Anchorage that costs $4 million to lease.

The Legislative Council voted Saturday to recommend that lawmakers pull funding for the lease, while also carving out 45 days to try negotiating a competitive purchase price, the Alaska Dispatch reports.

The office space was renovated and priced almost six times more than what had been a $680,000 lease.

This year, lawmakers expect a $3.5 billion state budget deficit.

Developer Mark Pfeffer said he was willing to drop his asking price by $1 million from $36 millio...