Coastal legislators disapprove of governor's spending plan for ferries

Though they say the level of funding for the state ferry system in Gov. Mike Dunleavy's budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 is adequate, coastal legislators don't like that the governor wants to use one-time federal money to pay the bills, eliminating almost 95% of state funding.

Their fear is that when the federal dollars from last year's $1.2 trillion infrastructure spending plan run out, so too will adequate ferry service.

"Those federal dollars were meant to augment state money, not replace it," House Speaker Louise Stutes, of Kodiak, said Monday. "This doesn't work for me."

The...