The Anchorage Assembly Rules Committee spent a large portion of its Jan. 8 meeting finalizing the Assembly's 2026 work plan and assigning member leads for major project areas including housing, homelessness, public health, and infrastructure.

"What you have in front of you is a draft final version in the format of the 2026 work plan...this covers your 2026 priorities, your 2026 projects, and those are things that as a body, you're supportive of your colleagues working on and using, you know, some staff support to work on," Jennifer (Legislative Services staff) told the committee as she opened the detailed review.

Members volunteered to lead or co-lead projects: Aaron was listed on the preapproved ADU program; Anna and others were assigned to housing dashboard and homelessness-related items; members asked that a new 'process improvements' category be added to capture work on permitting, discretionary-review procedures and Urban Design Commission (UDC) processes.

Committee members emphasized balancing new projects with the Assembly's core responsibilities and smoothing transitions for incoming members. One member urged the group to schedule future meetings to avoid holiday conflicts and to ensure leadership continuity as multiple seats turn over in the upcoming cycle.

Next steps: Staff said Claire will incorporate today's feedback, send the work plan to the administration to identify intersections with executive projects, and return the plan to the Assembly for formal adoption at a later meeting. Members were reminded they may still offer floor amendments at adoption.

The committee did not vote on formal adoption Thursday; the session functioned as a final check-in and assignment meeting.