UNEAU -- Gov. Sarah Palin announced in her State of the State Speech on Thursday night that she wants to freeze all state hiring except for public safety but also pursue ambitious projects like a road to Nome.
Palin, speaking in the state House chambers, said that next month she will introduce a bill for "facilitating" an in-state natural gas pipeline. She said the goal is to have such a project completed in five years, carrying 460 cubic feet of gas a day.
Palin acknowledged that the state is facing a potential budget deficit of more than a billion dollars as a result of the drop in oil prices. She didn't propose specific cuts to government programs but said she wants to freeze state hiring as well as restrict "non-essential purchases." She didn't elaborate on what those are.
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