Singer-songwriting candidate Tom Begich calls to dismantle AIDEA, while new Northern Economics report shows billions in economic impact

Anchorage singer-songwriter Tom Begich is now on record calling for dismantling the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority — an agency that benefits his brother Mark — and replacing it with a new state Department of Energy. He argues the state’s economic development engine “has little to show for itself.” (Watch the video at the end of this article.)

But a newly released economic analysis by Northern Economics paints a very different picture, documenting billions in economic activity, tens of thousands of jobs, and statewide investment tied to AIDEA-backed projects.

The report, titled Impacts of the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, concludes that AIDEA financing programs have played a significant role in supporting businesses, infrastructure, and industrial development across Alaska, including mining, energy, tourism, transportation, and commercial development — economic sectors that Democrats traditionally look down on.

AIDEA Report_2025_Final_020926

Among the report’s key findings:

• Since 1992, AIDEA’s Loan Participation Program alone has issued 753 loans totaling more than $1.97 billion to Alaska businesses.
• Those projects supported 18,100 construction jobs and $3.6 billion in construction-related economic output.
• Ongoing operations tied to those projects helped retain or support 18,600 jobs and generated $6.3 billion in economic output statewide.
• Combined, the program produced $2.6 billion in labor income for Alaskans, which circulated throughout the economy.

The report emphasizes that many of the supported jobs that continued because AIDEA financing allowed projects and companies to remain viable.

AIDEA investment also spans the entire state, not just large urban centers. From 2010 to 2025, loans were distributed across Anchorage, Mat-Su, Southeast, Gulf Coast, Interior, and rural regions, helping fund construction, equipment purchases, tourism projects, aviation businesses, utilities, and energy development.

In Anchorage alone, the report notes that AIDEA provided about $329 million in financing across roughly 150 loans, supporting industries including aviation, oil and gas, construction, healthcare, tourism, retail, and utilities.

One example highlighted in the report is the Wildbirch Hotel project in downtown Anchorage, where AIDEA financed $25 million of a $35.6 million loan, supporting over 150 construction jobs and more than 200 permanent jobs.

This was a project of Tom Begich’s own brother, Mark Begich.

The report also notes that AIDEA-backed financing has supported commercial fishing, mining logistics, aviation, retail development, tourism infrastructure, and energy projects across Alaska’s regions.

Democrats have targeted AIDEA because it invests in resource development, including mining, oil, and infrastructure projects tied to Alaska’s industrial economy.

That was precisely the point of the agency’s creation — to finance projects private lenders often consider too large, risky, or remote for conventional funding.

Begich’s proposal would dismantle the authority and create a new Department of Energy focused on renewable development and state-directed energy planning. While he served in the Senate, his only notable touchpoint with AIDEA was proposing a bill that would create a new sub-fund within the agency for disaster response.

The Northern Economics analysis suggests that eliminating AIDEA would mean scrapping a financing mechanism that has supported tens of thousands of jobs and billions in economic activity — particularly in industries that form the backbone of Alaska’s private-sector economy.

Video of Tom Begich calling to dismantle AIDEA