The Haines Borough Assembly introduced an ordinance on Tuesday that would remove the cap on heliski operators in the borough for only one year.

The ordinance also would require the borough manager to allocate skier days earlier in the year; it would mandate that operators pay the $5-per-skier-day fee before the season, instead of after, as current code allows; it would order operators to file wildlife observation reports every two weeks instead of at the end of the year; and it would facilitate the borough’s collection of GPS data from operators. Borough requests for data currently are limited to enforcement activities.

The assembly’s decision to introduce the ordinance came after months of discussion and extensive public comment about borough heliski code, which currently limits the number of annual heliski tour permits to three and gives preference to current operators. A fourth tour company, Stellar Adventure Travel, applied for a permit in May to operate in Haines in 2022 but was denied because there are already three permitted operators.

The idea of eliminating or expanding the permit cap has met resistance from an array of residents, including all three local heliski operators worried about safety, user conflicts and overconsumption of Haines’ powder runs; environmental groups and goat hunters concerned about the impact of helicopters on mountain goats; and people opposed to more noise.

Supporters of the ordinance argue that permitting Stellar will increase business competition and benefit Haines’ winter economy.

After several meetings in August and September, the borough’s Government Affairs and Services (GAS) Committee recommended that the full assembly take up the issue. At a Sept. 28 assembly meeting, GAS Committee chair Cheryl Stickler motioned to direct the borough manager to draft an ordinance eliminating the heliski permit cap. Mayor Douglas Olerud broke a 3-3 tie, supporting the motion.

On Tuesday, borough clerk and former interim borough manager Alekka Fullerton presented the assembly with two ordinance options. One would eliminate the permit cap for good. The other would eliminate it only for 2022. Stickler moved to introduce the second option, saying it would create a test period to collect data and review the policy. “This ordinance upholds a commitment to a free enterprise system and says to the world: Haines is open for business, and we’re open to business,” she said.

The assembly voted 5-1 to back Stickler’s motion, forwarding the ordinance to two public hearings on Nov. 9 and Dec. 14. Newly elected assembly member Debra Schnabel cast the sole vote against the motion.

“The permit system is supposed to mitigate the impact of helicopter noise on wildlife and people, encourage safe practices, recognize and protect competing and incompatible activities, while encouraging vital economic activity,” Schnabel said. “I’d like us to have an understanding of why the industry is being permitted in the first place. It’s not as simple as just, ‘It’s free enterprise, and I support free enterprise.’”

Schnabel raised several questions. She wondered about the legitimacy of “phantom operators” and underused permits, presumably referring, respectively, to Stellar, which has been guiding in Haines for years in partnership with current operators and without its own tour permit, and Alaska Mountain Guides (AMG), which used 32 out of 1,000 allotted skier days over the last two years. AMG president Sean Gaffney said AMG didn’t operate because of the pandemic and is “having strong bookings” for next season.

Assembly member Caitie Kirby, who on Sept. 28 voted against drafting the ordinance, again voiced hesitation about eliminating the permit cap, noting that she has heard a rare and “resounding opinion of agreement” among residents against it. Still, she said, “this is a much more detailed conversation now” and “there are parts of the ordinance that are worth discussing,” like requiring advanced payments for skier days and making GPS data more accessible.

Mayor Douglas Olerud stood by a statement he made on Sept. 28 that he would vote against the ordinance if the assembly were tied 3-3, balancing out his tie-breaking vote to draft the ordinance. He said at the time that he wanted to move the conversation forward but that he thinks the assembly’s will should be clear for the ordinance to pass.

Assembly members Paul Rogers and Debra Schnabel encouraged Olerud to reconsider his position because the discussion has evolved beyond the permit cap question. As Fullerton pointed out, “the ordinance has a lot of components to it, not just permits.” For example, the assembly could decide to amend the ordinance to include the proposed changes to skier-day allocation and data collection but not the elimination of a permit cap.

If the assembly votes to allow a fourth operator, the earliest Stellar could obtain a permit is Jan. 11, a month before the heliski season begins.