Stories are posted on the APRN news page. You can subscribe to APRN’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @aprn.
With No Budget Deal In Sight, Lawmakers Hold Brief Technical Session
Alexandra Gutierrez, APRN – Juneau
When the Alaska State Legislature voted to take a recess, they set May 12 as the date they would reconvene in Juneau. But with no deal on a budget or Medicaid expansion, most lawmakers remained in Anchorage or in their home districts Tuesday.
Walker Administration Says Medicaid System Is On The Mend
Alexandra Gutierrez, APRN – Juneau
The state’s troubled Medicaid payment system has seen improvements in recent months, according to Walker administration officials.
FCC Investigates Bid Discounts for Doyon-Owned Firm
Liz Ruskin, APRN – Washington, D.C.
The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday morning the FCC is ready to investigate how a company partly owned by Fairbanks-based Doyon won licenses to use the wireless spectrum, while claiming it was entitled to billions of dollars in discounts. Critics say Doyon’s big corporate partner, Dish Network, is taking advantage of a program meant to help small businesses.
Climbers Heli-Rescued After Slide in the Alaska Range
Philip Manning, KTNA – Talkeetna
The National Park Service reports that two Idaho climbers have been rescued after an avalanche on Mt. Dickey in the Alaska Range.
Coalition Uses A Data-Driven Approach To Find Behavioral Health Solutions
Anne Hillman, KSKA – Anchorage
Anchorage high school students who feel like their teachers really care about them are 50 percent less likely to drink. Young women in Alaska attempt suicide at twice the rate of young men. Those are just a few statistics being used to develop behavioral health solutions for Anchorage’s youth.
Sitka Gets Creative To Pay For Its Dam
Rachel Waldholz, KCAW – Sitka
State and local officials — including Gov. Bill Walker — gathered in Sitka on Friday to formally dedicate the Blue Lake dam. The largest public works project in Sitka history, it’s projected to meet the city’s electricity needs for the next thirty years.
Treat Your Soil With A Little TLC, Reap The Benefits During Harvest
Ellen Lockyer, KSKA – Anchorage
Alaska’s farm produce vendors prepping for the busy summer season. Some use the organic label, others don’t, but what exactly is it that makes a vegetable organic?
‘TV Doesn’t Do It Justice’: First Cruise Ship Visitors Arrive in Skagway
Emily Files, KHNS – Haines
Skagway’s modern gold rush – the cruise ship season – has begun. The town of around 1,000 people expects almost 800,000 cruise ship passengers this summer. And the first 2,000 of those passengers had the chance to explore town on Tuesday. The Celebrity Solstice sailed north from Vancouver, with stops in Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway.
