News

All news stories, regardless of topic (local, statewide + national news stories, as well as Talk of Alaska, Alaska News Nightly, Alaska Insight, Alaska Economic Report). Some news stories may also have other categories marked, which will also put them on a subpage. Not all news stories will fall into a subpage.

Feds Finailze Otter Use Guidelines

The federal government has finalized new guidelines on the use of sea otters by Alaska Natives. The change is aimed at better-defining a requirement that hides must be “significantly altered” in order to be considered authentic native handicrafts or clothing that can be sold to non-natives. Download Audio

State Gets More Time For Fairbanks Air Quality Improvement Plan

The state of Alaska has more time to develop a plan to improve Fairbanks air quality. An Environmental Protection Agency deadline that passed last year is now December 31, 2014. The new timeline also comes with more stringent requirements related to addressing Fairbanks wintertime fine particulate pollution. Download Audio

Anchorage Police Say Beating Victim Was Left For Days

Anchorage police say an 18-year-old man found badly beaten in an abandoned downtown house two months ago likely had been attacked two to three days before he was found.

Healy Man Apparently Victim Of Mistaken Identity

A 28-year-old man is accused of beating a Healy man with a baseball bat in an apparent case of mistaken identity. Joshua R. Sanford of Healy is charged with felony assault.

UAF Celebrates Ted Stevens’ Birthday With New Mapping Exhibit

Dozens of friends, former staffers and other well-wishers gathered Monday at UAF’s Rasmuson Library to celebrate what would’ve been former Sen. Ted Stevens’ 90th birthday. Monday’s commemoration also marked the opening of a new exhibit in the library’s collection of Stevens’s official papers generated during his long career as a U.S. senator from Alaska. Download Audio

Sitka Man Indicted After USPS Intercepted Package Of Heroin, Meth

A Sitka man was indicted last Friday for receiving a package containing over $30,000 worth of heroin and methamphetamine.

Bartlett Regional Hospital CFO To Resign

Another member of Bartlett Regional Hospital’s leadership team is stepping down. Chief Financial Officer Ken Brough will resign at the end of the year, according to a hospital news release. Interim CEO Jeff Egbert made the announcement in an email to hospital and medical staff and the Bartlett board of directors.

Tanner Crab Fishery Closed for 2014 Season

State officials announced this week that the tanner crab fishery would not open for the 2014 seasons in the eastern Aleutian Islands. But Unalaska’s small boat fishermen think they’ve found a way to expand the fishery -- in an area that’s been closed for two decades.

Assembly Passes Budget: Library Funded, Bus Fares to Go Up

The Anchorage Assembly passed a $467 million municipal budget for 2014 Tuesday evening. It's about half a million dollars more than the one proposed by Mayor Dan Sullivan. Download Audio

School District, Juneau Teachers Resume Negotiations

Contract bargaining between the Juneau School District and teachers resumed Monday evening, and as negotiators entered NEA-Alaska offices they were greeted with chants and signs calling for a fair contract.

Bethel Man Gets 45 Years for Killing Cab Driver

A young man was sentenced in Bethel Superior Court to 45 years in prison for murdering a Korean cab driver a few winters ago. Kyle Motgin pled guilty to murder in the second degree which dropped several other charges. He was 21 years old when he stabbed Young Suk Chong to death on January 31, 2012.

Department, EPA Settle Over Outdated Wells

Alaska's transportation department has agreed to pay $332,000 for violations of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. The department also has agreed to close and sample 55 motor vehicle waste disposals well at state vehicle repair and maintenance facilities across Alaska by 2018 as part of the settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Download Audio

Anti-Pebble Initiative Clears Signature Hurdle

A group opposed to the proposed Pebble Mine has secured enough signatures to get their initiative on the ballot.

Officials Discuss Tribal Authority In Law Enforcement

An agreement to allow tribal courts to have more law enforcement jurisdiction in rural Alaska may be right around the corner. It was discussed extensively today on the public radio call-in show "Talk of Alaska," by Attorney General Michael Geraghty and the Chairman of a congressionally-mandated commission that just released a report calling on Alaska to do more to bring law enforcement to the bush. Download Audio

Storm Weakened Tree Knocks Out Power In Fairbanks

Another Fairbanks neighborhood lost power Tuesday morning after a tree fell on a transmission line. Electricity was restored in about 2 hours, but Golden Valley Electric spokeswoman Corrine Bradish says the tree is thought to have been weakened by last week’s wind storm, a problem she says that is expected to persist. Download Audio

Begich Proposing More Insurance Options For ACA

Senator Mark Begich is proposing a change to the Affordable Care Act that would make cheaper insurance options available. The Expanded Consumer Choice Act would add a new tier of coverage to the range of plans available on the individual market starting in 2015. Download Audio

Feds Pay Alaska $19 Million For Oil, Gas Development

The Department of Interior announced Tuesday it paid Alaska $19 million over the previous year for oil and gas development on federal land in the state. Download Audio

Without KTUU, GCI Deal, Subscribers Deal With Alternate Programming

GCI and KTUU-TV have been negotiating a new deal to broadcast the NBC affiliate to rural communities.  Without a deal, subscribers in those areas will have to settle for something else as talks continue. Download Audio

Report Says Inhalant Abuse Declining Across Alaska

A new report from the state shows a substantial decline in inhalant abuse across Alaska. But "huffing", as it's called, is still most prevalent among teens. Download Audio

Dinner Raises $20,000 For Typhoon Relief

Residents braved chilly weather on Saturday for a home-cooked Filipino dinner -- and a chance to support the local Fil-Am Association's typhoon relief efforts. Download Audio