Bethel’s Warm Temperatures Break Records
Bethel broke the record for highest-average temperature in 2014. It’s included in a broad swath of Western and Southwestern Alaska which have had above normal temperatures, according to the National Weather Service.
Walker Purges Gasline Board, Rejects Confidentiality Agreement
In a statement issued late Tuesday night, Walker announced that he was removing three members of a board tasked with representing Alaska's interests as the state pursues a natural gas megaproject in collaboration with the energy industry.
Alaska News Nightly: January 6, 2015
Alaska's New U.S. Senator Takes the Oath; Ousted Military Affairs Official Returns As Senate Media Strategist; Muñoz To Reintroduce Bill Adding Sexual Orientation To Anti-Discrimination Law; Aleut Enterprise To Pay Over $1 Million In Adak Fuel Spill Settlement; Pick. Click. Give. Donations Up, Number Of Donors Taper; Draft Juneau Economic Plan Released; Illegal Dumping On State Land Draws Prosecution, Fines; Alaska Centenarians In National Photo Project
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Ousted Military Affairs Official Returns As Senate Media Strategist
McHugh Pierre was asked in September to step down as deputy commissioner of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, as part of then-Gov. Sean Parnell's efforts to reform the Alaska National Guard. He has now been granted a contract to aid the Senate's Republican majority caucus in their communications with the press.
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Alaska’s New U.S. Senator Takes the Oath
U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan was sworn in today, in the U.S. Senate Chamber, by Vice President Joe Biden. Sullivan is celebrating the milestone in a series of receptions and dinners in Washington this week, attended by scores of Alaskan supporters and family members.
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Muñoz To Reintroduce Bill Adding Sexual Orientation To Anti-Discrimination Law
Rep. Cathy Muñoz (R- Juneau) will reintroduce a bill this legislative session to make discrimination based on sexual orientation illegal.
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Aleut Enterprise To Pay Over $1 Million In Adak Fuel Spill Settlement
Aleut Enterprise will pay more than $1 million to settle criminal charges and cover damages from a fuel spill on Adak.
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Pick. Click. Give. Donations Up, Number Of Donors Taper
Annual giving in the Pick. Click. Give. program has grown robustly since its 2009 launch, though the total number of donors appears to be tapering off.
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Draft Juneau Economic Plan Released
A draft economic plan for the City and Borough of Juneau identifies eight key initiatives to guide the capital city’s financial future over the next decade. Most of those initiatives and the specific goals discussed in the plan have been city priorities for years.
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Illegal Dumping On State Land Draws Prosecution, Fines
State Fish and Game officials are cracking down on illegal dumping on state game refuges. Recent incidents at Goose Bay State Game Refuge near Wasilla have resulted in at least one prosecution, and Alaska Wildlife Troopers are on the look-out for further arrests, and heavy fines, and possible jail time is in store for offenders.
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Alaska Centenarians In National Photo Project
A New York photographer wants to create portraits of a 100-year-old man and a 100-year-old woman from each of the 50 states. He’s calling the project “To Live 10,000 years,” and he recently checked a couple hundred of those years off his list during a trip to Ketchikan.
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MEA Eklutna Plant In Testing Phase
Yellow smoke emitted Monday by the new Matanuska Electric Association power plant in Eklutna is worrying some nearby residents.
Sitka Hospital Cuts Ties With Former CEO, Moves Toward Transition
Sitka Community Hospital has an interim CEO. The hospital board named Chief Nursing Officer Raine Clarke to the post at a special meeting on Monday. The term of Clarke’s service is not known at the moment. What is known, however, is that former CEO Jeff Comer will not be receiving anything more than his paycheck for his work through last Friday, as Sitka’s embattled hospital struggles to balance its books and find direction.
Troopers Investigate Aniak Infant Death
An infant was found dead Sunday morning in the village of Aniak, reportedly after sleeping on the couch with her mother.
Ousted Military Affairs Official Returns As Senate Media Strategist
McHugh Pierre was asked in September to step down as deputy commissioner of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, as part of then-Gov. Sean Parnell's efforts to reform the Alaska National Guard. He has now been granted a contract to aid the Senate's Republican majority caucus in their communications with the press.
Special Investigator Planned To Look Into National Guard Allegation
Attorney General Craig Richards is in the process of hiring a special investigator to look into the handling of sexual assault complaints within the Alaska National Guard.
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Sullivan Takes Oath Tomorrow, Rep. Young Misses First Week Due to Death of Brother
A new Congress begins tomorrow and former DNR Commissioner Dan Sullivan will be sworn in as Alaska’s eighth U.S. senator since statehood. Sullivan spokesman Mike Anderson says guests for the event include Sullivan's family, Gov. Bill Walker and several state legislators.
On the other side of the U.S. Capitol, the entire House of Representatives is to be sworn in tomorrow, but Alaska Congressman Don Young won’t be present, says spokesman Matt Shuckerow. His older brother died a few days ago and Young is in California with family members.
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Blindingly Bright ‘Moose Lights’ Worry Troopers – But They’re Legal, Unregulated
High-intensity headlights are popular and getting more so, especially here in Alaska during the long, dark winter months. They’re called “moose lights,” because they help drivers see farther down the road than conventional headlights to spot animals and other hazards. But Alaska State Troopers say moose lights can also create a hazard by temporarily blinding oncoming motorists in the other lane.
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State Closes Bethel DEC Office
There is no longer an Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation office in Bethel. State officials say they closed the office just before the holidays because of restructuring and budgetary issues.
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Post-Holiday Lull Means Less Public Attention For Homeless Needs
Quiet after the frenzy of the holidays is a welcome change for many Alaskans, but for those who live from paycheck to paycheck or are homeless, the quiet can mean less. Less public attention to donations of clothing, food and money during the coldest part of the year. In December, Lisa Aquino took the helm as executive director for Catholic Social Services, the organization that runs Brother Francis Shelter, Clare House and other assistance programs in Anchorage.
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