Visa-Free Travel to Russia Reinstated for Eligible Alaska Natives
The Bering Straits Regional Commission says travel restrictions for Alaska Natives to Chukotka have been lifted—leaving many with relatives on the Russian side of the strait feeling relieved, tired of being used as pawns in international disputes.
Missing pilot, passenger in Knik Arm plane crash ID’d
Alaska State Troopers have identified the missing pilot and passenger in the Knik Arm plane crash as 29-year-old Seth Fairbanks and 23-year-old Anthony Hooper, both of McGrath.
Newtok Tribal Governance Dispute Settled By Federal Panel
A federal appeals panel has sided with the new leaders in a tribal power dispute that has complicated efforts to relocate a badly eroded village in western Alaska.
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Budget Cuts Tighten Local Law Departments in Southeast
Fewer crimes in Petersburg could be prosecuted in the near future. At least that’s what the Petersburg Borough fears might happen with budget cuts to the regional D.A.’s office.
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Two Icebreakers, One Port, Two Very Different Missions
As Shell's Fennica icebreaker embarks for the Arctic, another icebreaker is likewise readying for a northern trip. The Coast Guard's Healy vessel is headed to the North Pole with a crew of scientists on board.
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Gov. Walker visits Haines to discuss lands into trust issues with Chilkoot Tribe
Alaska Governor Bill Walker visited Haines Thursday to talk with the Chilkoot Indian Association about lands into trust issues.
Choice Improvement Act helps close VA funding gap
A move by the Obama Administration has freed up money in Alaska to close a funding gap in healthcare for veterans.
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Coast Guard Boss: Ahoy! Icebreakers on Budget Horizon
The head of the U.S. Coast Guard says lawmakers and the national security staff are waking up to the need for more icebreakers as the Arctic opens to increased ship traffic.
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No More Kicking the Can Down the Road: Talkeetna Starts Recycling
Talkeetna’s Mat-Su Borough Transfer Site, often referred to by locals as “the dump,” is not the sort of place you would normally expect to find a celebration, but that’s exactly what happened on Monday when the community’s first recycling container was brought online.
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Tribes to get voice in state transboundary mine work
State government will formally involve tribal groups in its transboundary mining work. Alaska Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott made that commitment Wednesday while meeting in Juneau with Southeast Native leaders.
Gov. Walker Meets With Kuskokwim Tribes on Trust Lands
Governor Bill Walker was in Akiachak and Tuluskak Tuesday to discuss a lawsuit involving tribal lands into trust, according to officials in Akiachak. Walker’s office kept his first visit to southwest Alaska since his election low profile amid high interest in a case that could reshape jurisdiction on Alaska Native lands.
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University of Alaska-Fairbanks Cuts Means $200k Bite to Nome’s Northwest Campus
Deep cuts across the University of Alaska Fairbanks are spreading to satellite campus across the state, and Nome’s Northwest Campus is no exception.
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‘Expedited Partner Therapy’ Lowers YK Gonorrhea
There’s been a big decrease in the number of gonorrhea cases in Southwest Alaska over the past five years, according to the state Department of Health. It comes after local doctors tried a new strategy, called expedited partner therapy.
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Kodiak’s Alutiiq Museum Releases Book About Karluk Archaelogical Site
One Kodiak Island settlement has served as both a rich archaeological resource and fueled the Alutiiq heritage renaissance now underway in Kodiak. The Alutiiq Museum recently published a book called “Kal'unek” with the University of Alaska Press. The nearly 400-page volume focuses on archaeological discoveries near the community of Karluk and delves into the site’s lasting effects on those involved.
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U.S. Coast Guard celebrates 225th birthday
Today is the 225th birthday of the United States Coast Guard. And to celebrate that event, the new commanding officer of Air Station Kodiak, Captain Mark Morin, joined KMXT to talk about Coast Guard history and his experiences in Kodiak.
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Atchak Arraigned for Murder Charge in Death of Roxanne Smart
Twenty-year-old Samuel Atchak was arraigned in Bethel Superior Court Tuesday morning. He’s charged in the murder of Roxanne Smart last August. The arraignment follows an indictment by a grand jury. A public defender Tuesday entered not guilty pleas.
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Alaska Exempt From New Federal Clean Power Rules, For Now
The White House and the EPA today released the final version of its rule to cut carbon emissions from power plants. The administration's Clean Power Plan sets targets that states have to meet and requires them to submit plans detailing how they will acheive them. But Alaska will not have to comply with new mandates, at least not yet.
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Murkowski Votes to Move Planned Parenthood Defunding Bill
A bill to defund Planned Parenthood failed a procedural vote in the U.S. Senate today. Sen. Dan Sullivan is a co-sponsor. Sen. Lisa Murkowski voted to advance the defunding measure also, but she says she doesn’t want to see Planned Parenthood’s funding removed without an investigation.
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Draft petition calls for a third city in Ketchikan
Consolidation has failed in Ketchikan many times in the past. Now, a group of people in the Ketchikan Gateway Borough’s North End is trying something completely different: They want to create another city in the borough, which would add a fourth local government in a community of about 13,000 people.
Alaska power plants exempt from new greenhouse gas emission rules
Alaska will be exempt from new federal rules aimed at cutting greenhouse-gas emissions from power plants. Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she got word Monday in a phone call from EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy.