With Matson Acquisition Final, Horizon Lines No Longer Exists
The finalization of a deal to acquire Horizon Lines’ Alaska operations means the nation’s largest Jones Act shipping company no longer exists. But the Matson Navigation Company isn’t planning any major changes to shipping service in the state.
Groups sue agency to block Shell’s Arctic offshore drilling
Ten environmental groups are suing a federal agency over its approval of drilling permits off Alaska's northwest coast. The lawsuit seeks a review of permits granted to Royal Dutch Shell PLC by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for exploratory drilling in the Chukchi Sea.
Alaska Senators Vote to Reform Patriot Act
The U.S. Senate today voted to curtail the National Security Administration’s collection of bulk phone data. Sen. Lisa Murkowski was an early sponsor of the reform. Sen. Dan Sullivan says he became convinced the bill was a good revision to the controversial parts of the 2001 Patriot Act.
Download Audio:
Court employees assigned two days unpaid leave
About 800 Alaska Court System employees will be forced to take two days unpaid leave around the holidays — a result of state budget cuts.
Download Audio:
Walker Hires Mediator to Help Lawmakers Pass A Budget
Governor Bill Walker has hired a mediator to help lawmakers reach a deal on the budget.
Listen now:
Permanent Fund CEO Abruptly Retires
The Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation has announced the abrupt retirement of its chief executive officer Mike Burns.
Listen now:
Premera Alaska Files For Another Large Rate Increase
Premera Alaska is asking the federal government to approve an average rate increase of 39 percent for its Affordable Care Act health insurance plans in the state for 2016. That follows a 37 percent increase the federal government approved for 2015.
Listen now:
Rep. Young’s Fisheries Bill Passes House
A bill to reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act passed the U.S. House this evening, largely on party lines. Alaska Congressman Don Young says the bill makes practical revisions to continue a law that has restored the health of America’s fisheries. Opponents says it weakens environmental law.
Listen now:
North Pacific Council to Vote on Halibut Bycatch Limits
Of the 30 million pounds of halibut caught last year by commercial fishermen statewide, nearly a third was thrown back into the ocean, dead. It were netted accidentally by boats targeting other fish.
Now, that may change.
Listen now:
U.S. House Votes to Sell Midtown Lot to Muni
The House today voted to sell a 9-acre lot in Anchorage to the Municipality, at fair market value. The property at 40th and Denali Street, once intended for the National Archives, is one of the largest undeveloped lots in Midtown.
Listen now:
Cold Front Sweeps in From the North
June has ushered in a dramatic change in the weather as a cold front from the high arctic dips into Alaska.
1 hospitalized after mid-air crash over Talkeetna airport
On Sunday evening, an airborne collision between two airplanes hospitalized an Eagle River man. At 5:15 pm, the Alaska State Troopers responded to a report of the collision at the Talkeetna State Airport.
Wreckage of Yute Air Plane Found
Searchers have found the wreckage of the Yute Air plane that’s been missing since Saturday morning. A team Sunday evening spotted the Cessna 207 in the Kwethluk River, about 40 miles southeast of Bethel.
City of Bethel Settles For $175,000 Over Violent Arrest
The City of Bethel has settled with Wassillie Gregory, a man who was violently arrested by a Bethel Police Officer in 2014. Bill Ingaldson, an attorney hired by the City says the settlement was dispersed last week.
Haines wants to waive dock fees to lure more cruise ships. But will it work?
Haines has the lowest cruise ship docking fee of any Southeast port. The Haines Borough thinks waiving that fee could lure even more ships here. Economists say it’s hard to know if that strategy will work. But industry officials say it could open the door for more ships to take a look at Haines as a destination.
Supreme Court: DNR Wrongfully Issued Pebble Permits
Just a day after two federal lawsuits involving the Pebble mine were in the news, mine opponents Friday are hailing the Alaska Supreme Court’s decisions on two state cases. The justices unanimously overturned a 2011 ruling in a case that challenged whether the DNR permits issued for exploratory work at the Pebble site should’ve included some public notice.
Download Audio:
AIDEA Holds Off On F.N.G. Decision
The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority has delayed action on the state agency’s proposed purchase of Fairbanks Natural Gas parent company Pentex. The AIDEA Board announced the delay, following an executive session in Anchorage Wednesday, siting technical engineering issues related to the $54 million deal.
Listen now:
Earthquake rattles Southwest Alaska
There were no tsunami warnings, but last night’s 6.4 magnitude earthquake northeast of the Chigniks rattled residents all over Southwest Alaska. The quake happened at 11 pm sharp.
Listen now:
Bethel Police Ask For Help ID’ing Man in Video Related to Sunday Stabbing
Bethel Police are asking for the public’s help identifying and locating a person of interest in the homicide of Eunice Whitman. Whitman was found stabbed to death early Sunday morning along a boardwalk in a Bethel park.
EPA, Pebble Partnership present arguments over alleged FACA violations
The Environmental Protection Agency and Pebble Limited Partnership presented oral arguments Thursday over whether or not the EPA violated federal law, when it opted to restrict mine waste disposal in Bristol Bay.
Download Audio: