As Legislature Passes Gasline Bill, Feud With Governor Continues
The Alaska Legislature has passed a bill meant to keep Gov. Bill Walker from spending money on an alternate gasline proposal. The action is part of an ongoing power struggle between Republican leadership and the governor over the state’s most high-profile megaproject.
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Kuskokwim Working Group Asks For Limited Setnet Openers
A few months before the king salmon begin to enter the river, the Kuskokwim River Salmon Management Working Group met to set recommendations for an early season of conservation.
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Anchorage Democrats Offer ‘Emergency Fix’ For Alaska’s Oil Tax System
With just three weeks left in the legislative session, a pair of Anchorage Democrats are offering what they describe as an “emergency fix” to Alaska’s oil tax system.
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Senate Passes Pot Bill, Without Concentrate Ban
When Alaskans voted to regulate marijuana, a discrepancy was created where possession of small amounts of the drug was legal and where possession of larger amounts meant higher level felonies. The Alaska Senate has passed a bill to bridge the gap. And in the process, they rejected a controversial effort to preemptively ban marijuana concentrates.
Alaska Senate Delays Vote On Pot Legislation
The Alaska Senate has delayed a vote on its signature marijuana bill after saying they need more time to consider an amendment that would largely ban concentrates.
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Alaskans Testify On Governor’s Medicaid Expansion Bill
Lawmakers took public testimony for the first time Thursday on Governor Bill Walker's bill to expand Medicaid. The public spoke during the last 30 minutes of the House Health and Social Services committee's hearing on HB 148.
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Legislative Analyst Offers Gloomy Budget Outlook
Manipulating an Excel spreadsheet with dozens of inputs, Legislative Finance Director David Teal showed what would happen if the state cut formula programs, added a variety of taxes, and shrunk its agencies. None of the actions taken on their own made any difference. At projected oil prices, the state still does not close its multi-billion-dollar deficit.
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Lawmakers Seek Answers On Rape Kit Backlog
Alaska has the highest rate of sexual assault in the country, but it has no mechanism for tracking untested rape kits. Now, legislators are considering an audit to find out just how big the backlog is.
In Continuing Fight, Public Broadcasting Funding Axed
Earlier this month, public broadcasting survived an effort in the House to slash its state funding by half. Now, a subcommittee in the Senate has axed the appropriation entirely.
Choose Respect Rally Marches Through Juneau
Gov. Bill Walker led about 100 people in a Choose Respect rally and march through Juneau on Thursday. The statewide initiative to raise awareness about Alaska’s high rates of domestic violence and sexual assault started six years ago, and grew in prominence after being embraced by former Gov. Sean Parnell.
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Fairbanks School Board OKs Budget That Cuts 60 Jobs; Member May Seek Salary Freeze
The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District Governing Board passed a budget Wednesday that would cut about 60 full-time positions and trim many programs. One board member who voted against the measure says the cuts go too far, and she says she'll push for a salary freeze to reduce the impact of the cuts.
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Nevada Man Dies At Logging Site Near Wrangell
A Nevada man was found dead this week at a logging site 12 miles west of Wrangell. Alaska State Troopers were notified around 5 p.m. Tuesday that David Fussell, age 55, died on Zarembo Island.
Entrepreneur Pitches “Fish Franks” As Key to Recovery in St. George
The Aleutian Marketplace contest was designed to gather ideas and provide funding for new start-up businesses around the Bering Sea. As the competition heads into its second round, one winner is asking for extra support -- and a chance to turn his recipe for success into the real thing.
Alaska Senate Votes To Sunset School Bond Payment Program
The Alaska Senate has passed a bill that would stop state reimbursement of new school bonds, including ones that are currently being considered in Anchorage.
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Senate Bill Keeps Marijuana As A Controlled Substance
When the Alaska Senate votes on its primary marijuana bill later this week, the version they will consider treats marijuana as a controlled substance.
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Alaska Joins Investigation Into Premera Cyber Attack
Alaska is participating in an multi-state investigation into Premera following a cyber attack on the health insurer early this year. The state's insurance director says she has a lot of questions about why the attack occurred and why it took the company two months to announce it publicly.
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Report: Ship Trouble in the Arctic on the Rise
A new report says that as Artic ship traffic has increased, so has the number of Arctic ship mishaps. The annual Shipping and Safety Review by Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty, counts 55 ship casualties in the waters of the Arctic Circle last year, up from three a decade ago.
26th Anniversary of Exxon Spill Prompts anti-Shell Protest at White House
It’s the 26th anniversary of America’s second largest oil spill, when an Exxon tanker leaving Valdez Arm ran aground, leaking 11 million gallons of North Slope Crude into Prince William Sound. In Washington D.C., environmental activists marked the occasion with a demonstration in front of the White House. Their message was less about Exxon and tanker safety than it was about Shell and its plans to drill in the Chukchi Sea.
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Bill to seize federal land in Alaska nears vote on state house floor
A bill with the goal of seizing federal land is now one step away from a vote on the House floor.
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House passes bill to constrain Walker’s gasline plan
The Alaska House has fired its latest salvo at Gov. Bill Walker in an ongoing dispute over a gasline. The body passed a bill to keep him from pursuing an alternative to the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas project on Monday, ignoring a veto threat from the governor.
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