Legislators To Submit Receipts For Office Expenses
For the past year, legislators have been required to treat their office accounts as income. They got a lump sum from the state, and were expected to spend that money on stationery and mailers under the honor system. Now, they're moving back to a policy where they have to submit receipts for those expenditures.
Riley Plaintiffs, Dems Rule Out Redistricting Appeal
The legal fight over Alaska’s redistricting plan may be nearing an end. Jason Gazewood, an attorney for Fairbanks-area plaintiffs George Riley and Ronald Dearborn, says they do not plan to appeal a decision approving the latest map.
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McGrath Skeletons Found To Be 1,000 Years Old
A construction project in McGrath last year uncovered three skeletons. Authorities opened a missing persons case, but it turns out these remains have been “missing” for much longer than anyone expected. Radiocarbon dating shows the bones could be a thousand years old. Scientist have spent the last year analyzing DNA and isotopes to find out more about who the individuals were, what they ate and whether they are related to people living in the McGrath area today.
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Troopers Arrest Idaho Fugitive in Willow
On Sunday, Talkeetna Wildlife Troopers arrested a man wanted in Idaho after conducting a traffic stop in Willow. The driver, Dustin Simpson, is wanted for probation violation.
Prototype Home Could Serve as Model for Future Housing
Two new prototype homes in Atmautluak don’t look like experiments. They’re rectangular with a slanted red roof. But how they were built: very quickly and with limited equipment, could serve as a model for other homes in remote communities.
Sealaska CEO Lobbies Obama on Subsistance, 8(a) Contracts
Chris McNeil Jr. is president and chief executive officer for Sealaska, the regional Native corporation for Southeast. He and 11 tribal leaders from around the country met with the president to talk about creating jobs and sustainable economic development.
Stebbins Resident Weather Western Alaska Storms
While the communities of Kotlik and Unalakleet have received attention from state-wide media and government following a large storm a week and a half ago, residents in Stebbins feel they have been ignored. During the storm, rushing water surged through homes and roads in Stebbins. Drying racks, smoke-houses, boats, steam houses, and several homes were damaged or destroyed. Flood waters poured in so rapidly that many residents were stranded in their homes until they could be rescued by a bulldozer.
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Tlingit Code Talkers Receive Recognition
Navajo code talkers were recognized more than a decade ago for their service in World War II. They used their Native language as a code that the enemy was never able to crack, but until recently, no one knew that Tlingits from Southeast Alaska also served as code talkers.
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ConocoPhillips Adding New Drill Rig To Kuparak Oil Field
ConocoPhillips announced Wednesday that they are adding another new drill rig to the Kuparak oil field on the North Slope. This is the second rig they’ve added this year since the new oil tax bill was signed into law. The drill rig they installed in May is producing 1,600 barrels of oil per day.
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Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission Revises Hydro Fracking Regs
The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission has revised their proposed hydraulic fracking regulations again. Some of the new rules aimed to give the public more information about the chemicals used in the controversial oil and gas extraction method. However in the latest version, companies are allowed to withhold some information from the public in order to protect their trade secrets.
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Alaska’s Insurance Director Resigns
The state's insurance director is resigning. Bret Kolb is leaving to become development director at Victory Ministries of Alaska, a bible camp and conference center based in Palmer. He has been on the job at the Division of Insurance for 18 months, during a time of incredible upheaval in the health insurance industry, with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
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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.
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.
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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.
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Worl Says Shamanism Still Influential in Tlingit Culture
The Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska no longer practice shamanism, but elements of it still exist in their culture today.
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Ketchikan Official Proposes Selling Dam
Ketchikan City Manager Karl Amylon wants to sell the Whitman Lake hydroelectric dam project to the Southeast Alaska Power Agency.
One Killed In Chugiak Cabin Fire
A fire in a Chugiak cabin has claimed the life of woman who was able to get out of the building but ran back into it. A man was injured and hospitalized.
Four Charged In September Beating Of Anchorage Teen
Criminal assault charges were announced Monday against four young Anchorage men, two of whom are still being sought, in the near-fatal beating of James Clinton, 18, who was apparently left to die in a vacant building owned by Covenant House back in September.
LNG Pipeline Plan Suggests State Ownership Stake
The Department of Natural Resources has released a roadmap for getting a natural gas pipeline built, and it involves taking on a multi-billion-dollar ownership stake in the project.
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