For those following the issues facing our state, it’s no surprise that Alaska’s $2.7 billion budget deficit is the biggest issue. For the last five years, Alaska has had a budget deficit. Those deficits have caused the state to burn through at lea...

It has come to my attention in recent days that groups from outside our district and outside Alaska have started to send out negative ads against me. Judging from where this effort is coming from, I take it in stride. As your state representative, my...

Public radio is a lifeline for rural communities. It connects our community of islands here in Southeast, and our neighbors scattered across the far and wide villages of Northern Alaska. In many areas of Alaska public radio is the only means of...

As the fisheries industry continues to expand and Wrangell’s Marine Service Center’s services demand increases, I believe Wrangell’s economy has nowhere to go but up. However, to accommodate this growth, the state must maintain their services in Wr...

Congratulations to our 2016 Wrangell High School graduates. You truly deserve to be proud of your achievement. Alaska is an exciting location for ambitious graduates in the beginning chapters of their lives. It is the frontier of our country’s f...

Wouldn’t Alaskans experience violence if a gunman shot into their home? SB 91, a crime reform bill that ignores victims’ rights, says shooting into a home is ‘non-violent.’ Felonies will have reduced presumptive sentencing and jail time, and sometime...

Alaskans are the beneficiaries of the state’s investment. Our constitution requires the State of Alaska to manage our resources to the maximum benefit of the people. Government’s fiduciary duty to its citizens is to make prudent investments and est...

By Representative Dan Ortiz Is oil, or any commodity, really Alaska’s most valuable resource? I, for one, would say no. Our most valuable resource, the resource that most contributes to Alaska, is our people. If we were to make a ranking list of the...

I have the honor of serving as your representative in the Alaska State Legislature. The major issue facing our legislature this session is Alaska’s fiscal situation. I’m committed to the practice of a government of the people, by the people and for...

By Representative Dan Ortiz A daily goal of mine, as your House District 36 representative, is to create avenues for constituent communication. A belief in “government of the people, by the people, for the people,” from Lincoln’s Gettysburg Addre...

Our Alaska State Constitution requires the Alaska State Legislature to ensure our natural resources are managed for the maximum benefit of Alaskans. In the interest of managing our seafood resources, our state fishing institutions should reflect our...

To me, government by the people and for the people is more than just a theoretical concept. I believe this famous phrase from President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address must be put into practice for government to work. That’s why I’ve been going door...

I have previously written and spoken about how important the seafood industry is to Alaska’s economy, especially to those of us who live in Southeast Alaska. The industry accounted for 18% of all private sector resident earnings in Southeast A...

The Alaska State Legislature is in special session. We adjourned out of regular session on the evening of April 27 without fulfilling our constitutional duty as appropriators for the State of Alaska. In response, Governor Walker called the...

From the beginning of this legislative session, everyone knew the $3.5 billion budget deficit would be the driving force behind nearly all legislative considerations. With oil tax revenue making up over 90% of all state revenue, and oil prices...