(195) stories found containing 'sales tax'
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 195
Legislature looks at size of PFDs and new revenues
The state is not going to fill its billion-dollar fiscal pothole with additional deep budget cuts, said two veteran legislative finance committee members. The hole is too deep, and years of cuts to...
Legislature will consider boost to 1970 motor fuel tax rate
Alaska's motor fuel tax rate is the lowest in the nation; less than one-third the average of the other 49 states. The 8-cent-a-gallon tax has not budged since 1970. Lawmakers again this year will...
City general fund projected to end year in surplus
Thanks to the use of federal CARES Act funds to offset wages, and not as bleak a year as had been expected for sales tax revenue, the city general fund is projected to close out Fiscal Year 2021 in th...
Legislators will want a say in spending additional federal pandemic aid
More than $6.5 billion in federal funding for pandemic relief has already been authorized for individuals, communities, school districts, businesses, health-safety programs, government agencies, the...
Legislators more willing to talk about taxes this year
Maybe Alaskans just needed more time to get used to the idea of paying taxes, or maybe the risk of losing their Permanent Fund dividend woke them up to the state's dire fiscal situation. Whatever the...
Editorial: No, it's not fair
It wasn't supposed to happen. This summer was expected to be better for Wrangell, for the rest of Southeast and for the entire state of Alaska. It was supposed to be the summer of recovery, or at...
Governor wants summer advisory vote on PFD
Gov. Mike Dunleavy is asking legislators for $2 million in state funds to hold a special election this summer, to ask voters their opinion of a Permanent Fund dividend that would average $2,400 a...
Governor needs a plan, not a poker face
The governor had a chance to talk honestly about taxes when he announced his 10-year budget plan last month. He had a second chance Jan. 28 with his State of the State speech. Sadly, he failed both...
City sees more revenue from tax on online sales
Online sales tax revenues brought in more than $90,000 in nine months last year, with receipts continuing to rise, according to Wrangell Borough officials. While the municipality is struggling with...
CARES Act aid totals $8 million for businesses, nonprofits in town
Wrangell businesses and nonprofits received more than $8 million in federal and state CARES Act funds last year. "It absolutely made a difference, but it still wasn't enough," said Carol Rushmore,...
City adopts monthly drawing for electric bill rebate
The borough will randomly select one resident each month for a one-month rebate of their residential electricity costs. The new program is called "2021: Wrangell's Year of Hope." "We know this is...
Editorial: Alaska needs to do better for ferry system
Predictability and dependability. More than anything else, that's what the communities served by the Alaska Marine Highway System need. The communities need to know the schedules further in advance...
Borough Assembly reviews revenues in workshop
Wrangell Borough Assembly held a workshop last Tuesday, Dec. 8 to review the city's current financial status. That evening's presentation, according to Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen, was primarily...
COVID-19 daily update:
December 17 Jamie Roberts, with the Wrangell EOC, reported that there are currently no active cases of COVID-19 in the community. Statewide, Alaska’s case count is 41,859 as of yesterday. This is... Full story
Letters to the Editor
To the Editor: I am extremely concerned that the State has decided to cut ferry service over the winter months to the community of Wrangell. The Alaska Marine Highway has determined that Ketchikan...
Letter to the Editor
To the Editor: As the marine highway workgroup strides into August, I want to provide an update on what we have been doing, and where we are heading. Our meetings have been streamed live on Facebook,...
Letter to the Editor
To the Editor: I feel compelled to share information so we can all realize what our town will be faced with this year in economic loss. This information should have been put out long ago so our...
Guest Commentary: Protecting the Permanent Fund
At a time when the fiscal future of many states looks uncertain, Alaska made the smart choice to protect the state's future income for our children and grandchildren. On June 30, $4.9 billion was tran... Full story
Fish Factor: Seafood is Alaska's top export, source of state's largest manufacturing base
Most Alaskans are surprised to learn that seafood is by far Alaska’s top export, the source of the state’s largest manufacturing base and its #1 private employer. More surprising is that those simple to find facts are not included in the...
Parks and Rec Board review budget, discuss tentative summer programming
The Wrangell Parks and Recreation Advisory Board met Monday, June 29. During the meeting, the board reviewed the department's new budget for FY 2021, and also took a look at some tentative plans for...
Fish Factor: Controversial selections to state Board of Fisheries to get legislative hearing in early fall; public comments being accepted
Governor Dunleavy’s controversial selections to the state Board of Fisheries (BOF) will get a legislative hearing in early fall and the call is out for public comments. The board oversees management of the state’s subsistence, commercial, sport a...
Assembly adopts budget for FY 2021
After multiple workshops, rewrites, and edits, the borough assembly met Tuesday evening to finally adopt a budget for FY 2021. This budget, overall, barely breaks even between revenues and expenses. H...
Assembly gives direction on general fund deficit
In one of their final budget workshops for FY 2021, the borough assembly gave guidance to city administration to do as much as they can to close Wrangell's general fund deficit. According to the...
EDC workshops local assistance applications
Wrangell's Economic Development Committee met Monday, June 15, to workshop various grant programs to assist Wrangell businesses. The EDC has put together three local grants that businesses could apply...
Economic Development Committee workshops financial assistance ideas
The Wrangell Economic Development Committee met Tuesday afternoon, May 19, to workshop several financial assistance ideas they will be bringing before the borough assembly in the near future. With the...