News / State Of Alaska
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Legislative leaders say state cannot afford governor's dividend proposal
Leading Alaska legislators said there is little appetite for spending from savings to pay a super-sized Permanent Fund dividend this year, likely killing a proposal from Gov. Mike Dunleavy. In December, the governor proposed spending almost $2.3 bill... Full story
Legislators look for answers to help beleaguered seafood industry
Russian fish flooding global markets and other economic forces beyond the state’s border have created dire conditions for Alaska’s seafood industry. Now key state legislators are seeking to establish a task force to come up with responses to the... Full story
Researchers say high pink salmon numbers hurt sockeye returns
A new analysis of nearly 25,000 fish scales offers more evidence that the millions of pink salmon churned out by Alaska fish hatcheries could be harming wild sockeye salmon populations when they meet in the ocean, according to the scientists who... Full story
State Supreme Court says police need warrant for airborne zoom lenses
Alaska law enforcement officers now must obtain a warrant before using aircraft to scope the area around a person’s home with binoculars or cameras with zoom lenses, the state’s highest court ruled in a decision released March 8. The Alaska...
Juneau will loan school district $4.1 million to help cover deficit
A $9.7 million bailout package to ensure that the Juneau School District can cover a nearly $8 million deficit this year and help toward resolving a projected deficit of nearly $10 million next year was approved March 4 by the Juneau borough...
Legislature wants to direct more money to assist crime victims
Money in a state account that grew out of efforts to aid victims of violent crimes has been going predominantly to the Department of Corrections instead, to cover inmate health care. Meanwhile, the state’s victim services programs are scrambling fo... Full story
Minimum wage increase and anti-ranked-choice initiatives likely on November ballot
A pair of citizen-backed initiatives will likely appear on the general election ballot in November, including one seeking to repeal Alaska’s voting system, state election officials said Feb. 27. After a monthlong review, the state Division of...
Aleutian waters warmest in more than a century; cod most vulnerable
The waters off the Aleutian Islands registered the warmest winter temperatures last year in over a century, part of a decade-long period of warming, according to a report issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The record-high... Full story
Senate committee advances measure to reject governor's takeover of ferry advisory board
A state Senate committee has advanced a measure that would block an executive order giving the governor total appointment authority over the entire Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board. State statute currently provides that House and Senate...
Feds buy Alaska seafood for national food programs
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will purchase about 50 million pounds of Alaska seafood to use in national food and nutrition-assistance programs, state officials said on Feb. 20. The seafood purchase is to benefit needy children and adults and... Full story
Alaska Airlines flight attendants authorize strike, but nothing planned
Flight attendants with Alaska Airlines have voted to authorize a strike for the first time in more than 30 years. News of the vote emerged as more than 60 flight attendants protested for better pay outside the Ted Stevens Anchorage International...
Juneau plans consolidation into one high school to save money
Facing a multimillion-dollar budget hole, the Juneau school board has approved a plan to consolidate the district’s two high schools into one, close its two middle schools, close an elementary school and rearrange where sixth, seventh and eighth...
Volunteers smash purple sea urchins to save California kelp forests
CASPAR BEACH, Calif. - A welding hammer strapped to her wrist, Joy Hollenback slipped on blue fins and swam into the churning, chilly Pacific surf one fall morning to do her part to save Northern...
Alaska seafood shippers pay $9.5 million penalty for violating federal law
Two Alaska seafood shipping companies agreed to pay a $9.5 million penalty to the federal government for violations related to their use of a tiny rail track in Canada that the federal government said was an illegal attempt to avoid requirements of t...
Permanent Fund trustees support investing borrowed money
The leaders of the $77 billion Alaska Permanent Fund have voted unanimously to adopt a strategic plan that calls for borrowing up to $4 billion in order to increase the amount of money available for investments, looking to earn more on the investment... Full story
State almost clear of backlogged food stamp applications
As of last week, the backlog of Alaskans waiting for the state to process their food stamp applications was down to just over 500 — a big improvement over the 14,000 unresolved applications of a year ago. The state’s Division of Public Assistance... Full story
Legislature starts process to reject governor's change to ferry advisory panel
The Alaska Senate has taken the first formal steps needed to reject some or all of the 12 executive orders Gov. Mike Dunleavy issued at the start of this year’s legislative session, including the order that would take away the Legislature’s... Full story
NOAA reports 45 killer whales caught up in fishing gear since 1991
Over the past three decades, 35 killer whales were entangled in fishing gear in Alaska, resulting in 25 deaths, according to a report issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The report from NOAA Fisheries covers documented case... Full story
Boss of proposed gas pipeline project is highest-paid state executive
The head of the state corporation in charge of a long-dreamed Alaska North Slope natural gas pipeline is once again Alaska’s top-paid public executive. Frank Richards, president of the Alaska Gasline Development Corp., received $479,588 in... Full story
Klukwan church given to tribe after century of Presbyterian ownership
The church, originally known as the Klukwan Presbyterian, has been holding regular Sunday services for nearly a century. But one thing about the church has changed: its owner. More than a year ago, a...
Haines loses appeal of census count that showed 17% population drop
The U.S. Census Bureau has rejected Haines’ appeal of the agency’s 2020 count, which showed the Southeast Alaska community’s population dropping by 17%, or 428 residents. “I’m deeply disappointed. I really thought that our response was...
State offers grants for locally grown food efforts
The state is offering an additional $2.2 million in small grants this year for individuals and groups around Alaska to increase the quantity and quality of locally grown food. The grants of up to $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for organizations...
Head of troopers says state lacking in rural communities
Alaska Department of Public Safety Commissioner James Cockrell told lawmakers on Feb. 6 that he doesn’t know how the state can justify the relative lack of resources it has provided to rural Alaska. “Since statehood, the state has followed a... Full story
It'll be hard for state to resume ferry service to Prince Rupert
Numerous challenges are stopping the resumption of Alaska Marine Highway service to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, the ferry system’s director said at a conference of Southeast officials last week. During a Southeast Conference transportation...
School funding supporters continue work in state Capitol
Supporters of education funding crowded a legislative committee room on Feb. 5, advocating for a permanent increase in the state funding formula for public schools. Though the advocates were unified in their message to a joint meeting of House and Se... Full story