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U.S. Sen. Mike Lee says he will revamp his controversial proposal to require the sales of vast acres of federal lands in the West so it can be included in Senate Republicans' sweeping tax and spending cut package. Lee will be seeking approval for his revised plan from the Senate parliamentarian, who will decide if the provision complies with the chamber's strict rules for the fast-track procedure Republicans are using to pass their bill. An earlier version of Lee's plan was dropped from the... Full story
The U.S. Forest Service will seek to repeal a rule that has effectively blocked the logging of almost a third of America's national forests, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins told a meeting of Western governors on Monday in New Mexico. The "Roadless Rule" has blocked the construction of new roads in wild areas of most states' national forests since 2001, when it was imposed in the closing days of President Bill Clinton's presidency. "In this administration, we are taking a look under the... Full story
The U.S. Senate voted unanimously on June 18 to resume the federal Secure Rural Schools program, which sent millions of dollars to small Alaska schools each year until Congress failed to reauthorize it in 2023. Congress passed the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act in 2000, which launched the program as a way to help logging towns cope with the loss of revenue caused by a slowdown in logging on nearby federal land. In 2023, it directed more than $250 million to... Full story
The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development has opened public comment on a proposal that would reduce municipal governments' ability to assist local public schools. The draft regulation, published Friday, would state that services - such as parking-lot plowing, or the use of public pools or libraries for school functions - would count toward the maximum limit of local aid that school districts may receive from the local government. The education department said it proposed the... Full story
A U.S. Senate committee has proposed selling more than 3 million acres of public lands in Alaska and several other Western states to support new housing development. The idea has alarmed conservation groups and others in Alaska who fear portions of, say, the Chugach or Tongass national forests, and other treasured areas would be auctioned off to developers. The proposed language in the budget reconciliation bill was released last week by the Republican leader of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah. The...
Visitors to the U.S. Forest Service Anan Wildlife Observatory are limited July 5 to Aug. 25, with 60 permits each day set aside for guided tours, while four other slots each day are designated for last-minute, independent visitors. "These permits are for people with their own means of transportation (without a hired service) and must be requested in person at the Wrangell Ranger District, up to one week in advance," the Forest Service reminded the public in an announcement on June 13....
The public advisory board for the Alaska Marine Highway System has recommended that the state call an end to the Matanuska's 53-year career in the fleet. The final decision whether to sell the unseaworthy ferry rests with the governor and his Department of Transportation commissioner. "There is currently no set timeline for action," said Sam Dapcevich, the department's spokesman. The 408-foot-long, 499-passenger ferry has been out of service since the fall of 2022, when it went into the...
Alaska is required by law to fund public education equitably across all school districts through its Base Student Allocation formula. Each student generates a set amount of state funding, with adjustments for factors like special needs, district size, and geographic isolation. The federal government also sends Alaska over $100 million annually in “impact aid” – money meant to compensate certain school districts for lost property tax revenue from federal and Alaska Native lands that cannot be ta...
The Alaska News Coalition, an all-volunteer group of newspaper publishers and supporters formed to address the economic challenges of news publishing, has launched a new website as a one-stop clearinghouse of public notices from across Alaska. The website has dual benefits: It will provide added value — at no charge — for government agencies and private individuals required to post public notices, while improving and expanding access to the notices for people wanting to learn about government meetings and actions. The site is now live at www...
Alaska’s public schools may see the largest permanent funding boost in well over a decade, after the Alaska Legislature voted for the first time since 2002 to override a sitting governor’s veto. With a 46-14 vote, lawmakers significantly increased Alaska’s per-student public funding formula, overriding Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s decision to reject House Bill 57. Forty votes were needed for an override. “This was a truly bipartisan vote reflective of everyone in Alaska,” said Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham. While the new law changes s... Full story
President Donald Trump’s budget proposal would cut funding by more than half for the Essential Air Service program, which has ensured daily jet service to Wrangell, Petersburg, Yakutat and Cordova for almost 50 years. The program covers 65 small communities in Alaska — which includes 11 in Southeast — and 112 communities in the Lower 48, Hawaii and Puerto Rico as of late last year. Congress created the Essential Air Service subsidy in 1978 to ensure a minimum level of service for communities that otherwise might receive no regularly scheduled f...
After losing more than $500,000 in federal funding, the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska has put on hold this year’s community food distribution of herring roe and salmon. The Southeast tribal nonprofit’s Traditional Foods Security Department had planned to use the money to continue the program, which over the past three years has distributed more than 52,000 pounds of herring roe on kelp, 120,000 pounds of salmon and 31,000 pounds of black cod to the tribe’s 21 recognized communities. Wrangell is among the commu...
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House panel in charge of overhauling Medicaid by cutting hundreds of billions in federal spending wrapped up debate on its bill Wednesday, following a 25-hour session. The Energy and Commerce Committee voted 30-24 along party lines to sign off on the legislation, sending it to the Budget panel, which is expected to bundle it together with the other 10 measures Friday to create Republicans’ “big, beautiful bill.” The full House is set to vote on that package next week, though GOP leaders need to make sure nearly all of...
Members of the Alaska Senate issued warnings Wednesday as they approved a draft operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Senators’ draft, which includes an estimated $1,000 Permanent Fund dividend for eligible Alaskans and a small year-over-year increase for K-12 education, also cuts services. The proposal would cut proposed funding increases for early education programs, reduce funding for state prisons, eliminate the state’s office of citizenship assistance, mostly defund the state militia, reduce road maintenance, and deny salary inc... Full story
The Alaska House of Representatives has approved a formal letter asking Congress to extend a series of Affordable Care Act tax credits that are set to expire at the end of the year. Unless the credits are extended, Alaskans insured through the federal health insurance marketplace — about 25,000 people — could see their rates rise by an average of 67%. The House passed House Joint Resolution 9 by a vote of 26-14 on Monday. It is scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Health and Social Services Committee on Tuesday. If approved by the Senate, the... Full story
Alaska’s public schools might get more money, after all. Nine days after Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed a significant increase to the state’s K-12 public school funding formula, the Alaska Senate has approved a compromise education bill that includes a smaller increase. The bill includes some — but not all — of the policy changes that Dunleavy said were necessary to prevent another veto. House Bill 57, originally drafted to restrict public school students’ cellphone use, was amended by the Senate before being approved on a bipartisan, 19-1 vote... Full story
Should public media be spared the budget cutting axe of President Donald Trump and the congressional allies of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE? I’m not going to directly answer that question myself, because I’m not an unbiased observer: I’ve worked for years as a reporter and contractor for Alaska Public Media, Anchorage’s public radio and television station. I also have close friendships and working relationships with many of the reporters across the state whose jobs could be at stake. I do, however, feel confident in saying... Full story
The Alaska Legislature has voted to uphold Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of a bill that would have significantly increased the funding formula for Alaska’s K-12 public schools. Dunleavy vetoed House Bill 69 last week, citing cost concerns and the lack of policy measures he endorsed. With the House and Senate meeting in joint session, the vote to override Dunleavy was 33-27, sustaining the veto. Forty of the Legislature’s 60 members were needed for an override. In its final version, HB 69 would have increased the state’s base student allocat... Full story
Southeast Alaska's golden king crab fishery reached an all-time high value of $5 million in 2025, marking an impressive recovery for a fishery that was struggling just a few years ago. The East Central management area, which includes waters around Petersburg, led the record-breaking season with a harvest value of $2.97 million, according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game data. The unprecedented value comes despite lower harvest volumes than last year. Fishermen landed 177,060 pounds from...
The federal government has revoked the visas of four international students at the University of Alaska Anchorage, without explanation or prior notice to students or the university, university officials said on Monday. “This week, we learned that the federal government has revoked visas for four individuals affiliated with UAA — one current student and three recent graduates in post-graduation training — without prior notice,” said UA President Pat Pitney in a university wide email on Monday. No students at the University of Alaska Fairban... Full story
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, is calling on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to allow Ukrainians with temporary protected status to remain in the country, following reports people had received an email that their status was revoked and they had seven days to leave the U.S. The agency has said the April 3 notice was issued by mistake, and the Ukrainians' designation under what's known as "humanitarian parole status" has not been terminated. They had been granted the status under the "Uniting for Ukraine" program. But Murkowski... Full story
A constitutional convention along with candid discussions of difficult federal and state issues that have surfaced in recent months are scheduled during the three-day 90th annual Tribal Assembly by the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska starting Wednesday. More than 120 delegates from 21 communities in Alaska, Washington and California are scheduled to gather at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall where they will also consider resolutions and elect some tribal positions. It will be the first constitutional convention by Tli...
A month after the Dunleavy administration put the Juneau Access Road back on the political map, the Alaska State Senate has clawed back $37 million in funds set aside in years past for the project as lawmakers try to scrap together enough funds to pass a balanced budget by next month. The Juneau Access funds are being redirected to the state Department of Transportation and Public Facilities as part of the annual capital budget unanimously passed Tuesday by the Senate. Nearly all of the $2.9 billion budget consists of federal funds for...
A Canadian environmental nonprofit group, long critical of the Red Chris Mine in the northern watershed of the Stikine River, has released a new report that cites increasing underground seepage of contaminants from the mine’s tailings pond. The report comes as British Columbia regulators are considering the mine operator’s application to expand ore recovery by changing to underground tunneling instead of open-pit surface mining. The gold and copper mine started operations in 2015 and sits about 50 miles east of the Stikine River community of...
Southeast Alaska fishermen discovered Tuesday that harvest limits for Chinook salmon in 2025 will be almost 40 percent less than last year’s. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced an overall allocation of 130,800 treaty Chinook salmon — fish that didn’t originate in Alaska hatcheries — for all gear groups targeting Chinook in waters off Southeast Alaska and Yakutat in 2025. In recent years, Southeast Alaska’s all-gear allocation has ranged between a high of 355,600 treaty kings in 2016 down to 130,000 in 2018, Fish and Game reco...
