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Wednesday, Aug 26
Coast Guard cutter Stratton changes command at anchor off Kotzebue
A change of command aboard the cutter Stratton took place at anchor off Kotzebue. The Coast Guard keeps no permanent presence north of the Bering Strait.

A crash closed a lane of the Seward Highway on Wednesday afternoon
A crash closed a southbound lane of the Seward Highway at Mile 24.5 on Wednesday afternoon. Law enforcement directed traffic, and no injuries were reported.

Sitka will test its ballot machines in public before the October election
Sitka residents can watch the ballot-counting machines get tested Sept. 3. The city's pages don't say whether its equipment matches the state's.

Anchorage permits more housing than last year, but from a near-record low
Anchorage permitted more housing this year than in 2024 or 2025, the mayor says — but those were near-record lows, still far below its 1,000-a-year target.

An eclipsed Moon rises over Alaska Wednesday, with aurora possible after
Alaska gets a deep partial lunar eclipse Wednesday night plus a chance at aurora, on the first dark nights of the season. Best viewing 9:30 to 10 pm.

Ketchikan voters decide who owns the library and who pays for it
Ketchikan voters decide Oct. 6 whether the borough takes over the public library and whether people outside city limits pay twice as much for it.

Anchorage Assembly set to waive protest of Serrano's liquor license renewal
Serrano's Mexican Grill on East Tudor Road is set to renew its liquor license with no objections, as the Anchorage Assembly waives its right to protest.

Ninth Circuit upholds federal Cook Inlet salmon management against drift fleet challenge
Cook Inlet drift fishermen lost again in federal court. The fight over who actually gets the fish moves back to the Alaska Board of Fisheries.

More from Alaska
Reported crime in Alaska rose 7.2% in 2025, driven by Anchorage increases
Reported crime in Alaska rose 7.2 percent in 2025, driven by a 14.6 percent jump in Anchorage offenses while state troopers reported 5.9 percent fewer crimes.

Montana man charged with 37 counts in Bethel hunting residency case
A Montana man faces 37 criminal counts in Bethel for claiming Alaska residency to hunt while living out of state, a violation that affects license costs and permit eligibility.

Heads up, Sitka flyers: the airport's pre-security restrooms close for six weeks in September
Sitka's airport closes its pre-security restrooms for about six weeks starting in September for a remodel — part of a $40M terminal expansion. Temporary restrooms will sit outside in the loading zone.

Nonresidents can't keep yelloweye around Prince of Wales anymore
Nonresidents can't keep yelloweye or other demersal shelf rockfish around Prince of Wales as of Wednesday. Alaska residents still get one a day.

YMCA child weight program starts Sept. 8; a parent must attend all 25 sessions
An Anchorage YMCA program requires a parent at all 25 sessions, and the last half hour each night is the children teaching back what they learned.

Nikiski inventor patents heated tailgate to keep drill slurry from freezing
A Nikiski oilfield-services president earned a patent for a heated tank door that keeps drilling waste from freezing before crews can dump it.

Alaska electricity prices eased in June, but not for households
Alaska's overall electricity price dropped in June, but the savings went almost entirely to industry while residential bills stayed flat and are still higher than last year.

Petersburg-area gillnetters get one more day before the fishery closes
Drift gillnet fishermen near Petersburg get one more day before Districts 6 and 8 close Thursday — the second short extension this month for the fishery.

Coming up
Interior Department and Marine Minerals Administration Regional Tribal Meeting
Alaska
Meeting
Alaska LNG ROW Lease Conversion Public Hearing (Virtual)
Hearing
2027 Statewide Summer Reading Program Registration Deadline
Public notice
GMU 2 Wolf Trapping Season Opens
Public notice
Alaska Mental Health Trust Land Office Sealed Bid Deadline
Public notice
About Alaska
Alaska is a United States state spanning Arctic, subarctic and coastal regions. Its communities range from Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau to Kodiak, the North Slope and villages such as McGrath and Adak that sit off the road system.
The Legislature, the governor's office and state agencies set policy on oil and gas, fisheries, transportation and public lands, and state boards such as the Board of Fisheries and the AIDEA board decide on catch rules, loans and investments. Cities and boroughs keep their own budgets, taxes, liquor licenses and planning decisions.
Questions that recur across the state include local budgets and tax rates, fishery catch limits, air service and ports for remote communities, and decisions on state land. Federal agencies and courts also shape life in Alaska, from air service contracts for rural towns to the certification of statewide election results.
More from Alaska
With monitoring down, the state is using a commercial opening to gauge coho
Norton Sound gillnetters get one 24-hour coho opening this weekend. With monitoring projects mostly down, the state is using it to gauge abundance.

The Fortymile road hunt lasted 48 hours, exactly as predicted
The road-accessible Fortymile caribou hunt opened Aug. 20 and closed 48 hours later, exactly as the state biologist predicted before it began.

Many Alaska districts can reuse last year's foster care agreement for federal funds
Alaska school districts must upload a signed foster care transportation agreement with the Office of Children's Services to complete their federal education funding application.

The Legislature will spend $675,000 to renovate its own Capitol parking garage
The Alaska Legislature is spending $675,000 to renovate its own parking garage at the Capitol — though the winning bid came in under the engineer's estimate.

Koniag takes board candidates to nine communities before proxy voting closes
Koniag will take board candidates to nine communities in September, six on Kodiak Island and three outside the region. Proxy voting closes Sept. 30.

A little Unalaska park keeps its tax break one last time before the lease runs out
A small community park in Unalaska keeps its property tax exemption one last time before the city's lease runs out, joining the tax rolls in 2027.

Tuesday, Aug 25
The lone applicant for a Kenai Peninsula Assembly seat could be seated Sept. 1
Nathan Berga is the only applicant for Kenai Peninsula Borough's vacant District 7 seat and could be appointed Tuesday, Sept. 1, restoring the assembly to nine members.

Kenai could put school board term limits to voters under a new state law
Kenai Peninsula Borough voters will decide on school board term limits at a Sept. 1 public hearing, after state law changed to allow municipalities to propose them.

A gale warning hits Bristol Bay and Aleutian waters Wednesday, with a second storm right behind
A gale warning hits Bristol Bay and Aleutian waters Wednesday, with winds topping 34 knots and seas to 11 feet, and a second storm is right behind it.

A placer mine near Ruby would work 35 acres of creek for a decade
A placer gold mine near Ruby would work about 35 acres of creek bottom for a decade. Comment on the water quality certification closes Sept. 24.

FAA awards $79,899 to Palmer-based Port Graham Development Corporation for Cleveland radar power work
A company owned by the tiny Alutiiq village of Port Graham won a federal contract to keep an air-traffic radar's backup power running in Cleveland, Ohio.

Yakutat scallop fishery closes as harvest reaches 145,000-pound cap
Yakutat's commercial scallop fishery closes Wednesday as the fleet hits its 145,000-pound limit — a small statewide fishery worked by just two boats.

Juvenile charged with attempted murder after Klawock standoff
A juvenile fired a rifle at a Klawock police officer Monday night and kept shooting from inside a home before surrendering to troopers. He was charged with attempted murder.

Troopers arrest Tok man accused of harassing firefighters on ATV
Alaska State Troopers arrested a 69-year-old Tok man accused of harassing firefighters on an ATV near the Mukluk Fire, charging him with DUI, reckless driving, and disorderly conduct.

Fog cut visibility to a quarter mile at Gustavus, and it is coming back
Fog dropped visibility around Gustavus and Glacier Bay to a quarter mile or less Tuesday morning. More is expected between 10 pm and 4 am tonight.

Juneau donors are giving the Legislature 16 more apartments for lawmakers
Juneau donors are giving the Alaska Legislature 16 more apartments for lawmakers to live in during session, in a capital where housing is scarce and costly.

Three lawmakers get paid for late travel claims, and one filed most of them
Three lawmakers will be repaid about $5,970 for late travel claims. One accounts for $4,990 of it, and colleagues' questions drew trip-specific answers.

Comments on the $400 million Bradley Lake expansion close Friday
Federal comment on the Bradley Lake expansion closes Friday. The price has been stated three ways since spring, and Railbelt ratepayers carry the debt.

The Coast Guard is giving Homer a building that needs a new roof
The Coast Guard is handing Homer a building assessed at $635,400 that needs a new roof, flooring, paint and electrical work nobody has priced.

Former Rep. Carl Morgan, mayor of Aniak and Kuskokwim Native leader, has died
Former state Rep. Carl Morgan of Aniak, who served in the House from 1999 to 2004 and led communities along the Kuskokwim River, has died. Gov. Dunleavy will order flags lowered statewide.

The Alaska Legislature weighs new rules on animals in the Capitol
The Alaska Legislature is weighing new rules on animals in its buildings, banning most pets but keeping ADA protections for service dogs.

East Cook Inlet clam beaches stay closed; the west side is the option
The razor clam beaches Alaskans could drive to are still closed. What's left this season is across Cook Inlet, reachable only by boat or plane.

Anchorage moves to clarify its wetlands permitting, though some say it doesn't go far enough
Anchorage is moving to clarify how property owners navigate wetlands permitting after the feds stopped issuing blanket permits, though some say gaps remain.

Fish and Game teams up with Arctic Entries for a night of wildlife storytelling
Alaska Fish and Game is teaming up with Arctic Entries for a night of true wildlife stories in Palmer. Alaskans have until Sept. 7 to submit or nominate.
