Home-rule borough covering Alaska's Arctic Coast from the Canadian border to the Chukchi Sea. Largest U.S. borough by area. Seat at Utqiagvik; economy built on oil and Inupiaq subsistence.
North Slope Borough, AK, USA

Speaker B
“Under the current terms, we're getting a lot closer to being kept whole, depending on the things we know and the things we don't know about the impacts of this project.”House Finance, 5/29/26, 1:30pm · May 29, 2026

Speaker B
“My $150 is we're willing to negotiate to a point where we cover our costs and it will be significantly shorter than the $8.5 mil structure.”House Finance, 5/29/26, 1:30pm · May 29, 2026

Speaker G
“it's our responsibility as elected officials and you guys specifically as representatives that we look out for the best interests of all of our communities and that the resources that we have to deliver, whether they're to market or to our residents, are equally shared by us all.”House Finance, 5/29/26, 1:30pm · May 29, 2026

Speaker G
“what the, the 2945 on the GTP would do, it would enable, um, uh, the buck stopping at the, uh, the producer, the state, and the North Slope Borough, um, at an administrative level. And I think that, that information sharing and understanding is important”House Finance, 5/29/26, 1:30pm · May 29, 2026

Speaker B
“I suggested the AVT. I am probably one of the few people in the state that has sat at every side of these tables, um, the industry side, the muni side, and the legislative side. And I like the fact that we share in the benefits when things are going well and share in some of the risk when they're not.”House Finance, 5/29/26, 1:30pm · May 29, 2026
North Slope Borough Assembly contract approval for water and sewer operations in seven villages

The Assembly authorized a five-year contract with Axon Enterprise to replace aging body cameras, in-car video, and Tasers across all borough communities. Officials said the upgrade aims to improve transparency and accountability.

North Slope Borough Assembly grant appropriations for wildlife research, housing repairs, homeless services, and public safety equipment

The state's preliminary decision would lease 715 acres near Deadhorse to STAK Energy for a 1-3 gigawatt natural gas facility. Written comments are due June 15.

HB 381 exempts covered Alaska LNG project property from municipal property taxes and replaces that structure with a phased volumetric tax whose revenue splits shift significantly once LNG exports begin, with the Kenai Peninsula Borough receiving 48.4 percent of base Phase 2 revenue. The tax changes take effect only if specified conditions are met.

Alaska DNR is reviewing a five-year land use permit for Fredrick Harbison's Iron Hills Guides to run commercial guiding on the Alatna River near Gates of the Arctic.

North Slope Borough Mayor Josiah Patkotak invoked the borough's founding to demand local input in federal, state, and industry decisions affecting the region.

Mayor Josiah Aullaqsruaq Patkotak's Founders' Day message on Thursday frames the borough's 1972 incorporation as an act of Iñupiat self-determination against oil development, a civic identity claim that lands while the borough's oil-dependent finances face scrutiny.

A proposed federal rule to simplify how oil, gas, and coal royalties are valued could cut payments to states, tribes, and Native mineral owners, amid findings of weak enforcement.

Alyeschem held groundbreaking May 15, 2026 for Alaska's first petrochemical manufacturing facility on the North Slope, backed by $70M AIDEA financing. Plant will convert stranded natural gas into methanol and ultra-low sulfur diesel, creating 150 construction jobs and eliminating 4,000 annual truck trips on Dalton Highway.

A person died Saturday following an officer-involved shooting in Utqiaġvik, with Alaska State Troopers now investigating the incident.

The Alaska Bureau of Investigation identified the man killed and the two officers involved in a May 23 officer-involved shooting in Utqiagvik following a domestic violence call.

Small craft advisories are in effect for Alaska's Arctic and Northwestern coastal waters through Friday, with 25-knot winds and seas to 7 feet, easing to near-calm by Sunday.

Saima Chase’s filing for House District 40 sets up a 2026 rematch with Rep. Robyn Niayuq Burke Frier in a district where geography may matter as much as party.

Winter Weather Advisory covers Central Brooks Range through Monday evening. Four to 8 inches of snow and blowing conditions are hitting Atigun Pass and the Dalton Highway corridor.

BLM opens bids June 5 on an ANWR Coastal Plain lease sale. After a canceled 2021 auction and a 2025 bust, industry interest is finally being tested again.

North Slope Borough and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game are asking bearded seal hunters to save jaws or heads from harvested seals to support a 2026 population study using genetic and age data.

The North Slope Borough Assembly approved more than $9 million in contract changes at its July 14, 2026 meeting, led by a $5 million increase to its area-wide water and sewer contract driven partly by a village-wide freeze-up in Point Lay ongoing since late December 2025.

A recent search-and-rescue call in Nuvuk revealed that having only one remotely operated underwater vehicle left the North Slope Borough's SAR team short-handed. The mayor told the assembly Tuesday he plans to request roughly $300,000 in supplemental funding for a second ROV, a parts package, and 3,500-watt generators for each community.

The North Slope Borough, Fairbanks North Star Borough, and City of Valdez filed a joint administrative appeal June 22 challenging state property tax assessments on Trans-Alaska Pipeline infrastructure. The dispute directly threatens school and service budgets in all three communities.
