State of Alaska

Copper River commercial salmon season closes Oct. 13 after weak sockeye and strong coho runs

Copper River's commercial salmon season ends Oct. 13. Sockeye came in at a third of forecast, kings hit an eight-year low, and coho decided to make up for it.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Follows: Copper River dipnet and subsistence fishing runs through Sept. 30

Togiak man, 19, dies after ATV hits shipping container

Tyler Lee Maines, 19, of Togiak died early Friday when the ATV he was driving hit a shipping container, troopers said. The investigation is continuing.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

State puts $4.2 million toward housing for teachers and other professionals in rural Alaska

Rural Alaska keeps losing teachers to a lack of decent housing. The state has $4.2 million to build more, for communities that signed up by August.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Board of Fisheries committee weighs how to let the public weigh in on last-minute rewrites

ishermen say the fish board rewrites proposals after they've testified. A committee chewed on it Friday and changed nothing yet. Round two comes in October.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Summit on Aging attendees can book one-on-one time with state health leaders

Going to next month's Summit on Aging? You can book 15 minutes with state health leaders. Alaskans 65 and older get in free, but everyone has to register.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

State extends Unit 9B resident moose season to Sept. 30 after bad weather limited hunting

Wind, rain and high water kept Iliamna-area moose hunters off the water. The state is adding five days, so the Unit 9B hunt now runs through Sept. 30.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Comments due Oct. 23 on Alaska's 2027 Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula oil and gas lease sales

Want the right to challenge the state's next Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula oil and gas lease sales? Comment by Oct. 23, or forever hold your appeal.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

10-year-old boy reported missing in Big Lake is found safe, troopers say

A 10-year-old boy reported missing in the Big Lake area Friday has been found safe, Alaska State Troopers said, thanking the public for its help.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Alaska lists 5.7 million acres of land selections it could give back to federal ownership

Alaska may hand about 5.7 million acres of state land selections back to the federal government, where rural residents would get a subsistence priority.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Fish and Game proposes flagging struggling salmon runs a year earlier so the public can weigh in

Alaskans often get the state's plan for a struggling salmon run too late to weigh in. Fish and Game wants to flag troubled runs a year earlier instead.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Board of Game proposals would cut Western Arctic caribou limits further as the herd declines

The Western Arctic Caribou Herd is down to about 121,000. Proposals to cut harvest further go before the Board of Game in Kotzebue, and comments are due Jan. 9.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

NOAA weighs 77 Gulf of Alaska sites for future kelp and shellfish farms

Seventy-seven spots along the Gulf of Alaska coast could someday grow kelp and oysters. NOAA is still studying them, and no farm is approved yet.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Mat-Su Regional gets $5 million in federal rural health money for a neonatal intensive care unit

Mat-Su Regional Medical Center gets $5 million in federal rural health money for a neonatal intensive care unit meant to keep more newborns out of Anchorage.

by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago2 min read

Follows: Alaska rural health notices pass $239 million with $30 million round

FDA to pay Alaska $540,768 for state food safety inspections

The FDA will pay Alaska's food inspectors $540,768 for another year of checking restaurants and fish plants, the same week Murkowski asked it to keep doing so.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Troopers arrest Fairbanks woman on felony DUI charge after Parks Highway sign crash

Another driver called it in, a highway sign took the hit and troopers caught up a mile later. The Fairbanks driver now faces a felony DUI charge.

by Alaska News1mo ago1 min read

Alaska asks court to approve its share of $2.3 million Labcorp data breach settlement

Labcorp will pay 44 attorneys general $2.3 million over its debt collector's 2019 data breach. Alaska's lawyers asked a judge to sign off on the state's cut.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska household electricity prices rose 5.6 percent from a year earlier in July, federal data show

Alaska households paid 28.83 cents per kilowatt-hour in July, up 5.6 percent from a year ago and over 10 cents above the national average. The fridge noticed.

by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read

Kotzebue water system exceeds federal lead action level after two of 10 homes test high

Two of 10 Kotzebue homes tested above the federal lead action level. The city is testing more homes and says to run taps until cold before drinking.

by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read

FAA hires Calista-owned firm for next round of decades-old Cold Bay fuel cleanup

The FAA has been cleaning up leaked fuel at its Cold Bay station since the '90s. A Calista-owned Anchorage firm just got $471,000 for the next chapter.

by Alaska News1mo ago3 min read

Federal report puts Alaska's maternal death rate above the national rate but warns the count is small

Alaska's maternal death rate ran above the national rate in a new federal report, but it rests on 17 deaths and the report itself says to read it with caution.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

FAA awards $19.6 million to replace worn-out lighting and signs at Haines Airport

Haines Airport's runway lights, taxiway signs and beacon have all reached the end of their useful life, per the FAA, which is sending $19.6 million to fix that.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Sep 15

Big Lake's trail groomers are asking the state for a snowmachine

The volunteers who groom 40 miles of Big Lake trail want a new snowmachine. Last time they asked the state for $35,000 and got about a third.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Police are searching for two missing teenagers in Anchorage and Wasilla

Anchorage police are searching for two missing teenagers: Sparrow Kowatch, 16, missing since Sept. 19, and Jay Moriwaki, 13, last seen Wednesday night.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

State's draft road plan puts about $551 million into Kenai Peninsula projects; comments due Oct. 29

The state's draft road plan pours over half a billion dollars into Kenai Peninsula roads, mostly the Sterling Highway. Speak now: comments close Oct. 29.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago4 min readFrom Sep 14

Follows: Alaska's $7.74 billion transportation plan is open for public comment

Four years after Merbok, Alaska is hiring a contractor to start rebuilding homes

Four years after Merbok, Alaska is hiring a contractor to rebuild 77 homes by 2029. The bid notice also puts one region in the wrong funding tier.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Follows: Alaska declines to move Kuskokwim villages into its larger Merbok tier

Prince William Sound faces a winter without ferry service as the Aurora is overhauled

Prince William Sound faces a winter with little or no ferry service while the 1977-built Aurora is overhauled. New docks are the fix, and they're years away.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Lawmakers press state on Safer Seward Highway project's size and funding as DOT reopens comment

Lawmakers pressed DOT on the Safer Seward Highway's size and funding. DOT pointed to open houses, new data online and 30 more days of public comment.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Bering River moose hunt closes after hunters reach 15-bull cap

The Bering River moose hunt closes Friday at its 15-bull cap. The herd behind it is estimated at 213 animals, against an objective of 300 to 350.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Alaska released 310 acres near Slana to the university over its own agencies' objections

The state released 310 acres near Slana for the university over objections from DOT, two of its own land sections and every commenter. DNR's reply: thanks.

by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read

Follows: Alaska DNR issues four land decisions for University of Alaska land grants

New independent expenditure group registers for Juneau and Sitka municipal elections

A new outside spending group signed up for Juneau and Sitka's Oct. 6 elections. It hasn't said who it's backing, only that it favors economic opportunity.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Labor-funded committee backs Republican Ruby Jones and opposes both her rivals in Eagle River House race

A labor-funded group picked a Republican in Eagle River's House race and is buying ads against the other two candidates, one Republican and one Democrat.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Anchorage proposes trading the Tozier Track to the state housing agency for downtown parking lots, with housing required

Anchorage wants to trade the old dog track where the first Iditarod started for downtown parking lots. No bidding needed, and a neighbor objects.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Alaska's budget balances this year on high oil and a reduced dividend

Alaska's budget balances this year with $106 million to spare, thanks to oil running $19 a barrel high and a dividend set $1.2 billion below the formula.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska health officials warn concentrated kratom products can cause overdoses drug tests miss

Kratom gummies and shots can cause opioid-like overdoses that drug tests miss. Alaska ER visits tied to kratom already top last year's total.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Ten rural Alaska communities can now vote in person on Election Day

Ten villages with no polling place can now vote in person on Election Day itself. In August, 75 ballots from the region arrived too late to count.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Fairbanks job fair Thursday: retail, grocery, restaurant and bank employers

Fifteen employers including Fred Meyer, Walmart, and McDonald's are hiring at the Fairbanks Job Center on Thursday from 11 am to 3 pm.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

National money registered on both sides of Alaska's governor's race this week

The Democratic Governors Association and a Republican-aligned PAC with a Virginia bank both registered to spend in Alaska's governor's race this week.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska closed its Bering Sea scallop grounds after the two-boat fleet hit the cap

Alaska's whole commercial scallop fishery is two boats. An emergency order just closed the Bering Sea grounds to them for the rest of the season.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Kodiak's salmon fishery opens for 54 hours starting Thursday at noon

Kodiak gets 54 hours of salmon fishing starting Thursday at noon. The Karluk River saw 93 kings reach spawning grounds against a goal of 3,000.

by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Federal grant of $310,307 funds condition survey of Alaska's ferry fleet

Alaska is paying $310,000 to survey a ferry fleet whose flagship turns 62 this year. The bid to replace it came in $49 million over budget.

by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read