Economy & Business
RSSAlaska News covers state economic issues including cannabis banking, state dividends, and business development opportunities.
Alaska minimum wage rises to $14 in July, $15 in 2027
Alaska minimum wage rises to $14 per hour on July 1, then to $15 in 2027, with annual inflation adjustments after that under a voter-approved schedule.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
A year-round storefront for Alaska's seasonal makers
Voyij is launching a year-round e-commerce platform for Made in Alaska program permit holders on June 1. Listings are free; Voyij takes a per-sale commission whose rate has not been publicly disclosed.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Deadhorse Airport project halted by weather, nears drainage milestone
Deadhorse Airport's drainage and runway project pauses May 29 to June 4 for weather, with crews nearing completion of insulation board work before fill continues on the North Slope airfield serving Prudhoe Bay oil operations.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Alaska Energy Authority lifts ban on consecutive chair terms
Alaska Energy Authority board voted January 31 to allow its chair and vice chair to serve consecutive terms, removing a two-year rotation rule to maintain leadership continuity during a $206.5 million Cook Inlet submarine cable project.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
Alaska tightens stormwater rules for industrial sites, with no more easy "too expensive" exits
Alaska's new stormwater permit for 350 industrial sites starting Monday requires DEC approval before operators can claim pollution fixes are too expensive, and cuts their inspection timeline from flexible to 28 days.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Federal appeals court clears Alaska to release NPR-A drilling data
A federal appeals court ruled Alaska can release ConocoPhillips exploration well data from the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska after the state's confidentiality period expires, rejecting the company's claim that federal law blocked disclosure.
by Bill AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
Kodiak Lands Committee directs staff to study housing development on youth baseball field
Kodiak Island Borough Lands Committee directed staff to study converting the 16-acre Killarney Hills youth baseball field into at least 30 residential lots to address housing needs.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
AIDEA approves $190 million for ANWR seismic surveys and lease evaluation
AIDEA approved up to $190 million on May 13 for seismic surveys and lease evaluation in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Coastal Plain ahead of a federal lease sale scheduled for June 2026.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Alyeschem breaks ground on North Slope methanol plant
Alyeschem broke ground May 15 on Alaska's first Arctic petrochemical plant at Prudhoe Bay, converting natural gas into methanol with AIDEA's $70 million financing and operations expected by late 2027.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
AIDEA releases $50M credit line for Cook Inlet gas drilling
AIDEA released the first draw from a $50 million credit line to HEX Cook Inlet LLC in May to drill two offshore gas wells, part of a broader state push including a royalty rate cut to 3% and pending legislation to support Cook Inlet production.
by Bill AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
DNR advances Graphite One drilling permit near Nome
Graphite One, one step closer
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Palmer Courthouse finally gets funding for long-needed expansion
Palmer courthouse is getting a $4.95 million expansion with three new courtrooms after five years of the heaviest caseloads in Alaska, with construction to start by August 2026.
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min readAI
Alaska Marijuana Control Board denies Anchorage cultivation license renewal over $633,000 tax debt
Alaska Marijuana Control Board revoked Anchorage cultivator Alaskasense's license Wednesday over $633,000 in unpaid excise taxes.
by Grant Robinsonadded 3mo ago1 min readAI
DOT&PF lifts weight limits on Dalton, Elliott highways; dozens of Interior roads still restricted
Elliott and Dalton highways lifted all seasonal weight limits Friday. • Parks, Richardson, Glenn, and Alaska highways returned to summer permitting. • Dozen Interior roads remain restricted to 50 to 100 percent of legal axle load.
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min readAI
AIDEA board approves $11 million dividend to state general fund
AIDEA board approved an $11 million dividend to the state general fund for fiscal year 2025, down $6 million from the prior year as the authority declared 42 percent of statutory net income instead of the maximum 50 percent.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
State offers FAA two decades of free land at Allakaket Airport
Alaska DOT is offering the FAA 20 years of free land at Allakaket Airport for navigation equipment, locking out state revenue and limiting the village's ability to expand or reconfigure the runway through 2046.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min readAI
DOT&PF cuts Chiniak Highway to 50 percent axle load during fishing season
Alaska DOT&PF cut Chiniak Highway to 50 percent axle load from milepost 20.1 to 33.39 effective May 27 to protect pavement during spring thaw and fishing season truck traffic on Kodiak Island.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min readAINorth Slope, Kenai mayors negotiate gas line property tax as House Finance delays bill deadline
North Slope Borough Mayor Patkotak and Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Micciche negotiated property tax terms for the Alaska LNG project as the House Finance Committee delayed its amendment deadline to allow talks to continue.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago4 min readAI
DOT seeks rural input on statewide transportation planning process
Alaska DOT is updating how rural communities shape statewide transportation planning and seeking input through June 7, but has received only eight rural responses to its survey so far.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Cold-injury hospitalizations rose among Alaska's unhoused over the past decade, state finds
Nearly one in four Alaskans hospitalized for cold injuries between 2012 and 2021 were unhoused, a rate that climbed steadily over the decade while housed residents stayed flat.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Wasilla advances 63-unit affordable housing project as Mat-Su growth continues
Wasilla set a June 9 public hearing for a 63-unit affordable housing project in North Star Estates as the Mat-Su Borough continues rapid growth and housing costs strain residents.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Alaska House examines $4 billion LNG equity option, Fairbanks spur-line tax break
Alaska House Finance Committee examined a plan letting the state buy 5 to 25 percent equity stakes in Alaska LNG for up to $4 billion total, while conditioning a tax break for the pipeline on building a 30-mile spur line to Fairbanks.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Alaska House passes bill requiring human operators in commercial autonomous vehicles
Alaska House passed HB 217 requiring a human operator in certain commercial autonomous vehicles, sending the bill to Senate State Affairs Committee despite opposition from industry groups and the state transportation department.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAIAlaska residents applying for a green card will, in most cases, now have to leave the country to complete the process.
Most Alaska green card applicants must now complete the process at a U.S. consulate abroad instead of in-country, a federal policy shift announced May 22 that will require travel, longer separations, and higher costs for families and employers.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
ANWR lease sale will test whether Alaska oil appetite reaches the Arctic Refuge
After eight years, two underwhelming sales, and one federal lawsuit, ANWR gets another go on June 5 — and the oil industry finally has to bid or stop being coy.
by Cale Green3mo ago4 min read
Anchorage airport noise study to present mitigation alternatives by summer
Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is studying aircraft noise impacts and will present mitigation options at public meetings by mid-summer 2026.
by Alaska Newsadded 3mo ago1 min readAIFour new gold mining operations proposed near Central and Chicken
Four mining companies applied for permits to operate placer mines on Crooked Creek and Ptarmigan Creek near Central and Chicken, continuing gold extraction in a region that has supported Interior Alaska communities since the early 1900s.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
Huna Totem signs Juneau tideland lease for Oak Landing cruise dock
Huna Totem Corporation signed a tideland lease with Juneau in April for Oak Landing, a fifth downtown cruise dock expected to open in 2028 and reduce the 95 ships currently forced to anchor each summer.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAIDNR opens public comment on Greens Creek Mine reclamation plan renewal
Alaska's Department of Natural Resources opened public comment on Greens Creek Mine's plan to close and restore the underground mine on Admiralty Island near Juneau, governing how tailings and waste rock will be managed after mining ends.
by Bill AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min readAIAnchorage secures $25M for Port of Alaska in state capital budget
Anchorage won $25 million in state funding for Port of Alaska, with $15 million guaranteed and $10 million conditional on oil prices staying above $80 per barrel through mid-2026.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readAI
DOT&PF seeks airport land amendments in Koyukuk, St. Marys, Central, Chalkyitsik
Alaska Department of Transportation posted airport land notices in May 2026 for Koyukuk, St. Marys, Central, and Chalkyitsik. Check the state online public notices system for comment deadlines and full terms.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min readAIAlaska LNG faces tax competition from Canadian projects with federal support
Canada landed its big LNG project the old-fashioned way, by quietly stacking tax breaks for investors years before anyone broke ground, and Alaska's Senate spent Wednesday flipping through the recipe to see what's worth copying.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Alaska LNG could cost $70 billion; state's 25% stake faces dilution
Alaska’s LNG project may have just gotten a $24 billion “whoops.” The state has been planning around a $46 billion price tag, but lawmakers were told the real number may be closer to $70 billion — which is less of a budget update and more of a financial jump scare.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Juneau mining industry warns sales tax cap removal could cost $5M yearly
Juneau is considering removing a $15,000 cap on sales tax per purchase. The Kensington Mine says eliminating it would cost the company $5 million yearly, nearly tripling its tax bill, and the city hasn't yet said how much revenue it would actually gain.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
AGDC tells House Finance that Alaska property tax is 10 times higher than competing LNG projects
More conversations about the Governor's plan to make the AK LNG project more profitable to investors.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min readAI
Alaska Marijuana Control Board approves THC oral pouch product
Alaska Marijuana Control Board approved the state's first THC oral pouch product from Lolo Creations, LLC on a 4-1 vote, with the law enforcement member dissenting over child ingestion risks.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
JAG Marine takes over Ketchikan Shipyard after state ends Vigor's 20-year run
AIDEA replaced Vigor Alaska with JAG Marine Group to operate the state-owned Ketchikan Shipyard after 20 years, citing poor performance. JAG projects adding 100 or more jobs over two years.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min readAI
AIDEA attacks environmental group before report release
AIDEA issued a press release April 9 attacking environmental group SalmonState's credibility before SalmonState published any report, calling the group funded by left-wing donors to oppose resource development.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min readAIAlaska warns residents about BG Wealth cryptocurrency scheme flagged by eight other jurisdictions
Don't send your money to scammers...They're out to get you, and they're getting better at it.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readAI
Energy consultant tells House Finance that property tax makes Alaska LNG unfinanceable
Energy consultant says property tax costs $600 million yearly, making Alaska LNG unfinanceable.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min readAI
