Politics & Government
RSSAlaska News covers state and local politics and government, including elections, ethics investigations, legislative action, and municipal decisions.
Drones are dropping chaff over Nenana to try to stop lightning
A Vancouver startup is dropping metallic chaff from drones over Nenana to try to stop lightning before it starts wildfires. The flights run through Sept. 30.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago3 min read
A man was found dead at Tangle Lakes Campground
A man was found dead at Tangle Lakes Campground and died by suicide, Alaska State Troopers said. His family had not yet been notified.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago1 min read
A California woman was summonsed for hit and run on a parked car in Healy
A 21-year-old California woman was summonsed for hitting a parked car in Healy and driving off. Troopers said alcohol was a contributing factor.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Alaska lawmakers weigh whether to keep boards licensing dentists and barbers
Alaska lawmakers are weighing whether to keep the boards licensing dentists, chiropractors and barbers, and released the audits that will guide that call.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Alaska moves to give up nearly 59,000 acres near Parks Highway for University of Alaska
Alaska is dropping its claim to nearly 59,000 acres near the Parks Highway so the university can have it. All 13 public comments opposed the move.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago1 min read
Anchorage police ask cardholders to check statements in tap-to-pay fraud case
Anchorage police want cardholders checking four date ranges for charges they didn't make. For the July charges, the 60-day dispute window closes in September.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Tok has no way to warn its residents, and a state coordinator says it cost houses
Tok has no townwide alarm, and a state wildfire coordinator said the gap cost houses in the Mukluk Fire. Residents said they never got a GO alert.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
Mukluk Fire crews shift to southwest flank ahead of Sunday wind change
Mukluk Fire crews shifted to the southwest flank Saturday ahead of forecast northwesterly winds Sunday, with Level 3 evacuation orders still in effect north of the Alaska Highway near Tok.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Park Service urges hard-sided bear containers in the Arrigetch Peaks
A brown bear took food from a soft-sided bear-resistant container in the Arrigetch Peaks on August 13. The Park Service now strongly recommends hard-sided containers, which backpackers can check out at the Bettles Ranger Station.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Alaska will give up 5 acres on Elrington Island despite unanimous opposition
Alaska will cede 5 acres on Elrington Island to the University of Alaska. All 13 public comments opposed it, citing lost hunting and subsistence access.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago1 min read
Driver kills Anchorage pedestrian at Seward Highway and Benson Boulevard, flees scene
A woman was killed by a driver who did not stop, at Seward Highway and Benson early Saturday. Her name is being withheld until family is notified.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Anchorage police detail the limits on their Real-Time Crime Center
Anchorage police will delete license plate reader data after 14 days and limit searches to fewer than 10 employees, Police Chief Sean Case said.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Anchorage Assembly committees would consolidate under a draft from the Rules chair
Anchorage Assembly committees would consolidate and meet less often under the Rules chair's draft. Members have said the current load is too many hours.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Troopers say ATV fled Fairbanks traffic stop, crashed near airport
An ATV fled a Fairbanks traffic stop before dawn Saturday and crashed behind the airport. Both riders were jailed; the driver faces a DUI charge.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Three rescued after float plane crashes in forest near Bettles
Three people survived a floatplane crash near Bettles and were hoisted out overnight, after a satellite device let them relay their location to rescuers.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago1 min read
As a crime center vote nears, Anchorage weighs whether its privacy limits should be policy or law
Anchorage votes Sept. 1 on $600K for its police crime center. The chief says it adds no surveillance; a pending ordinance would put its privacy limits into law.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago3 min read
Kusilvak unemployment hit 16.1% in May, six times Denali Borough's rate
About one in six people in the Kusilvak labor force was unemployed in May, the highest rate in Alaska. Every high-rate region is off the road system.
by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read
Judge vacates 490-acre Izembek land swap, reopening the fight over the King Cove road
A judge voided the land deal behind the King Cove road, reopening a decades-old fight. Crews stage construction as the court weighs a halt by Aug. 31.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago4 min read
Homer weighs spending $6,000 to inform voters about a road-tax measure, near a line the law draws
Homer may spend $6,000 to inform voters about renewing its road-and-trail sales tax, though the ordinance's own title admits it "may influence" the vote.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Anchorage holds more property-appeal hearings, as hundreds of over-assessed homes get lower valuations
Anchorage holds six more property-appeal hearings next week, as about 660 over-assessed homes get lower valuations and the appeals board nearly doubles.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Chugach sees opportunity for its communities in the Coast Guard's Alaska buildup
Chugach, an Alaska Native corporation that contracts with the Coast Guard, is casting the service's Alaska buildup as an opportunity for its communities.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Kodiak Island Borough Assembly tightens absence rule in 6-1 vote
Kodiak Island Borough Assembly lowered the absence threshold to 25 percent of meetings to forfeit a seat, down from 50 percent, and now counts work sessions in that total.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
Coast Guard awards $143.4 million for 30 housing units and child care center at Kodiak ahead of two Arctic cutters
The Coast Guard is spending $143.4 million on 30 housing units and a child care center at Base Kodiak, ahead of two Arctic Security Cutters homeporting there.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read
Charter plane crash at Cape Newenham radar site kills eight
Eight people died when a charter plane crashed on approach to the Cape Newenham radar site in western Alaska. Two pilots and six passengers were aboard.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
A group backing Begich for governor has spent nothing, with a website waiting for the general election
A new outside group backing Tom Begich for governor has spent nothing so far, its only financial trace a $1,116 debt for a website that wasn't even live yet.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Ketchikan's Assembly has fewer candidates than seats, with four days to file
Ketchikan's Borough Assembly has two candidates for three seats with four days left to file. The School Board race has four candidates for two seats.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Anchorage keeps blowing past overtime budgets stuck on a 2010 baseline
Anchorage's police, fire and transit overtime again ran over budget, largely because the budgeted amounts still rest on an unadjusted 2010 baseline.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago1 min read
Palmer jury convicts Robert Hawes on four felony sex abuse counts
A Palmer jury convicted Robert Hawes, 72, on four felony sex abuse counts involving a 4-year-old child in 2021. He faces sentencing November 25.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
A Fort Yukon tribal crew that fights fire across the country just locked in funding through 2031
A Fort Yukon tribal fire crew — Native firefighters protecting an area larger than Texas — just locked in federal funding through 2031.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Anchorage schools will open a new listening effort with a $42 million shortfall
Anchorage School District is launching a listening effort, opening with the $42 million shortfall it projects for 2028. Past rounds drew complaints.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Sitka Assembly takes up a public records appeal Tuesday
A Sitka resident is appealing a records determination to the Assembly Tuesday. The agenda doesn't say what records he asked for or what he was told.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Sitka is set to confirm a fire chief who's already been doing the job
Sitka's Assembly is set to confirm Brian McLaughlin as fire chief this week, a role he already appears to have been filling for the volunteer-heavy department.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Tanana Chiefs wins federal grant for suicide prevention in 15 villages
Of 122 youth referred to Tanana Chiefs behavioral health last year, 76 were admitted. A new federal grant funds suicide prevention in 15 Interior villages.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
A Kenai man is sentenced to 60 years for sexually assaulting a child in his home
A Kenai man, Darold Greg Love, 67, was sentenced to 60 years in prison for sexually assaulting a child living in his home, with no eligibility for parole.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago2 min read
A Wasilla seatbelt stop turned up meth, a stolen debit card and two warrants
A Wasilla seatbelt stop unspooled into a lot more: troopers reported meth, someone else's debit card, a false name and two warrants, one for stealing a car.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
The Alaska House gavels in and out again, taking no action in the special session
The Alaska House gaveled in and out again Tuesday, taking no action in the governor's special session, as the Republican minority presses for full sessions.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago1 min read
Alaska students will spend the year researching the veterans buried at Fort Richardson
Alaska students will spend the year researching the veterans buried at Fort Richardson National Cemetery, building a campus memorial and a walking tour.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago2 min read
Troopers arrest Wasilla driver on DUI charge after KGB Road crash
A Wasilla driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence after his truck hit a guardrail and semi-trailer on Knik-Goose Bay Road on August 20.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Ordinance would make police ask before buying surveillance tech
Anchorage police would need Assembly approval to buy surveillance technology, and the city could not join outside data-sharing networks, under a new ordinance.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Alaska's audit watchdog gets a new leader, inheriting a fisheries probe and a new power over the governor
Alaska's audit watchdog gets a new leader as Kris Curtis retires. Mark Lundahl inherits a Board of Fisheries probe and a new power over oil-tax records.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read