Politics & Government
RSSPolitics & Government in Alaska is the activity of state and local elections, lawmaking and public administration. It covers campaigns, ballot measures, ethics and campaign finance, legislative and executive action, and municipal and borough council decisions across Alaska communities.
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Tuesday, Aug 4
No heat closes Dillingham's job center counter early
A heating failure closed walk-in service at Dillingham's Bristol Bay Job Center on Tuesday afternoon, sending staff home at noon and cutting counter hours short.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Eielson Air Force Base hiring fair set for Thursday
Eielson Air Force Base holds a hiring fair Thursday, Aug. 6, but the Alaska Department of Labor announcement omits time, venue, employers, and base-access details.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Troopers arrest nine on drug charges during Salmonfest in Ninilchik
Troopers arrested nine at Salmonfest, eight on felony drug distribution charges, though the dispatch names no one and gives no drug quantities.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min readFrom 
Anchorage advisory committees could lose the ability to write officials on their own
Anchorage's three AMATS citizen advisory committees would need staff and higher-committee sign-off before writing elected or federal officials, under a policy up Thursday.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Utqiagvik weighs a change to how it taxes marijuana
Utqiaġvik might tax your weed. The council won't say how much, and neither will the packet.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Two men barricade themselves in a car after fleeing Fairbanks police
Two men barricaded themselves in a car after fleeing Fairbanks police early Sunday, and face charges including DUI, weapons and drug misconduct after the standoff ended.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Monday, Aug 3
A Fairbanks street a sinkhole swallowed could vanish from the map
A Fairbanks street platted in 1975 but never built — and since partly eaten by a permafrost sinkhole — could be erased from the map at an Aug. 19 borough hearing.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Juneau aging commission chair tells Assembly paratransit has failed seniors for nine months
Juneau concerned that folks aren't getting rides.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
More from Politics & Government
Anchorage weighs $1 million for nonprofits feeding and sheltering vulnerable residents
Anchorage votes Tuesday on just over $1 million for nonprofits providing food, emergency shelter and other essential services to the city's most vulnerable residents.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Riding a defense boom, Kodiak looks to send a member to D.C. for funds
Amid a defense boom — icebreakers, a Coast Guard base and missile-defense launches — Kodiak is moving to send a member to D.C. for infrastructure money.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Audit of $11.8M in off-the-books Anchorage spending heads to the Assembly
An audit of at least $11.8 million in Anchorage spending that skipped purchase orders — and the city's public transparency tracker — goes to the Assembly Tuesday.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readFrom 
Troopers arrest three Fairbanks-area drivers on DUI charges
Fairbanks troopers arrested three impaired drivers over the weekend, all well over the limit — including one who blew 0.248 with cocaine allegedly in his truck.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Anchorage moves to sell an old Government Hill fire station to Chugach Electric
Anchorage would sell the old Government Hill fire station to Chugach Electric for $470,000, no bidding, since Chugach already leases it for a communications tower.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Wasilla man cited for motorized vehicle use in Palmer Hay Flats refuge
A Wasilla man was cited for driving a motorized vehicle in Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge, where off-road use is restricted to permitted activities in specific seasons and terrain.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Anchorage is considering expanding its surveillance network. The privacy rules are still a draft.
Anchorage votes Tuesday on $1.4M for police, including a surveillance center that logs cars, faces and movement — paid for with seized cash and federal money that never reaches the public budget, in the rare state whose constitution promises a right to privacy.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read
Flames at Fairbanks airport this week are a drill, not an emergency
Those flames and smoke at Fairbanks airport this week are a scheduled firefighting drill, Aug. 3-7 — timed with notice so no one mistakes them for wildfire.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
About Politics & Government
Politics and government in Alaska takes in state and local elections, lawmaking and public administration. It covers campaigns, ballot measures, campaign finance, legislative and executive action, and decisions by municipal assemblies and borough and city councils.
Recurring questions include how campaigns are funded and who pays for outside spending and political messages, which candidates qualify for the ballot, and how state agencies write and repeal regulations. Local governments such as the Anchorage Assembly and the Ketchikan assembly weigh spending on roads, water systems and police programs.
The subject reaches across the Legislature, state agencies and municipal governments. Advisory boards and councils that take public comment on matters such as state parks and disability policy are part of it as well.
More from Politics & Government
Alaska and Canadian crews fight a wildfire across the border
Alaska and Canadian crews are fighting a 20- to 30-acre wildfire 3 miles south of the Alcan Highway, with no evacuations or highway impacts expected.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
A cabin fire spread into a small wildfire north of Fairbanks
A cabin fire near the Chatanika River north of Fairbanks spread into a quarter-acre wildfire Sunday. Smokejumpers worked to contain it and watched it overnight.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Sunday, Aug 2
As the world burns, Alaska stays cool — a regional weather quirk
As Spokane and Europe burn in record heat, Alaska stays cool and barely burning — a regional weather quirk. The Arctic overall still hit record-low ice.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Seven face sex trafficking charges tied to seven Alaska spa businesses
Seven people face felony sex trafficking charges after a year-long investigation of massage businesses in Wasilla and Anchorage that identified 11 victims.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago2 min read
A visiting angler was found dead in the Kenai River near Sterling
A 71-year-old Georgia man who came to fish the Kenai River was found dead near a Sterling boat ramp Friday. Troopers say nothing suspicious has been found.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
National money is pouring into Alaska's two big races, on every side
National money is flooding Alaska's Senate and House races on all sides, from a dark-money-linked PAC backing Bill Hill to $10.6 million reserved for Mary Peltola.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Kodiak woman, 71, arrested for DUI after crash into parked wildlife trooper vehicle
Uh-oh. I think there's a modest mouse song about this...'Float on' maybe?
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Alaska State Parks cabin booking faces a gap during 2026 system swap
Alaska State Parks' cabin booking system goes dark Dec. 31, and the replacement isn't due until fall 2026, right when you'd book an early-2027 winter cabin stay.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Seattle man dies after fall from boat mast in Akutan
Man falls overboard out of Akutan, Troopers will investigate.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Free daily meals and pantries available across Anchorage in August
A free hot meal is available somewhere in Anchorage every day this month, plus two dozen food pantries citywide. Call 211 or check anchoragefood.org for the schedule.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Every Craig and Klawock business checked failed an underage sting
Every bar and dispensary Alaska regulators checked in Craig and Klawock sold alcohol or marijuana to an underage decoy — a clean sweep, and seven infractions.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Kasilof man, 87, dies after Sterling Highway collision near Cohoe Loop
An 87-year-old Kasilof man has died after a two-vehicle crash on the Sterling Highway, days after he turned into the path of an oncoming minivan.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
A neighbor found the missing Butte woman walking near his home
A missing elderly Butte woman was found safe nine hours after she wandered off, spotted by a neighbor walking near his own property late Friday night.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Saturday, Aug 1
CourtView goes dark overnight Sunday for maintenance
Alaska's CourtView case lookup goes offline overnight Sunday, 7:30 p.m. to 8 a.m. Monday, for maintenance. It's back Monday morning.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Helicopter lifts stuck hiker off peak five miles southeast of Alyeska
A helicopter rescued a stranded hiker off a peak five miles southeast of Alyeska early July 28 after a nearly four-hour operation, with EMS treating him for minor injuries at Girdwood Airport.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Two charged with burglary after troopers find them back at a Clam Gulch cabin, hauling out an appliance
Two people were charged after troopers found them back at a Clam Gulch cabin they'd allegedly burglarized more than once, hauling out a large appliance. Most of the stolen goods were recovered nearby.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
North Pole man charged with felony assault for throwing rocks at cars
A North Pole man, Jonathan Moreland, 23, was arrested after troopers say he threw rocks at passing cars near Badger Road — then at the patrol cars that showed up. He faces felony assault charges.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Two Delta Junction residents killed when a septic trench caved in on them
Two Delta Junction residents, Paul Hebert, 68, and Jacquelyn Wilder, 71, were killed Thursday when a roughly 13-foot septic trench collapsed on them. The cause hasn't been determined.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
A fisherman found the stranded boaters before the Coast Guard could launch
A local fisherman found two overdue boaters stranded on a sandbar near Toksook Bay before the Coast Guard could even launch, a familiar story in Western Alaska.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
Court upholds detention for teen who killed another boy, even at low risk
An Alaska court says a judge can detain a teen for a serious crime even when a psychologist calls him low risk. The case: a boy who killed another teen.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
A $1.6 million grant to help Alaska burn on purpose, before wildfire does
A $1.6 million grant would build Alaska the fire-weather forecasting tool it lacks, so managers can safely burn off wildfire fuel before the wildfires arrive.
by Melinda Communities.News3mo ago1 min read
The military is adding a thousand people to a base that's already full
The military plans to add about 1,050 people to Alaska bases while JBER housing sits at 98% full. Anchorage's Assembly is bracing for the overflow to hit the city's market.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Anchorage police oversight proposal dies without a second
Anchorage's police oversight proposal, already stripped of any power to investigate, died Tuesday for lack of a second, leaving the city with no oversight body since 2024.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Anchorage historic panel objects to Seward Highway safety review it says skipped the city
Anchorage's historic commission objects to the Safer Seward Highway review, saying the state cut the city out and that a wider, faster road threatens historic sites like Beluga Point.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
