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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Thursday, Jul 2
Alaska's abuse-reporting system is down July 10–11; use the paper form
Alaska's system for reporting abuse or neglect of seniors and people with disabilities is down July 10–11. You can still report on paper — download the form first.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Juneau man Oscar Griffin found dead after two-day search
Oscar Griffin, a Juneau man missing since Monday, was found dead Thursday by SEADOGS volunteer searchers — the morning after fireworks paused the K-9 search.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A new logjam on the Beaver Creek float wants your boat. Here's how to dodge it.
The 100-mile Beaver Creek float is pure Alaska wilderness — but a new debris-choked channel will grab your boat if you let it. Line or portage past it, BLM says.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Alaska plans to burn the Alphabet Hills to grow more moose forage
Alaska plans to set the Alphabet Hills ablaze this July on purpose. Burning old black spruce regrows the willow and birch that moose, caribou, and hunters rely on.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Passenger injures Trooper during Cooper Landing traffic stop
A passenger kicked an Alaska State Trooper on the Sterling Highway near Cooper Landing on Wednesday evening while resisting placement in a patrol vehicle during a sobriety stop.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Martha Fire near Soldotna contained at 5 acres
Firefighters contained the Martha Fire near Soldotna at 5 acres Wednesday evening, protecting homes within two hours of the first report
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Anchorage let federal grant recipients off the hook, audit finds
An audit found Anchorage didn't penalize grant recipients who missed goals — one repaired 1 of 20 promised homes — just as the city moved to route millions more through the same office.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Wasilla woman charged after stabbing pedestrian on hood of moving vehicle
A Wasilla woman was charged with domestic violence assault after stabbing a pedestrian's hand while they clung to the hood of her moving vehicle on Meadow Lakes Loop Wednesday
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
More from Politics & Government
Wednesday, Jul 1
In Cordova, a slow salmon season squeezes everything — even the Fourth of July
A slow Copper River season and a state funding veto are squeezing Cordova's budget — putting the pool, the museum and even the Fourth of July on the table.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago3 min read
Inside a bootlegging pipeline into dry Alaska
Troopers say they broke up a major bootlegging operation smuggling thousands of pounds of alcohol into the Bethel region — where booze is banned, so smuggling it is big business.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read
Sullivan opens his Senate race with a $2.2M ad blitz
Sullivan is dropping $2.2M on ads before Alaska's primary — an early sign of how much money is about to flood one of the country's most competitive Senate races.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Anchorage cuts a top City Hall job it just created
Anchorage is scrapping a senior City Hall post it created two years ago — the administration says it fixed the broken operations the job was invented to fix, so the job can go.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Crash closes New Seward Hwy southbound at Rabbit Creek Rd
Two people died Wednesday morning when three vehicles crashed into Potter Marsh on the Seward Highway south of Anchorage, closing the road for hours.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Bethel rewrites its animal code to fight the diseases that actually threaten its dogs
Bethel's animal code was built for rabies — but parvo and distemper are the bigger dog killers in rural Alaska. A draft ordinance would finally cover them.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Fred Meyer owes Anchorage back taxes — so the city grabbed its liquor licenses
Fred Meyer owes Anchorage back taxes, so the city held its liquor-license renewals hostage until it pays — an unusual squeeze on a national chain, not a struggling small business.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
After a lawmaker's mom lost $8,000, Alaska cracks down on crypto scam kiosks
Alaska's new law cracks down on the crypto machines scammers use to drain seniors — inspired by the sponsor's own mother, who lost $8,000 in minutes. Victims can now seek refunds.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 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 school districts could lose unspent federal money if they don't spend it fast
Some Alaska districts have unspent federal education money — and they'll lose it for good if it's not spent by Sept. 30. Notices don't go out until mid-July.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A stranger's call got a weaving driver off the Steese
A driver saw a truck weaving on the Steese and called it in — leading troopers to an allegedly impaired Fairbanks man, a gun, and a release violation.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Two rulings just reshaped Alaska's Senate race
The Supreme Court just erased limits on party spending coordinated with candidates — unleashing money into Alaska's Senate race the same week a second Dan Sullivan made the ballot.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Rain stalled the two wildfires near Ruby, but Tuesday's winds are a risk
Sunday's rain stalled both fires near Ruby, holding them at 260 and 1,000 acres, but Tuesday's winds could dry things out again. No outdoor burning, officials warn.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Tuesday, Jun 30
A Russian Old Believer village fights to keep its school
Nikolaevsk — a Russian Old Believer village on the Kenai — may hand its shrinking school to a local nonprofit, a bid to keep education in the community as families drift away.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Why Anchorage's longest-held shelter animals are the ones most at risk
A $3,000 grant is small, but the problem behind it isn't: Anchorage's shelter keeps overfilling, and its longest-held, hardest-to-adopt animals are the ones most at risk.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Juneau's new budget ends all trail brushing and cuts the arboretum
Juneau's new budget ends all brushing on city trails and cuts arboretum staff — so in a rainforest that grows back fast, the trails are now on their own.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read
One dead, one critical in a K-Beach Road rollover near Soldotna
A 62-year-old Iowa man died and a second person was critically hurt when their van rolled on Kalifornsky Beach Road near Soldotna. The cause is under investigation.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Dunleavy declares a paid July 6 state holiday, with public dollars
Governor Dunleavy declared July 6 a paid holiday for state executive-branch workers, extending the Independence Day weekend at public expense.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
The Starry Fire is 70% contained as crews move into mop-up
The Starry Fire south of Anderson is 70% contained, up from 65%, and crews have moved into mop-up, combing the perimeter for leftover heat. It's holding at 547 acres.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A Sitka Assembly seat just opened — and the window's short
A Sitka Assembly seat opened when Tim Pike resigned — and residents have only until July 8 to apply for the appointment before October's election decides it for good.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Monday, Jun 29
A soldier died guarding Fort Wainwright's gate. The drunk driver who hit him will serve 17 years.
A North Pole woman will serve 17 years for a drunk-driving crash that killed a soldier guarding Fort Wainwright's gate. Her blood alcohol was nearly four times the limit.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Seward pays to save the pool that made an Olympian
Seward is putting $200K a year toward keeping its community pool open — the same water that once trained a hometown Olympian. Small town, big save.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago1 min read
How Cordova's Fourth of July shuffles the week
Cordova's shifting its schedule for the Fourth: City Hall and the transfer station close Friday, trash moves to Monday, and the library and museum keep their own holiday hours.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A Fox homeowner woke to thieves stealing his copper and fuel. Then the shooting started.
A Fox homeowner woke before dawn to burglars stealing copper and fuel, went to investigate, and traded gunfire with them. No one was hit, and the suspects got away.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A lake-island fire hands Mat-Su crews a boat-only problem
A small fire on a Flat Lake island forced Mat-Su firefighters to boat their crew across to reach it — routine flames, minus the road to get to them.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Kodiak fire department moves to fix a staffing crunch
Kodiak's Fire Protection Area No. 1 is short-handed enough that its board told the chief to build a new position — a people problem, not a money one, as volunteers get harder to find.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago1 min read
Driver critical after fiery solo crash closes Richardson Hwy
A driver is in critical condition after a solo crash and vehicle fire closed the Richardson Highway near milepost 210 for two and a half hours on Sunday morning.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A Tazlina man faces domestic violence and attempted robbery charges
Troopers arrested a Tazlina man on domestic violence and attempted robbery charges after a reported assault on the Richardson Highway. The charges remain accusations.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Sunday, Jun 28
Alaska is quietly making it harder to keep water in its rivers for salmon
Alaska is changing the rules for water reservations — the main tool for keeping water in rivers for salmon. Critics say it favors industry; DNR says it's about efficiency.
by Bill AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read
Fairbanks subcommittee drafts new Chena River plan with freeze, salmon, and flood goals
Fairbanks subcommittee drafted a Chena River plan aiming to restore winter ice, protect floodplain infrastructure, and address water quality threats including PFAS and invasive weeds.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
If you're facing a custody or divorce case in Alaska, these rules apply from day one
From the day an Alaska custody or divorce case begins, neither parent can take the kids out of state, sell marital property, or drop insurance without agreement or a judge's OK.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read
Anchorage man arrested after walking armed, drunk on Funny River Rd
Alaska State Troopers arrested Anchorage resident Garrett Andrews, 22, after he walked armed and intoxicated down Funny River Road near Soldotna on Friday night, forcing drivers to swerve.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Troopers say a Fairbanks woman faked her location data to dodge a charge — and got caught anyway
Fairbanks woman accused of vehicle mischief allegedly tried to beat it with fake location data sent to troopers — but witnesses and her real data placed her there.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago1 min read
