Politics & Government
RSSAlaska News covers state and local politics and government, including elections, ethics investigations, legislative action, and municipal decisions.
State clears three Anchorage officers in the fatal shooting of Emil McCord
State prosecutors cleared three Anchorage officers of criminal liability in the fatal shooting of Emil McCord, 112 days after it happened.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Anchorage Assembly takes up next year's budget priorities
The Anchorage Assembly takes up its budget priorities for the coming year Tuesday, along with two appointments to city commissions.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
A Jeep rolled in Nikiski with a 14-year-old inside and the driver was arrested
A Jeep rolled onto its side in Nikiski with a 14-year-old inside. Troopers arrested the driver for DUI, the third such arrest in the area this summer.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Alaska is adding a fingerprint background check to EMS licensing, starting in 2027
Alaska will require fingerprint background checks for EMS providers starting in 2027, as it joins a national compact letting EMTs work across state lines.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Coast Guard finds 15-year-old alive on capsized skiff off St. Lawrence Island; two dead
Coast Guard found a 15-year-old alive on a capsized skiff 4 miles east of St. Lawrence Island on Monday; two other boaters from the same vessel were recovered dead.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Minnesota hunter cited for wanton waste of a caribou near Sagwon
Minnesota hunter cited for leaving edible meat unsalvaged on a bull caribou near Sagwon and removing antlers before finishing the salvage.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
Troopers find drugs on an inmate at the Fairbanks jail
Troopers found drugs on an inmate being booked into the Fairbanks jail Wednesday, the third such investigation there this year.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Unalaska eases yearly audit requirement for its small nonprofit grantees
Unalaska's small nonprofits won't have to pay for a yearly audit to keep their city grants anymore — a cost that ate up about 13% of one group's award.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
Ninety-two Alaska water systems are listed as serious violators
Ninety-two Alaska water systems are federal serious violators, close to three times the national rate. The state has not brought a formal action since 2020.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read
Anchorage Assembly has one meeting left before a transit safety deadline
Anchorage has one meeting left before a federal deadline to fix its transit safety plan. Assaults involving security staff rose by half last year.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Kenai Peninsula assembly president proposes rewrite of rules for filling assembly vacancies
Kenai Peninsula Assembly President Ryan Tunseth is proposing to rewrite the rules for filling vacant assembly seats, with a public hearing set for Oct. 20.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Kenai Peninsula mayor's ordinance would regulate weather modification
The Kenai Peninsula Borough would regulate cloud seeding on its land and ask the state to consider banning weather modification.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Anchorage weighs $2.8M state payment, most of it for winter shelter
Anchorage cut $1 million in contracted surge shelter beds when alcohol tax revenue fell short. State money would put them back ahead of winter.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago2 min read
Four of seven Kodiak Assembly seats are on the Oct. 6 ballot
Four of the seven Kodiak Island Borough Assembly seats are on the Oct. 6 ballot, all elected borough-wide. Early voting runs Sept. 21 to Oct. 5.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Anchorage candidates would need signatures to get on the city ballot
Anchorage candidates would need voter signatures to make the ballot. It would take 63 in one Assembly district and 162 in another about the same size.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Troopers seek red Subaru driver in Fairbanks hit-and-run at Farmers Loop
Alaska State Troopers are looking for the driver of a red Subaru after a hit-and-run at Farmers Loop and Tanana in Fairbanks on the morning of Sept. 5.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
Alaska moves to cut library and museum rules, over public objections
Alaska's education department is moving to cut whole chapters of rules for libraries, museums and archives — over a public that mostly asked to keep them.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago3 min read
Five Alaska legislators and candidates amend financial disclosures in two days
Five Alaska legislators and candidates amended financial disclosures this week, adding two Anchorage houses, nonprofit board seats, and a spouse's name to their filings.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
Anchorage weighs who decides when cold-weather shelter opens
An Anchorage ordinance up Sept. 15 would let the health director decide when emergency shelter opens, replacing the current 45-degree trigger.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
A conservative group sues Alaska's judicial council for diversity records
A national conservative group founded by Stephen Miller is suing the Alaska Judicial Council for records on how it weighs diversity in picking judges.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago2 min read
Most of Alaska labor backs Peltola. Sullivan took some anyway.
Most of Alaska's organized labor backs Peltola, but Sullivan has drawn several major unions, including some that cross the usual lines.
by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read
State tax office flagged seller of Anchorage cannabis concentrate license as non-compliant
Alaska flagged a marijuana license seller as non-compliant on taxes. Her sworn statement listed no debts. What the board did is not on the record.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Seward state park advisory board takes public comment at Sept. 16 meeting
Seward State Park Citizen Advisory Board meets Sept. 16 to hear public comment on park management, in person or via Teams.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Moose hunter flown off upper Chistochina River after medical emergency
A moose hunter with a medical emergency on the remote upper Chistochina River was flown out by helicopter Monday and handed to waiting medics, troopers said.
by Alaska News2w ago1 min read
Gunfire reports in Nondalton ended in an arrest on eight charges
Reports of gunfire in Nondalton brought troopers from King Salmon and ended with a 22-year-old man arrested on eight charges, including burglary and assault.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
Alaska warns personal care agencies they can lose Harmony access for viewing waiver records
Alaska's Division of Senior and Disabilities Services warned personal care agencies they risk losing Harmony database access if they open waiver service records.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read
Troopers investigating death of a Kachemak Selo man found nothing suspicious
A family in Kachemak Selo found Mihey Reutov, 35, dead on Monday, and Alaska State Troopers said an early investigation found nothing suspicious.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
A Tyonek man died Saturday after neighbors heard gunshots
A Tyonek man died Saturday after neighbors heard gunshots and found him wounded. The state medical examiner has not determined a cause of death.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
Two EMS providers assaulted on Parks Highway in Nenana, troopers say
A man assaulted two EMS providers on the Parks Highway in Nenana early Monday and was arrested on two counts of assault in the fourth degree.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
Mat-Su weighs a council district for a group staff say does not meet the code
Mat-Su staff back giving landowners along Greater Oilwell Road a recognized borough voice, though the group asking for it doesn't meet the council definition.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Homer-based Republican group drops the Homer city election from its reporting
The Homer-based Republican district unit just dropped Homer's city election from the races it reports on. It kept the borough race the same day.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
A Soldotna council member's consulting firm earned up to $1 million last year
Soldotna pays Daniel Nelson up to $5,000 a year to sit on its city council. Governments paid his consulting firm up to $1 million last year.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
Alaska's Permanent Fund had a banner year, but the money is spoken for
Alaska's Permanent Fund had a banner year, but the state has already spent it — on the budget, dividend and inflation protection, reviving a fiscal fight.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago4 min read
A write-in candidate has entered Sitka's Assembly race for two seats
Sitka's Assembly race just went from three candidates to four. Mary Ann Hall has until Oct. 1 to make write-in votes for her actually count.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read
Anchorage auditors flag a gap in Assembly travel approvals
Anchorage auditors found signed approval on all 38 Assembly trips but could document a second 2025 step on only one of 15. A broader review is now underway.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read
Troopers refer charges after Ketchikan pursuit and crash
State Troopers referred felony charges against an 18-year-old Ketchikan driver who refused to stop on North Tongass Highway on Sept. 3, lost control, and crashed into a ditch during the pursuit.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago1 min read
The roads torn up fighting the Tok fire have been graded back
The roads firefighters tore up while saving Tok have been graded back into shape. Residents need them to reach what is left of their property.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago1 min read
Kaktovik under a do-not-drink notice after ethylene glycol found
Kaktovik residents can't drink the village tap water after testing found ethylene glycol, the toxic compound in antifreeze, in the system. Boiling won't help.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Most of what the Tok fire burned was outbuildings. Aid may not cover them.
Two-thirds of what the Mukluk Fire destroyed near Tok were outbuildings, and the only aid program for those families generally does not cover them.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Alaska Supreme Court rules: Officers Must Stop at Unclear Lawyer Requests
Alaska Supreme Court ruled police must stop questioning suspects who make unclear lawyer requests, even after Miranda waivers, reversing a Kodiak murder conviction.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago4 min read