Alaska News Daily Brief, Thursday, October 22

Alaska News, Thursday, October twenty-second. This morning reaches voters scrolling Facebook, parents with babies in day care, the tribal clinics running rural health care, and Cordova residents with a deadline to meet.

0:13In Alaska's Senate race, political ads are borrowing the look of local news

Senate campaign ads are showing up looking like local news, federal health money is stacking up on the books, and more families are about to qualify for child care help. In Alaska's Senate race, both sides and a national progressive group are running campaign messaging through outlets built to look like local news. A Facebook page called Alaska Brief bills itself as Alaska's Newsroom. Its ads are paid for directly by the campaign of Mary Peltola, the Democrat challenging Republican Senator Dan Sullivan. A website called Alaska Navigator is paid for by Republican groups backing Sullivan. And a paper called The Alaska Independent lands in mailboxes with recipes and puzzles next to its election coverage. A national progressive nonprofit runs that paper. Who's paying is generally disclosed. But that name sits in a small label or a website footer, well below the news-style brand a voter sees first. Through October 17th, Facebook's parent company, Meta, counted about one hundred ninety-two thousand dollars in ads tied to Alaska Brief. Alaska Navigator had about ninety-two thousand dollars and The Alaska Independent about fifty thousand dollars. Those figures leave out printing, postage and every other platform. Alaska News found almost no original reporting on Alaska Brief. The page mostly wraps the campaign's framing around real stories from Alaska Public Media, the Anchorage Daily News and the Alaska Beacon. All three newsrooms said they only learned about the page when Alaska News asked. Anchorage Daily News editor Vicky Ho said the paper doesn't authorize any political group to run paid ads built on its work. The Peltola campaign called the ads transparent political advertising that follows Meta's rules. The campaign did not say who runs Alaska Brief, or whether it had the publishers' permission.

2:03Nearly all of the $1.84 billion in new federal awards to Alaska is health money

Federal agencies, meanwhile, have awarded one point eight four billion dollars to Alaska recipients in the first three weeks of the federal budget year. Nearly all of it is for health care. The Department of Health and Human Services accounts for one point eight three billion dollars of that. The biggest piece, one point zero five billion dollars, goes to tribal health compacts. Under those deals, tribal organizations run health programs the Indian Health Service would otherwise run itself. Another seven hundred eighteen million dollars is Medicaid money for the state. The state Department of Health is the largest single recipient, at seven hundred sixty-six million dollars. Next come the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation at two hundred seven million dollars and the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium at one hundred sixty-two million dollars. In all, that's 259 awards. About one point zero six billion dollars is direct payments, seven hundred seventy-four million dollars is grants, and roughly seven point three million dollars is contracts. The total climbed fast. On October 12th, the federal spending database showed just twenty point four eight million dollars. These are awards on the books. The federal data shows nothing actually paid out yet.

3:31Alaska child care aid opens to families up to 105% of median income Dec. 1

For families paying for child care, the state is widening who can get help. Starting December 1st, families earning up to 105 percent of the state median income can qualify, up from 85 percent. For a family of four, the new line is eleven thousand two hundred fifty-seven dollars a month, up from nine thousand one hundred thirteen dollars. Health Commissioner Heidi Hedberg adopted the rules on October 14th. The Legislature set the higher limit last year in Senate Bill 95. What the state pays providers goes up too. A licensed Anchorage center gets one thousand four hundred dollars a month for a full-time infant, up from one thousand one hundred thirty-five dollars. In Mat-Su, the infant rate rises to one thousand fifty dollars from eight hundred five dollars. The infant rate now covers kids through 18 months instead of 12. Family copays top out at 7 percent of gross income, down from 9 percent. That cap covers the whole family together. A family of four right at the new limit would pay seven hundred eighty-eight dollars a month. Hedberg's order says the change isn't expected to need more money from lawmakers. The Denali Preschool and Learning Center asked whether there's enough funding for every newly eligible family, or whether some could face a waitlist. The department's response doesn't say. In Ketchikan, the infant center rate rises to one thousand one hundred eleven dollars while Juneau, Sitka and Petersburg get one thousand four hundred dollars. Two Ketchikan parents asked the state to change how it sets rates. The department replied only that it received their comment.

5:09Troopers cite Nikiski man over out-of-season moose and missing harvest ticket

Quickly, around the state. On the Kenai Peninsula, troopers cited a Nikiski man over a spike bull moose they say was taken out of season. Troopers say he also had no harvest ticket, which the state requires for general hunts and hands out free. The citations are accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

5:33AIDEA board creates $75 million fiber company, adds screening for restricted partners

The board of the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority created a company called Northstar Fiber Development. It can invest up to seventy-five million dollars in undersea and overland fiber lines linking Alaska to the Lower 48. The board also added a screening step to keep out partners restricted under state law or on federal restricted lists.

5:56Juneau code proposal would limit garages and sheds to the size of the main home

In Juneau, a city committee will take up a cap on garages, shops and sheds. None could be bigger than the main house. The proposal is a starting point for rewriting the city's land-use code.

6:10Cordova council backs carrying $1 million in unexpected revenue into 2027 budget

Cordova's city council backed carrying one million dollars in unexpected revenue from this year into the 2027 budget. Finance staff expect fish tax income next year to be lower than they've ever seen. Budget votes come December 2nd.

6:26Cordova official asks residents to press state for full 2027 funding of two road projects

Also in Cordova, a city official is asking residents to press the state to fully fund two road projects in twenty twenty-seven. Delays would drive up the cost. Comments to the state are due October 29th.

6:41Cordova council weighs charging nonprofits for rec facilities, aims to decide Oct. 29

The Cordova council is also weighing whether to charge nonprofits for city recreation facilities. The parks director says that nonprofit use is worth about forty-five thousand dollars in a typical year. The council wants a decision by October 29th so it can set 2027 fees.

6:59Alaska Air Group Now Expects 2026 Loss as Fuel Runs $1.8 Billion Over Plan

Alaska Air Group now expects to lose money this year. Jet fuel has run one point eight billion dollars over the company's plan. The Alaska Airlines parent company also flies cargo to 17 small Alaska communities, and that cargo fleet is set to grow in twenty twenty-seven.

7:18Alaska Board of Fisheries urged to add a second vote on the final text of fishing rules

The Alaska Board of Fisheries is being urged to add a second vote. Right now, fishing rules become law before board members see the final wording. The state Department of Law wants the board to vote on that final text after 30 days of public comment.

7:34Kenai Peninsula Assembly approves ear, nose and throat clinic at Central Peninsula Hospital

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly approved an ear, nose and throat clinic at the Soldotna hospital, Central Peninsula Hospital. The clinic is set to open in twenty twenty-seven.

7:46Kotzebue residents and tribe oppose Ambler road at AIDEA meeting, minutes show

In Kotzebue, everyone who spoke on the proposed Ambler road at the state development authority's meeting opposed it, draft minutes show. One was a tribal council member, who read the tribe's resolution opposing the road. A federal analysis found the 211-mile road could delay caribou migration by 33 days on average.

8:06Alaska opens Arctic oil lease bidding after its best sale in a decade

On the North Slope, the state opened bidding on nearly 8 million acres of oil leases, onshore and in the Beaufort Sea. The same sales last year had their best showing in a decade. If your family just missed the child care cutoff before, check again: the higher limit starts December 1st. Cordova residents, your road project comments are due to the state October 29th. Also out today: Mat-Su's school board turned down reopening Meadow Lakes school as a charter. That's all for this edition of the Alaska News daily brief. The full stories are at Alaska News dot com. And that's the way it is, Thursday, October twenty-second, twenty twenty-six.