More than a half-century ago, Alaska Native leaders stood at a crossroads as they sought to reconcile two powerful forces – embracing Indigenous self-determination in a rapidly modernizing world and protecting our traditional way of life. Our early leaders had to bridge our perpetual connection to the lands and waters that sustained our people for […]
President Donald Trump, traveling aboard Air Force One on a trip to China, made a brief refueling stop at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport on Tuesday evening. Another stop, expected to last no more than three and a half hours, is planned for Friday morning starting at 5 a.m. According to reporters traveling with the […]
The Maritime Glory tanker arrived empty last week in Valdez, the mountain-flanked port town where the trans-Alaska pipeline comes to an end. A day later, it departed, laden down with a cargo of some 700,000 barrels of Alaska North Slope crude worth, at last week’s prices, some $85 million — making it the second oil tanker to […]
PALMER — A proposal to pay some Mat-Su teachers and school staff to carry handguns on campus could cost about $700,000 to roll out, even as the school district grapples with a major budget deficit heading into next year. The proposed program is meant to boost school security by allowing certain trained staff to keep […]
When Anchorage officials and outdoor recreation advocates gathered Saturday to ceremoniously mark the start of construction for a 1.3-mile section of trail near the city’s industrial port, they said they were taking a small step toward a big vision. The connector will close a gap in the city’s existing network of paved bike trails and, […]
Alaska will recognize Hispanic Heritage Month under a new law signed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy. The month recognizing Hispanic heritage will be September 15 to October 15 each year. The legislation encourages schools, community groups and other public and private organizations to honor the history and culture of Hispanic Americans. Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson, D-Anchorage, is […]
Last week, a state court approved the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s plan to resume killing scores of brown bears, including newborn cubs, across a 40,000 square mile area in southwest Alaska. The goal of the extensive bear kill effort, according to ADFG, is to reduce the number of predators in order to increase […]
A late amendment to a bill nearing final passage in the Alaska Capitol would exempt some Alaska Native village corporations from public financial disclosures required by state law. On Monday afternoon, the Alaska Senate’s labor and commerce committee voted to amend House Bill 126 with a new section that reduces and caps the number of […]
Alaska’s industrial development agency this week is set to vote on spending $190 million on controversial plans for oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The budget, drafted by staff and still pending approval by the agency’s governor-appointed board, includes up to $175 million for advanced geologic testing, plus as much as $15 million […]
The United States Bureau of Land Management on Monday formally cancelled the so-called “Public Land Rule,” which required the agency to consider conservation and development equally in land-use decisions for millions of acres across the West. The BLM published a notice Monday in the Federal Register finalizing its elimination of the 2024 rule, officially known […]
A Kenai man is facing five felonies after being accused of letting a brush fire escape containment and start a wildfire near the Sterling Highway on the Kenai Peninsula last year. The Alaska Department of Law’s Office of Special Prosecutions and Appeals filed those felonies and five misdemeanors against Keith Richard Crowder, 48, on May […]
Members of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District school board say the district will take the state to court in a dispute around its authority to approve and establish new charter schools. The district is challenging the Alaska State Board of Education for its approval of a new charter school after the locally elected […]
A state judge in Anchorage has again delayed a new election misconduct trial for former state Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux, R-Anchorage, after state prosecutors requested the postponement. Earlier this year, judges Catherine Easter and Thomas Matthews scheduled a new trial for June, but Judge Josie Garton agreed on May 1 to postpone the trial until the […]
Physician assistants may soon be able to operate more independently in Alaska, if Gov. Mike Dunleavy approves a bill passed Friday by the Alaska Legislature. PAs currently operate many clinics in rural Alaska, but their duties have generally been described in state regulation, not law. That caused problems in 2023, when the state medical board […]
The Interior Department is canceling a rule that put public lands conservation on equal footing with development. It's part of President Donald Trump's attempt to boost drilling, logging, mining and …
The Alaska Legislature has approved a bill that would update the law that governs how hospitals and clinics within the state share patient records and other health information. In an 18-0 vote on Friday, the Alaska Senate approved Senate Bill 272, sending it to Gov. Mike Dunleavy for enactment or veto. The state House approved […]
The Alaska Beacon launched four years ago today, with a mission to connect Alaskans to their state government. Since then, we have covered four legislative sessions from the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau. We have written 5,670 articles. And our reporting has won 44 awards — including the Society of Professional Journalists’ General Excellence award, […]
A bill that would impose a toll on oil and gas vehicles using the Dalton Highway was set aside by state lawmakers on Thursday after the public voiced concern that it would target a single industry and raise costs for Alaskans. Senator Scott Kawasaki, D-Fairbanks and the sponsor of SB 286, introduced the bill in […]
The leading challenger to Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan is proposing to eliminate income taxes for Alaskans earning less than $92,000 per year, the state’s median household income. Democratic candidate Mary Peltola introduced the idea Monday as part of a newly expanded platform of campaign ideas. Among some of the other ideas: a federally […]
We’re headed into the finale of the second legislative session of the 34th Legislature. The Senate passed a draft operating budget and the House continues work on the capital budget, while lawmakers are considering final bills to pass or reject. A joint session to vote on the governor’s appointees for various boards and commissions is […]