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Current Topics
Southcentral
Utilities Say Cold Snap Hasn't Strained Gas Supplies. ADN
The natural gas utility for
Southcentral Alaska said a prolonged cold snap in recent weeks
increased the demand for gas from the region’s main storage facility.
But the facility, called Cook Inlet Natural Gas Storage Alaska, still
contains enough gas to meet demand, said Lindsay Hobson, a
spokeswoman with Enstar.
(My comment: Such good
news, plus the added gas from HEX/Furie drilling work In Cook Inlet
this last summer. BUT...we still have an issue for the future! Don't
go to sleep on this one.)
Temperatures
will plummet in SC this weekend. ADN
Bought
a car in Alaska? State orders refunds over hidden fees. Alaska's News Source
The State of Alaska has
reached a settlement with Lithia Motors Inc. after an investigation
found some of the company’s Alaska dealerships charged customers fees
that were not included in advertised vehicle prices, Attorney General
Stephen Cox announced Monday. Under the settlement, Lithia will pay a
$300,000 civil penalty, provide restitution to affected customers and
conduct regular audits of its advertising to ensure compliance with
Alaska law.
Online
bookings just opened for a new cabin in Chugach National Forest. ADN
A new public-use cabin near
Hope opened for bookings Monday in the Chugach National Forest, part
of a project designed to make cabins more accessible.
‘Locked
down’: Crime at Anchorage big box stores prompts new strategies. ADN
Officials say the combination
of a yearslong national upturn in retail crime and a period when the
city didn’t prosecute hundreds of low-level misdemeanors such as
shoplifting converged into a situation where thieves sensed impunity.
US
Supreme Court to Consider Alaska Subsistence. ADN
The U.S. Supreme Court will
soon consider whether or not it will review a lower court’s decision
in a case involving subsistence fishing that pits the state of Alaska
against the federal government and Alaska Natives.
Things That I Found Interesting
Charted:
Silver vs. oil. Axios
One troy ounce of silver is
now worth more than a barrel of oil in futures markets.
Fuzzy
memories of a very real Alaska cold snap in 1989. ADN
Utqiaġvik
artist to create a learning workbook to help preserve Iñupiaq
language. Alaska Public Media
The workbook is just the
most recent example of efforts to revitalize the language that have
been sweeping across northern Alaska. Another one is an Iñupiaq
version of the popular game Wordle, which was
launched by linguists a few years ago.
(My comment: How fun!
Helpful to the rest of us, not native speakers!)
Arctic
Coast
Guard issues contract to build icebreakers in Louisiana and Finland. Stars and Stripes
Shipyards in Louisiana and
Finland will jointly build six new Arctic Security Cutter
icebreakers, the U.S. Coast Guard announced Monday. Bollinger
Shipyards of Lockport, La., and Rauma Marine Constructions Oy of
Rauma, Finland, received the contracts as part of an international
agreement negotiated by the Trump Administration. The contract with
Rauma Marine Constructions Oy is for two cutters to be built in
Finland, with delivery in 2028. The Bollinger contract includes up to
four ships, with delivery in 2029.
Economy
Social
Security ends year in turmoil as record backlogs delay services. ADN
Long-strained customer
services at Social Security have become
worse by many key measures since President Donald Trump began his
second term, agency data and interviews show, as thousands of
employees were fired or quit and hasty policy changes and
reassignments left inexperienced staff to handle the
aftermath.
Charted:
Silver vs. oil. Axios
One troy ounce of silver is now worth more
than a barrel of oil in futures markets.
Elections
Another
Initiative to Repeal Open Primaries. ADN
A group seeking to repeal
Alaska’s open primaries and ranked choice voting has gathered enough
signatures to place the question on the November 2026 ballot,
according to Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom.
(My comments: Read article
to see my view on this topic.)
Opinion:
Alaskans, don’t be duped by the citizens voter initiative - Anchorage Daily News
Alaska already requires
voters to be U.S. citizens. Election officials enforce that rule.
There is no bill in Juneau proposing to change it, no court case
challenging it and no Alaska municipality contemplating noncitizen
voting. Nothing in our election history or law suggests that the
state’s citizenship requirement is under threat.
Alaska joins states providing voter data to
Trump’s DOJ. Juneau Independent
Dahlstrom,
in a prepared statement, said she is aligned with Trump’s stated
goals. “Alaska is committed to the
integrity of our elections and to complying with applicable law,”
said Lt. Governor Nancy Dahlstrom. “Upon receiving the DOJ’s request,
the Division of Elections, in consultation with the Department of
Law, provided the voter registration list in accordance with federal
requirements and state authority, while ensuring appropriate
safeguards for sensitive information.”
Politics
Dunleavy
appoints 2 Mat-Su Republicans to fill vacant Alaska House seats. ADN
Dunleavy chose Garret Nelson,
an online salesman and father of nine who lives in Sutton, to fill a
seat previously held by George Rauscher. The governor selected
Stephan St. Clair, a veteran and former legislative staffer from
Wasilla, to fill a seat previously held by Cathy Tilton.
Health Care
Thousands
of Alaskans are facing a health care 'cliff' amid gridlock in
Congress. ADN
In a statement earlier this
month, Begich blamed the Affordable Care Act for rising costs, and
celebrated a House GOP health care bill that did not extend the
subsidies. That bill passed the House before the holiday recess but
was not considered in the Senate.
“We must now construct a
system that delivers results — a system where Americans can honestly
say they are getting their money’s worth,” Begich said in a
statement.
(My comment: The above
statement and compete lack of understanding of this issue is
appalling and completely out of touch with Alaska families and
businesses.)
Disability
and Technical Issues Were Key Barriers to Meeting Arkansas’ Medicaid
Work and Reporting Requirements in 2018 Kaiser Family Foundation
The HB 1 (Congress)
passed this year requires able-bodied adults aged 19-64 to
complete 80 hours/month of qualifying volunteer activities (work,
community service, education, etc.) in order to
receive coverage.
(My comment: Medicaid
recipients in Alaska are nearly all already working. But they don’t
earn enough to afford the highly escalating “Marketplace” health
insurance costs. One third (1/3) of Alaskans rely on Medicaid
benefits. If they no longer qualify, where do they turn for
healthcare? Hospital emergency rooms are the most expensive point of
care and the uncompensated cost of that care is pushed on to patients
who have insurance – which drives up insurance premiums even higher.
On and on it goes. HR 1 does nothing to reduce cost for Alaskans or
the government.)
Reaffirming
the Hepatitis B Vaccine Birth Dose. State of Alaska, Dept of Health, Division of
Public Health, Epidemiology Section
In the 1970s, Alaska Native
(AN) communities experienced HBV prevalence as high as 23% and the
world’s highest pediatric HCC rates.² Up until recently, Western
Alaska was the only region in the United States where HepB was
endemic. 2 Through comprehensive screening, mass vaccination, and
sustained universal newborn immunization, HBV transmission has been
virtually eliminated in these communities, highlighting the success
of long-term, population-based vaccination programs.
This
is your teen’s brain on phones and social media, according to science. ADN
The numbers suggest screens
are taking a broader, deeper toll on teens than many expected. Across
multiple studies, high levels of screen use are linked to measurable
declines in cognitive performance - slower processing speed, reduced
attention and weaker memory. Rates of depression and anxiety climb
steadily with heavier social media engagement. Sleep quality
deteriorates as screens encroach later into the night, and
researchers are finding troubling associations between screen habits
and rising adolescent weight gain.
Their work also found
differences in the type of online activity and risk. Children who had
high and increased use of video games had more internalized mental
health challenges such as anxiety and depression, while those with
high and increasing social media use tended to have more
externalizing behaviors such as rule-breaking and aggression.
States
invest in child care more than ever to help parents with rising
costs. ADN
Now, more Missouri employers
will be able to help their workers pay for child care thanks to a new
state-funded program, approved by lawmakers in May and launched last
month. Through the initiative, employers can sign up to offer child
care benefits to workers. The cost is split among the state, parents
and employers, who can claim a tax break.
Alaska
gets $272M in federal funds for ‘rural health transformation’. ADN
Governor
announces approval of millions for rural healthcare in Alaska. Alaska News Source
Alaska
could see up to $1.36 billion for rural health over the next 5 years. Alaska Beacon
Alaska’s is the
second-largest award among all 50 states, after Texas’ $281 million,
and above the average of $200 million per state. When taking into
account population size, Alaska received $368 per resident — the
highest per-capita award in the nation. Texas’ award, by comparison,
amounts to $9 per resident.
The $1.36 billion the
state is slated to receive over the next five years is the biggest
investment from the federal government to Alaska’s health care system
in state history.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski,
R-Alaska, challenged the state administration and legislators to take
on the question of rebuilding the state’s health care system as a
major issue. She said she was worried about the reliability of the
funding because the state could fail to make the most of the
opportunity or because the federal government could pause or cancel
the funding. “I know that we’re going into an election year next
year. I know that the Permanent Fund always takes up space. I know
we’re going to be talking about the gas line,” she said. “But we
must, we must absolutely be talking about this health care
opportunity that we have in front of us now.”
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