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Current Topics
Overwhelmed Alaska agency says it can no longer assign public guardians for incapacitated people. Alaska Public Media
The state's Office of Public Advocacy says a worker shortage means it can no longer take in new wards to its public guardianship program, according to a letter to the court system.
Swedish forestry industry hosts record exports in 2022, but mainly due to high prices. Panels and Furniture Asia
Lesprom reported that the Swedish forest industry has recorded an export value of 182bn Swedish krona in 2022.
First 30 miles of Denali Park Road opened to private vehicles. ADN
The first 30-mile section of the Denali Park Road reopened Thursday for private vehicles, a brief window of access for the public over the next few weeks before transit buses return for the season.
With money pouring in for Alaska water and sewer projects, focus shifts to ensuring sustainability. ADN
Historically, the biggest challenge to getting adequate water and sewer service in remote communities in rural Alaska was lack of money. Now, thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in 2021, there is plenty of money from the federal government, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation officials told legislators this week.
High prices and lengthy waitlists: How Alaska's child care crisis is impacting Anchorage families. Alaska Public Media
Across the state, Alaska families are having a harder and harder time finding available and affordable child care. Many daycares have closed during the pandemic and low wages have led to an exodus of workers. Families say it's a crisis. The lack of care means some are quitting their jobs, considering moving out of state or putting a big chunk of their income towards child care.
Hooligan fisherman rescued form Turnagain Arm mud. Alaska Public Media
Girdwood firefighters on Sunday rescued a hooligan fisherman stuck up to his waist in the Turnagain Arm mudflats. It's their first save of the year from the quicksand-like flats, which can trap people in rising tides.
Who owns the North Pole? A race is underway to decide. Bloomberg
Who owns the North Pole? Technically it's an internationally neutral zone. But in reality, climate change and shifting geopolitical forces have kicked off a race between Russia and the West to claim the potentially vast natural resources below Arctic waters. The unfolding contest could have major repercussions for who controls key resources- and for the climate.
Alaska Senate passes bill banning use of firefighting foams containing 'forever chemicals'. Alaska Beacon
Senate Bill 67 requires use of PFAS-containing foams end on Jan. 1, unless otherwise required by federal law. The foams are generally used in airport fire departments, and contamination of communities around the nation and Alaska has often been linked to airports.
Politics
Alaska Legislature passes bills boosting mothers' health care and renewable energy fund. Alaska Beacon
Thousands of new mothers will receive extended Medicaid coverage under legislation proposed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy and passed by the Alaska Legislature on Wednesday.
Fans of Alaska's ranked choice voting speak out against bill to repeal it. Alaska Public Media
A bill that would repeal ranked choice voting in Alaska drew a lot of public opposition at a hearing in the House State Affairs Committee Tuesday, but its passage in the final days of the legislative session seems unlikely.
Stalled on a fiscal plan, Alaska House Republicans turn to home-school funding. ADN
With less than two weeks to go until the end of the legislative session, the Ways & Means Committee on Thursday advanced a bill that would increase annual spending on home-schooled students by millions of dollars.
Enough talk of a fiscal plan. Alaska needs action. ADN
The House Majority is the biggest roadblock to long-term fiscal stability for Alaska.
In support of open primaries and ranked choice voting. ADN
At First Alaskans Institute, our mission is to ensure that true to identity, heritage and values Alaska Natives are informed and engaged in leading the decisions that shape the future.
Editorial: Small steps toward better elections in Alaska. ADN
Bipartisan cooperation on election reform wouldn't strike most Alaskans as likely. But as the legislative session winds down in Juneau, lawmakers have a chance to pass that rarest of bills: a helpful, even necessary piece of cross-aisle legislation that will help enfranchise more rural residents and make tweaks to help Alaska's elections run more smoothly.
Alaska Legislature votes to deregulate e-bikes. Alaska Beacon
Low-power electric bicycles would be exempted from regulation under a bill passed by the Alaska Legislature.
Senators seek to increase support for Alaska student transportation costs as part of school funding bill. Alaska Beacon
The Alaska Senate Finance Committee advanced a bill on Monday that would increase state support for student transportation along with a broader increase in state funding per student for public schools.
Alaska Legislature rejects governor's pick for university board, all other nominees accepted. Alaska Beacon
The Alaska Legislature approved all but one of Gov. Mike Dunleavy's picks for state boards and commissions in a once-per-year joint session of the state House and Senate on Tuesday.
Economy News
Americans are worried about their bank accounts. Axios
Nearly half of all Americans say they're worried about the safety of the money they have in the bank, a level of anxiety last seen during the financial crisis in 2008.
Fiscal turbulence shows Alaska's need for more stable revenue. ADN
The difference between Alaska North Slope crude averaging $70 per barrel over the next fiscal year is estimated at $650 million less state general fund revenue than when the barrel cost was $80. That's close to 10% of the general fund budget and enough to either leave a gaping hole in the spending plan or add some extra money to sayings.
People could only own one short-term rental unit in Alaska under new House bill. Alaska Public Media
The number of short-term rentals has skyrocketed in Alaska in recent years. In Anchorage, between 2019 and the summer of 2022, the number of units grew by more than 70%, to 2,100, according to AirDNA, and independent group that tracks short-term rental markets.
The forever labor shortage. Axios
The percentage of Americans age 55 and over has doubled over the last 20 years, as this 2020 paper notes, and that population (the baby boomers) is expected to grow.
Buffet and the banks. Axios
Buffet and his business partner Charlie Munger spoke frankly- and in less than flattering terms- about what ails the banking sector, and hinted at why they were cautious about investing there.
It's time to pull off the bandage in Alaska's tax debate, one way or another. Alaska Beacon
The great tax debate in Alaska sounds similar to the age-old question of whether it is less painful to yank off the bandage quickly or peel it off slowly and gently.
Healthcare News
Alaska health department pledges to halve 10,000-person food-stamp backlog within six months. Alaska Beacon
After a lawsuit from Alaskans in need of food aid, the Alaska Department of Health has agreed to cut the waiting list for the state's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by half in six months.
How our brains change when we grieve. Axios
When we lose a connection to someone, the brain changes as we grieve.
Legislature approves bill to improve home care for seniors and Alaskans with disabilities. Alaska Beacon
"She lives with me, but I'm in my seventies and eventually she will have to move to an assisted living group or home setting. SB 57 will give us more options for her future. It would help so many families to care for their loved ones who struggle with dementia, complex medical needs for minor children or a disabled adult who can't function on their own. Trained direct care workers are difficult to find due to a shortage of them. "
Do overdose prevention centers work? First U.S. study seeks answers. ADN
The federal government wants to learn the impact of the few U.S. facilities where people can use illegal drugs under the supervision of staffers trained to reverse overdoses, officials announced Monday.
Energy News
Alaska carbon credits bill could have enough traction to pass Legislature. ADN
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy's bill to raise revenue from carbon offsets on state land has advanced in the state Senate, with leadership signaling support that the measure could pass this year.
Nuclear giant plans small reactors. Axios
Westinghouse Electric Co. is jumping into the small modular reactor market with both feet- and claims an edge in the crowded space.
AGDC optimistic on future of Alaska LNG Project. Radio Kenai
The Alaska Gasline Development Corporation projects that the current political climate in the White House, the abundance of available oil and gas product on the North Slope, with the addition of the approved Willow Project, and the potential foreign and domestic markets for Alaska's oil and natural gas; all point toward a ground-breaking of the Alaska LNG project and an economic resurgence for Alaska and the Kenai Peninsula.
The Alaskan gambit: $44 billion LNG project decades in the making. Houston Chronicle
Oil companies have for decades pulled billions of dollars of natural gas from Alaska's rugged North Slope, only to pump it back underground once it's been separated form the crude oil they are seeking.
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