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Current Topics
Alaska
lawmaker questions legality of National Guard-ICE assistance. Alaska News Source
"It’s questionable whether or not it’s even
legal.” That legality, Wielechowski said, runs askew to “the
prohibition against domestic policing,” or the Posse Comitatus Act.
New
Anchorage law protects public access points, concerning some
landowners. KTUU
Anchorage
can now fine property owners who block access to public land. ADN
Those who obstruct a public
right-of-way without a lease or permit would be charged $1 per square
foot of property “obstructed or otherwise impeded from public use per
day,” according to
the ordinance. Depending on how much land is blocked, fines could
accumulate over time.
Things That I Found Interesting
Why
Main Street's pain matters. Axios
Bloomberg recently
reported that there are more small businesses filing for
bankruptcy under a special federal program this year than at any
point in the program's six-year history. Subchapter V filings,
which allow firms to shed debt faster and cheaper, are up 8% from last
year, according to data from Epiq Bankruptcy Analytics. Chapter
11 filings — a process used by larger businesses — are up roughly 1%
over the same time frame. Main Street is bearing the brunt of an
economic slowdown in ways that might make it even harder for small
shops to compete with larger companies.
Opinion:
Rethinking Alaska's state seal for the modern era. ADN
Economy
New
poll: Gen Z's dark fears. Axios
Financial insecurity,
intense political polarization and the rise of AI are eroding Gen Z's
faith in their economic prospects and public institutions overall.
A majority
of respondents (57%) say the country is headed in the
wrong direction — a six-point rise from last year.
Babies
are basically getting 401(k)s now. Axios
This "shareholder
economy" has been a long time in the making, as policymakers and
businesses gradually shift responsibility for major social safety net
policies onto individuals.
(My comment: 401(k)s are
great for the financially literate and those who only hold one job
and have leisure time to follow the stocks. For people who are single
parents, hold more than one job to make ends meet, lack the
information needed to “play the markets” - this is potentially worse
than a savings account, as it can lose money. A savings account at
least makes a small interest earning.)
Inflation
expectations hold steady, but financial situations worsen. Axios
The New York Fed said that
perceptions about households' financial situations relative to a year
ago "deteriorated notably," with a larger share of
Americans saying they were worse off than this time last year. Compared to the prior month, fewer households
said they expect to be better off a year from now. That came as
consumers reported they expect the biggest year-ahead spike in
medical care costs, up 0.7 percentage point to 10.1%, since 2014 as
health care subsidies are poised to expire.
Energy Resources
Opinion:
The pipeline that stole Christmas: Why Alaska can’t afford this
costly project ADN
Copper
has turned into the new digital gold. Axios
Copper prices have
been on a tear, rising to record highs, spurred by supply disruptions
and worries over Trump's tariffs. When it comes to the digital
economy, copper is a precious metal vital for computer chips, EVs,
data centers and just about everything that is
electrified.
Opinion:
Why transmission is Alaska's next big energy project. ADN
No matter what kind of energy
we produce — natural gas, hydro, wind, solar or other legacy fuels —
it is only as useful as our ability to deliver it where it is needed.
The electricity we consume relies on the substations and distribution
lines in our neighborhoods which is in turn dependent on high-voltage
transmission infrastructure — the backbone of every electric grid.
Any path forward for Alaska’s energy future depends on strengthening
this backbone.
Louisiana
is being urged to lock in its hydrogen future. Business Report
After a year of study, the
group has adopted its final report, calling for a permanent clean
hydrogen coordinating committee to streamline permitting, workforce
development, environmental oversight and economic development
strategy. The report also recommends boosting staffing at the
Department of Conservation and Energy and the Department of
Environmental Quality so regulators can process hydrogen and carbon
capture projects faster without sacrificing monitoring and
enforcement.
Nuclear,
natural gas power generation planned for massive New Mexico Data
Center site. Power Magazine
A Texas-based developer and
operator of next-generation digital infrastructure and integrated
power assets announced it has entered into a land option purchase
agreement for a site in New Mexico that would feature a vast data
center center campus. The plan announced November 6 calls for more
than 2 GW of natural gas-fired generation capacity, and 5 GW or more
of nuclear power, to energize the 3,500-acre site.
ConocoPhillips
confirms up to 12.5% North Slope layoffs as workers seek union. Alaska's News Source
ConocoPhillips has laid off
10 to 12.5 percent of its North Slope workforce, the company
confirmed Tuesday, as employees at three oil fields move to form a
union.
(My comment: These are high
paying jobs. But my question is: how many of these workers live in
Alaska? The North Slope has high percentage of out-of-state workers
who fly in for the jobs, taking wages back to other states (where
they pay income taxes, property taxes, school taxes, sales taxes, etc
to enrich the other state.)
Education
How
to weigh in on the University of Alaska's presidential search. Alaska Public Media
The University of Alaska
will host listening
sessions in Juneau, Fairbanks and Anchorage this week as
it ramps up its search for its next president. The sessions follow
last month's announcement that UA President Pat Pitney plans to retire
this spring. UA has hired the executive search firm Witt Kieffer to
help with the process. During the sessions, the university says it
hopes to hear what qualities students, staff and community members
want in a new leader.
New
data shows teacher and principal turnover in Alaska continuing to
rise. Alaska
Public Media
According to a University
of Alaska report to the state Legislature, teacher turnover
rates statewide sat above the national average between 2012 and 2021.
High turnover is associated with negative student outcomes. DeFeo said
in an interview with KTOO on Thursday that her team plans on
surveying teachers in February to see which factors play into their
decisions to leave.
Politics
Republicans
left tribes out of their $50B rural fund. Now it's up to states to
share. Alaska
Beacon
The Trump administration is
touting its $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program as the
largest-ever U.S. investment in rural health care. But the government
made minimal mention of Native American tribes in sparsely populated
areas and in need of significant improvements to health care access.
Alaska
Division of Elections asking for public's help in cleaning up voter
rolls. KTUU
The Alaska Division of
Elections is sending out a flyer called the “voter registration
confirmation notice,” which helps the state determine where voters
are. The annual process is a maintenance process where the state
sends out one flyer to determine if a voter is still active at a
residence.
Ranked
choice voting outperforms the winner-take-all system used to elect
nearly every US politician. Alaska Beacon
Plurality voting is notorious
for producing winners without
majority support in races that have more than two candidates. It
can also create spoilers, or losing candidates whose presence in a
race alters the outcome, as Ralph
Nader’s did in the 2000 presidential election. And it can result in vote-splitting, where similar
candidates divide support, paving the way for a less popular winner.
This happened in the 2016
Republican primaries when Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and John Kasich split
the anti-Donald Trump vote.
Mat-Su
Republicans suggest six candidates for two spots in Alaska House of
Representatives. Alaska Beacon
Mat-Su
Republicans forward candidate names to Dunleavy for filling 2 House
vacancies. ADN
Local Republican Party
officials delivered their suggestions to
replace Cathy Tilton and George Rauscher, whom Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed to fill two
vacancies in the Alaska Senate.
Anchorage
Mayor LaFrance defends proposed sales tax during State of the City
address. ADN
While some residents have
labeled her sales tax proposal as regressive, Anchorage Mayor Suzanne
LaFrance used her annual State of the City address to present it as a
necessity.
“The municipality can’t
afford to provide the same level of services or tackle our
community’s needs and challenges — such as outmigration, housing,
child care and economic growth — without investment," she said
Monday at the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce’s
”Make it Monday" forum at the Dena’ina Center.
(My comment: I agree with
Mayor LaFrance! Alaska has not, as a state, invested in itself. So we
are where we are – shrinking population, 24% of working people don’t
live here (fly-ins), professionals leaving, etc).
Health Care
FDA
hits "tipping point". Axios
Another abrupt
departure of a high-ranking FDA official is raising alarm about
a brain drain that could mean new drugs take longer to reach the
public. Biotech and pharmaceutical companies rely on the FDA for
dependable guidance as they spend huge sums developing new
treatments. The American public needs the agency to ensure treatments
are safe and effective.
SNAP
backlog stubbornly persists for thousands of Alaskans, and the
federal shutdown added to challenges. ADN
The Alaska Division of Public
Assistance is continuing to lag in processing food assistance
requests on time, new data reveals, amid a federal shutdown and other
factors that complicated the application review process in recent
weeks.
Steep
increases in ACA premiums hit Alaskans. Senior Voice
Hepatitis
vaccines credited as life-saving for Alaska children may be upended. Alaska Beacon
Western Alaska, where
almost all the residents are Indigenous, used to have the world’s
highest rate of childhood liver cancer caused by Hepatitis B. After
decades of screenings and vaccinations, that problem has been
eliminated; since 1995, only one person under the age of 30 has been
diagnosed with hepatitis-caused cancer. Now the Trump administration
is seeking to end one of the key tools credited with accomplishing
that goal: Hepatitis B vaccinations of newborns.
Alaska
settles two lawsuits against vape companies for allegedly targeting
kids for addiction. Alaska Beacon
The suits were part of a
nationwide pattern: Alaska and other U.S. states had alleged that the
companies deliberately targeted children with advertising, something
that likely contributed to a surge in nicotine use among children and
young adults. Altria settled Alaska’s lawsuit for $2 million last
year, and the state announced a
$5.8 million consent judgment with Juul.
Rural
America relies on foreign doctors. Trump's visa fee shuts them out. ADN
The Trump administration
demanded that companies pay a $100,000 visa fee to bring highly
skilled workers from abroad, including doctors and medical
professionals urgently needed in health care deserts. Nephrology
Associates of the Carolinas could no longer afford to sponsor the
Indian kidney specialist, and it has not found an American well
suited for the job.
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