Get Alaska statewide news from the stations of the Alaska Public Radio Network (APRN). With a central news room in Anchorage and contributing reporters spread across the state, we capture news in the Voices of Alaska and share it with the world. Tune in to your local APRN station in Alaska, visit us online at APRN.ORG or subscribe to the Alaska News podcast right here. These are individual news stories, most of which appear in Alaska News Nightly (available as a separate podcast).
Updated: 16 min 12 sec ago
Pressure Increases On US House To Pass VAWA Reauthorization
There’s increasing pressure on the U.S. House to pass a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. Congressman Don Young says it will happen, but probably not soon.
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Categories: Alaska News
NOAA Rejects Endangered Species Petition For Alaska Corals
A petition for the federal government to list several dozen species of Alaska cold water corals as endangered has stalled after an initial review.
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Categories: Alaska News
Exxon, Rosneft Sign Agreement To Work In Russian Arctic
Exxon Mobil and Russian national oil company Rosneft have signed an agreement to extract oil and gas from the Russian Arctic. According to information posted on Exxon’s website, the deal covers 600,000 square kilometers in the Chukchi, Laptev and Kara Seas.
Significant to Alaska, the deal also provides Rosneft the option of acquiring a 25 percent interest in Exxon’s Point Thomson natural gas and condensate project on the North Slope. Point Thomson is estimated to contain approximately 25 percent of known North Slope gas reserves.
Under the deal the companies will also jointly study the potential for an LNG project in Russian Far East.
The Exxon deal follows a similar arrangement between BP and Rosneft that fell through.
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Categories: Alaska News
Parnell Says Fairbanks LNG Trucking Project Is Must-Pass Legislation
Governor Sean Parnell says funding for a Fairbanks natural gas trucking project is must pass legislation this session. Speaking to the Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, Parnell said bills to fund the interior energy project have to be dealt with before legislators go home this spring.
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Categories: Alaska News
FDA Considers Approving Genetically Engineered Salmon
The FDA is considering approving genetically engineered, or GE, salmon to be sold in the U.S. Senator Mark Begich last week introduced two bills in the Senate that would ban these new salmon. And a group of Sitka residents held a demonstration against GMO salmon last weekend.
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Categories: Alaska News
ACLU Supports Yup’ik Fishermen In Trial
The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska is joining the Yup’ik fishermen trials. The group has filed a “friend of the court brief” in support of the fishermen’s right to fish as part of their religious practice.
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Categories: Alaska News
Officials Explain Proposal To Mine In White Mountain National Recreation Area
Officials with the federal agency that oversees the White Mountain National Recreation Area will hold the first of three meetings today in Fairbanks to explain a proposal today that could lead to mining in the area.
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Categories: Alaska News
Both Shell Drill Rigs Heading For Dry Docks In Asia
In the latest setback to Shell’s Arctic drilling plans for this summer, the company says it’s sending both of its drilling rigs to Asia for dry dock repairs. The company says the Noble Discoverer needs an engine overhaul and the Kulluk needs major repairs to its internal electrical systems and hull after running aground near Kodiak on New Year’s Eve. Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith says the Kulluk was damaged inside when seawater came through open hatches, and that the hull was “compromised” in some areas.
“We felt that dry dock in Asia was the best place to really get a good look at the underside of the hull, make a better analysis about the next steps and a timeline for the next steps,” Smith said.
Smith says the company is planning to tow the Kulluk to Dutch Harbor, and then put the rig on a larger heavy lift vessel for the rest of the trip to Asia. That vessel will pull up next to the Kulluk and dip down into the water to scoop the drill rig up onto its deck.
“So imagine if somebody was floating on the surface of a swimming pool and you went underneath them and were taller than them, of course, and you went underneath them and stood up, at that point they would be on your shoulders or on top of you, and that’s sort of what happens in this dry tow scenario,” Smith said.
For the trip to Dutch Harbor, the Kulluk will be towed by three tugs. Only one tug was towing it during the reverse trip, when its towline parted in rough seas. Smith says the fuel onboard won’t be removed until Dutch Harbor. That troubles environmental activist Rick Steiner. He says he doesn’t understand why the Kulluk’s substantial fuel load hasn’t already been offloaded.
“It’s clearly unacceptable that they would be willing to tow the Kulluk with the 150,000 gallons of fuel on board, along the Alaska Peninsula through Unimak pass over to Dutch Harbor with any kind of a risk of the vessel breaking loose again and grounding or foundering and sinking. They should clearly get the fuel off now, before they take it out of Kiliuda Bay,” Steiner said.
Steiner is also concerned that Shell and the Unified Command haven’t released more information on the condition of the Kulluk. Shell says it hopes the Coast Guard will approve its tow plan in a few days and expects it could have the vessel in Dutch Harbor in about two weeks. He says the company doesn’t know yet how this will affect the 2013 drilling season in the Arctic.
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Categories: Alaska News
Senate Committee Taking On LNG Exporting Issue
The Senate Energy Committee held its first meeting of the new Congress. It wasted no time in discussing one of the most controversial issues the committee will tackle this session – exporting liquefied natural gas.
Some hope exports from the Lower 48 could lead to more exports from Alaska.
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Categories: Alaska News
Legislation Defines Medically Necessary Abortions
Legislation that would limit the circumstances in which public funds can be used to pay for abortions was introduced in the Senate on Monday, and the bill may have trouble standing up to court scrutiny.
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Categories: Alaska News
Redistricting Board Considering Options
Alaska’s Redistricting Board met Tuesday in Anchorage to consider its options in the wake of an Alaska Supreme Court ruling requiring a revision of the 2012 redistricting plan. The Court allowed the current plan to be used in only last November’s general election, but has required the Board to redraw the plan so it is in line with the Alaska Constitution. The Board has filed a motion for a reconsideration.
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Categories: Alaska News
Seeking Comprehensive Energy Solutions In Rural Southeast
It’s no secret that the high cost of energy in rural Alaska is a barrier to economic development and one of the primary reasons many residents are leaving village life behind. In some rural Southeast communities, electric bills are up to 275 percent higher than the national average, and some households spend as much as 50 percent of their income on home heating fuel.
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Categories: Alaska News
Top 4 Yukon Quest Mushers Planning For Long Term
Three of this year’s top four Yukon Quest teams will go on to race in this year’s Iditarod – Alaska’s “other” long distance sled dog race. All top four teams are planning long-term Yukon Quest careers for their kennels as well.
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Categories: Alaska News
Chugiak Football Hopes New Helmets Cut Down On Concussions
Chugiak and Service High School football players collide during the 2012 season. Photo by Jen Tulare.
The effects of concussions on football players and ideas on how to prevent them have become a prominent issue in recent years. One Anchorage-area school is taking steps in preventing more traumatic brain injuries in their student-athletes by purchasing new, high-tech helmets.
Last season, the Chugiak High School football team reported five players who experienced concussion-like symptoms.
Chugiak’s head football coach, Duncan Shackelford, says even though there is no helmet on the market that can prevent every concussion from happening, these new helmets would greatly improve the protection around the players’ heads.
“I think the real emphasis right here was to help protect that lower part of the head where a lot of kids would get a helmet up underneath, and stuff like that, and get that snap sometimes underneath that jaw, you know, give just a little bit more protection down there,” Shackelford said. “Also, I’ve noticed that around the sides of the head, there’s not much movement out of the helmet. It gives a more conformed fit around the head.”
The helmets are called Riddell 360s, and they come with a hefty price tag – about $300 each. If the team is able to get all 100 helmets it’s hoping for, it totals out to around $30,000.
As the Anchorage School District battles a $25 million budget shortfall, funding for equipment upgrades isn’t easy to come by. So, Shackelford says the Chugiak High School football booster club and team are looking for other ways to help pay for this new equipment – the public.
“The ‘Adopt-a-Helmet’ program came about from our booster club saying, ‘Look, we know that the school is strapped for money right now, that it’s really tough to provide the kids with constant updated equipment. What can we do to help?,’” Shackelford said.
Shackelford says the program isn’t only aiming to update the team’s equipment, but also to help raise awareness about the seriousness of concussions and traumatic brain injuries in sports.
In response to state legislation passed in 2011, the Alaska School Activities Association, or ASAA, developed a policy for reporting suspected concussions as well as a gradual return to play protocol.
“If it is a concussion, then there is a return to play protocol used, and that is not based on days, it’s based on steps. They have to complete one step to get to the next step. Can it get done in a few days? Typically not, typically it would take six or seven days, but it does depend on how fast that they go from one step to the other step,” Russ Schreckenghost, the associate director of ASAA, said.
The steps Schreckenghost is referring to begin no earlier than 24 hours after the player is free of concussion-like symptoms, and include a gradual increase in physical activity over the course of several days before the player might be eligible to return.
This policy was formally adopted in April 2012.
Coach Shackelford says in recent years there has been more of an effort to understand concussions and how to prevent them.
“We have matured more in the sport at the high school, collegiate and professional level. We start understanding that these injuries have a severe impact on people and that we have to be careful,” Shackelford said.
He hopes these new helmets will fill in another piece of the puzzle in preventing more traumatic brain injuries from occurring.
If you are interested in learning more about Chugiak’s Adopt-a-Helmet program, contact Coach Duncan Shackelford:
Email: shackelford_duncan@asdk12.org
Office: 907-742-3098.
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Categories: Alaska News
Unions Call for Rally at Loussac
AEA President Andy Holleman. Photo from the Anchorage Education Association.
Anchorage labor unions are calling on members to rally tonight against an ordinance that could limit unions. The ordinance proposed by Mayor Dan Sullivan, Assembly President Ernie Hall and Vice Chair Jennifer Johnston, is set to be introduced at tonight’s regular Assembly meeting.
Union leaders across the city are calling on members to turn out for tonight’s rally – and it’s not just limited to labor unions representing municipal employees. Andy Holleman is the president of the Anchorage Education Association. He says teachers and school district employees hope to pack midtown.
“We think this has a huge impact, not even just on unions but on everybody in the city. It’s going to change who wants to be a policeman, who wants to be a fire person, who wants to work for the city at all. And we think everyone should be concerned with that. We think they have gone forward with bad legislation too quickly. We want to make sure that they understand that a lot of people are looking at this and have concerns about it,” Holleman said.
Holleman likens the ordinance to legislation aimed at unions in Wisconsin and Michigan. Mayor Dan Sullivan told Department heads and union leaders about the proposed ordinance late Friday and met with them Monday morning to explain it. Union leaders say the ordinance could severely limit municipal workers’ bargaining power and say it would impact benefits, pay and contract negotiations as well as eliminate the option of a strike.
Mayor Dan Sullivan says municipal attorneys have been crafting the ordinance in private for weeks and the changes are needed to tighten the purse strings of local government. Sullivan says he wants the legislation fast-tracked for Assembly approval in the next couple of weeks, before union negotiations begin in March. Union leaders say that timeline is too quick and won’t allow enough time for the public to weigh in.
The rally is set for 5 p.m. tonight at the Loussac library where the Anchorage Assembly is meeting. No public testimony will be allowed on the ordinance tonight. A work session is scheduled for 1 p.m. this Friday in the Mayor’s conference room at city hall. A public hearing is proposed Feb. 26 and it could be passed at that time.
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Categories: Alaska News
Guess Resigns from Anchorage School Board
Gretchen Guess
Anchorage School Board member Gretchen Guess announced her resignation on Tuesday from the Anchorage School Board, effective March 1. Her announcement comes as the district faces tough choices, including how to cut $25 million from its budget.
The former Anchorage School Board president and state legislator, who is director of business development for Providence Health & Services Alaska, is moving to Jacksonville Florida. She took at job at St. Vincent’s HealthCare there. Jeannie Mackie is president of the Anchorage School Board. She says, during Guess’s two years on the board, she has led the district through some major changes.
“One of those is our superintendent search. We developed a strategic plan. We have developed a long-range financial plan, designed a new budget process. So all of those things are new things we’ve done fairly recently and Gretchen has been very instrumental in leading us through those initiatives,” Mackie said.
Guess is one of few board members who has suggested alternatives to Superintendent Jim Browder’s budget cut plan. Mackie says Guess will remain on the board to complete the budget process, including the final vote next Thursday. Because Guess is not up for re-election until next spring, Mackie says a replacement will be appointed by April 1. Applications will be accepted between March 15 and 19. The school board will hold a special meeting to appoint the new member on March 30.
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Categories: Alaska News
Senate Reauthorizes Violence Against Women Act
The U.S. Senate has just passed a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. Its future in the House is unclear.
The Senate passed a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act last Congress, only to see it fester in the House.
Conservatives in both chambers say expanded protections for undocumented immigrants and members of the LGBTQ communities amount to political handouts.
And perhaps more worrisome to many is the provision that allows tribal courts to prosecute non-natives in Indian Country for abuse. In Alaska, that only applies to Metlakatla, because it’s the only reservation in the state.
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski says her party needs to drop its opposition in the House.
“They need to think of the vulnerable people who are victims of domestic violence every single day. It doesn’t matter where you live,” Murkowski said.
The previous reauthorization will remain law regardless of whether the House passes the new version.
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Categories: Alaska News
Alaska Democrats Introduce Oil Tax Proposal
Democratic legislators have rolled out their oil tax proposal, and the bill is more of a modification of the current tax structure than an overhaul. It would cap the windfall profits tax at 30 percent, and create credits for heavy oil research and development and the construction of new processing facilities on the North Slope.
It would also exempt 20 percent of oil from new fields from taxes for the first seven years in production.
The bill has been pitched as an alternative to Gov. Sean Parnell’s plan to lower taxes on oil companies. Parnell’s bill would get rid of a mechanism that raises taxes on oil companies as the price per barrel goes up, and it gets rid of some exploration credits in favor of ones tied to production.
The Democrats bill is now winding its way through the legislature, with a handful of hearings in both the House and Senate this week. Parnell’s office is currently reviewing the minority’s bill, and offered a brief statement, saying that the governor is pleased that Democrats “agree there is a problem with production under the current system.” About 90 percent of Alaska’s tax revenue comes from oil production.
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Categories: Alaska News
Mayor, Assembly To Propose Ordinance Limiting Unions
Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan
Anchorage workers are speaking out after being told the Mayor and Assembly members are proposing an ordinance that would limit the power of unions. Mayor Dan Sullivan is proposing the ordinance along with Assembly Chair Ernie Hall and Vice Chair Jennifer Johnston. The Mayor says he’s just trying deliver of the highest value services at the lowest reasonable cost the citizens of Anchorage, while Union leaders say he’s taking away worker’s rights.
Union leaders say, as it stands now, the proposed ordinance would leave them nothing left to negotiate. They say it will impact benefits, pay and contract negotiations including eliminating the option of a strike. Rod Harris, president of the Anchorage Firefighters Union, which represents about 400 workers, says he was shocked when he found out about the proposed ordinance Friday.
“This is over the top. You know I know the Mayor really wants to address wages and benefits, but he’s gone to great lengths here to make sure that anything to do with working conditions or anything to do with the employee having a voice in their own safety practices has been removed and made a management right. And he’s gone further to say that everything in the city is up for privatization except for anybody that works in a police car or in a fire truck,” Harris said.
Harris was one of many union leaders that met with Mayor Dan Sullivan Monday morning to review the proposed ordinance. It would impact approximately 2,200 municipal employees from accountants to police officers and fire fighters. Union leaders are especially concerned that a quick timeline for the ordinance could limit public input. It’s set to be introduced to the Anchorage assembly at their next regular meeting. Municipal officials say it could be passed by the end of the month. Jason Alward is with Local 301, which represents about 100 workers that plow snow, haul waste to the landfill and maintain streets, among other things. He attended the Monday morning presentation where the Mayor explained proposed changes including that wages would be tied to a 5-year average of the consumer price index.
Assembly Chair Ernie Hall
“Really the only thing left to negotiate is the wages, and even that they have tied that to the 5-year average of the CPI. I don’t know what’s left to negotiate, honestly,” Alward said.
When asked to characterize the Mayor’s leadership style Alward said, “Well in this case, it’s clearly a dictatorship – this is the way it’s gonna be, whether you like it or not.”
Mayor Dan Sullivan says he’s just trying to tighten the purse strings of local government. Cities across the U.S., Sullivan says, are implementing similar changes to implement something he calls, managed competition.
“Often times in managed competition, the employee groups win the bid to perform the service. But when they’re put into a competitive environment, it’s amazing how they sharpen their pencils they know their jobs best of all and they find ways to do it even better and it less cost,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan says a letter is going out to employees regarding the changes, which he’s hoping will be implemented by the assembly in the next couple of weeks. Assembly Chair Ernie Hall says it could take longer though.
“It’s gonna take the time that it takes to get the job done. If we’re able to do it in that timeline, well that’s fine. But it’s gonna take due process,” Hall said.
Hall says negotiations with at least two labor organizations are set to begin in March for contracts that expire in June. The new rules would not affect current contracts, only new ones. The proposed ordinance is set to the assembly on Tuesday, Feb. 12. A public hearing will be held Feb. 26 and the proposed ordinance could be passed at that time.
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Categories: Alaska News
Judge Denies Bid To Block Port MacKenzie Rail Spur
A federal judge has denied a bid to block the Port MacKenzie railroad spur project. Monday U.S. District Court Judge Ralph Beistline handed down his decision, saying that extensive environmental studies were conducted over a period of years regarding the project, and that the benefits of the project are great, while further delay in construction would not be in the public interest.
A number of environmental groups, headed by Cook Inletkeeper, had asked for a preliminary injunction halting initial construction of the line linking Port MacKenzie and Houston. Oral arguments in the case were heard on February 7. In an earlier court decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the construction of the rail spur.
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