Alaska in Brief

Alaska Legislature approves free trapping licenses for disabled veterans

By: - March 8, 2023 2:20 pm

Sen. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau (left), talks about changes in Senate Bill 10 with Sen. James Kaufman, R-Anchorage, and Sen. Shelley Hughes, R-Palmer, before a final vote on Wednesday, March 8, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

The Alaska Legislature has unanimously passed a bill that gives disabled veterans and members of the Alaska National Guard free trapping licenses in addition to the free hunting and fishing licenses they already receive. 

The Alaska House of Representatives voted 39-0 in favor of Senate Bill 10 on Monday, and on Wednesday, the Alaska Senate voted 19-0 to agree with a House amendment and send the bill to Gov. Mike Dunleavy.

After the Senate transmits the bill to the governor, he will have 15 days — excluding Sundays — to sign the bill, veto it, or allow it to become law without his signature.

Sen. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau and the bill’s author, said he hasn’t received any indication whether the governor will sign the bill, but he received positive feedback from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and believes the governor is likely to sign it or allow it to become law without his signature.

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James Brooks
James Brooks

James Brooks is a longtime Alaska reporter, having previously worked at the Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire, Kodiak Mirror and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. A graduate of Virginia Tech, he is married to Caitlyn Ellis, owns a house in Juneau and has a small sled dog named Barley. He can be contacted at [email protected].

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