Government & Politics
Alaska Senate votes to support Willow oil project as all legislators line up behind the effort
The Alaska Senate voted unanimously to support the Willow oil project on Monday, following the Alaska House, which voted unanimously in favor of the project last week. The Department of the Interior is scheduled to release its final decision on the project as soon as March 6, and state legislators are only the latest group […]
Rapes and aggravated assaults push Alaska’s violent-crime rates up; property-crime rates fall
Alaska’s rate of violent crimes has increased, a contrast to the national trends, and the increase is driven by extremely high rates of rape and aggravated assault, according to statistics presented Monday to the state Senate Judiciary Committee. The statistics, from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s crime reports and from law enforcement agencies around the […]
Alaska lakes’ levels of ‘forever chemicals’ revealed as officials ponder actions to reduce risks
Cancer-linked contaminants known as “forever chemicals” are lurking in Anchorage and Fairbanks waterways that are popular recreation sites or flow near residential neighborhoods, showing the need for a stepped-up state response, according to a newly released study. The study, by the nonprofit Alaska Community Action on Toxics, details the discoveries about perfluoroalkyl substances and polyfluoroalkyl […]
Doctors recount ‘heart-wrenching’ stories in new study on medical care post-Roe
Researchers at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) are trying to piece together how the end of Roe v. Wade has so far transformed pregnancy-related medical care in America, and the yet-to-be-released preliminary data are alarming, the lead principal investigator told States Newsroom in an exclusive interview. The team has already received dozens of […]
Alaska legislators on guard after multiple COVID cases are confirmed in the Capitol
The COVID-19 pandemic emergency may have officially ended, but the coronavirus is still having an effect on the Alaska Capitol. On Friday, the leaders of the Alaska Senate Finance Committee announced they will institute “voluntary” COVID testing for legislators and staff who work on the committee. The announcement came after several legislators and staff tested […]
Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. takes multimillion-dollar stake in grocery chain Three Bears
A multimillion-dollar share of the Alaska grocery store chain Three Bears is one of the latest additions to the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp.’s $200 million in-state investment program. The program, ordered by the board in 2018, has almost finished buying its investments, and the corporation’s board of trustees received an update on the program at […]
Dunleavy creates new task force to develop plan for energy produced and delivered within Alaska
Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday launched a new task force to help craft the state’s overall energy policies. The Alaska Energy Security Task Force is “to develop a comprehensive statewide energy plan that will evaluate energy generation, distribution, and transmission for the state of Alaska and its communities,” an administrative order issued by Dunleavy said. […]
Election deniers who lost secretary of state races now run several state GOP operations
Many of the election deniers who ran last year for positions that would have given them control over state elections systems lost their races. But several have found a new path to exert influence: as chair of their state Republican Party. On Saturday, Kristina Karamo, an activist who rose to prominence for her efforts to […]
Alaska’s state retirement system shows a benefits gap compared to old pension plan
Alaska’s 401(k)-style retirement system for new employees is providing significantly smaller benefits than the pension-style retirement system discontinued in 2006, according to a new analysis from the state Division of Retirement and Benefits. The analysis, presented Thursday to the Senate Finance Committee, comes as legislators are considering whether to revive a pension for new employees […]
Murkowski urges state legislators to focus on issues driving Alaskans to move away
In her annual address to the Alaska Legislature, U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski urged state lawmakers to avoid spending too much time on the amount of this year’s Permanent Fund dividend and to focus on problems causing people to move out of the state. For a decade, the number of people moving out of the state […]
Alaska House censures Rep. Eastman for comments about the economic ‘benefit’ of child abuse deaths
The Alaska House of Representatives voted almost unanimously Wednesday to reprimand Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, for speculating the state could financially benefit if child abuse victims died of their abuse. Eastman’s remarks, which he said were intended to criticize some arguments in favor of abortion rights, spread on social media, contributing to a public outcry. […]
Democratic governors in 20 states form reproductive rights alliance
Democratic governors from 20 states across the U.S., led by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, have formed a Reproductive Freedom Alliance to safeguard and improve abortion and reproductive health care access “in the face of an unprecedented assault by states hostile to abortion rights,” according to a joint statement. The announcement represents another divide in the […]