Category: Alaska News

10 years ago

Assembly chooses Coast Guardsman as manager

The Haines Borough Assembly bucked the staff’s choice for manager on Saturday, voting 4-2 to offer the job to Coast Guard veteran William Seward over Mark Karet, a planner and development director with more than two decades of municipal experience.

Three groups – one comprised of assembly members, one of department heads and one of citizens – took turns Saturday interviewing the four manager finalists before converging to hash out the pros and cons of each one.

After an hour of discussion, it was clear Seward and Karet had risen to the top over finalists Paul Dauphinais, executive director of the Alaska Public Offices Commission, and Kevin Opple, director of operations at a naval station in Everett, Wash.

While the assembly appeared to put more emphasis on hiring a candidate with a winning personality, staff lobbied for experience.

24 years ago

Local projects get nearly $1 million

Haines fared well for capital project funding in the waning days of the legislative session, with local projects set to receive nearly $1 million through direct capital appropriations and agency budgets.

Rep. Albert Kookesh (D-Angoon) said Wednesday although the list of projects is firm, the Legislature still hasn’t decided how to divide spending between general fund appropriations and state-issued bonds. “Nothing’s been funded yet, because the funding sources are still up in the air.”

The school district’s two biggest wish list items, paving most of the high school parking lot and rebuilding the tennis court, are set for funding through the state Department of Education.

The $269,440 paving project will correct drainage problems that have plagued the gymnasium side of the high school for years. The education department budget also includes $153,000 to replace leaky siding at the high school.

Klukwan School will receive $138,000 to fix mechanical systems and $110,000 for other building repairs. The village of Klukwan will receive $25,000 for repairs to the old BIA school where the municipal office is located.

The City of Haines received funding for a number of tourism-related projects, and money to continue work on harbor and utility expansion.

Grants include: $100,000 to help fund the last phase of the feasibility study for the Small Boat Harbor expansion project; $54,800 to study extending city water and sewer lines to the annexed area; $44,444 to continue rehabilitation of the Lutak Dock; and $35,000 to improve lighting at the Port Chilkoot Dock to comply with new federal security requirements.

Other visitor-related grants include: $20,000 to design a covered waterfront viewing pavilion; $11,000 to purchase a motorized cart to assist cruise ship passengers who have trouble walking on the dock; $10,000 to help pay for a new city vehicle; and $5,000 for visitor-related signs.

City councilor Norm Smith said the funding seems like a windfall during what was thought to be a lean period of state spending. “Considering the deficit as a whole for the state, we came out smelling like a rose… Everything we got was way more than we expected.”

Haines Borough capital projects receiving funding included $13,000 for repairs to the Chilkat Center and $12,000 for new fire department equipment.

47 years ago

Safe bicycling gets a boost

Bikers, K-8, went through bicycle safety instruction at the elementary school last Thursday and Friday under the direction of Alaska State Troopers Rod Guinn and Ted Backman, who were assisted by the school staff, community volunteers and Haines police.

Trooper Guinn, who was a city policeman here before he joined the troopers about 18 months ago, said that as far as he knows it is the first such riding course to be given in Southeast Alaska, perhaps in the state. He ran a similar program during the 10 years he was with the California Highway Patrol and has been trying to initiate actual riding instruction for Alaska youngsters.

He said most of the safety instruction is limited to the classrooms, like that given here on Thursday, and riders are not confronted with traffic patterns and signals like those laid out on the Haines school ground on Friday.

Riders lined up for a safety check by the troopers before they drove through a course that simulated stops, turns, and obstacles. A working signal light, the only one in the city, was operated by Ray Lewis, off duty after his regular shift as a city police officer.

The signal was salvaged from three broken ones by the Division of Highways in Juneau and was wired by the City of Haines.

Alan Heinrich, elementary principal, said he and John Fain, Haines police chief, have been working to bring together the program for two years.

“It was one of those busy, busy days, with several substitutes in, but the staff made it work,” Heinrich said.

The post This Week in History: local projects and a traffic light for cyclists appeared first on Chilkat Valley News.

Saturday, May 2

An officer on Main Street performed a traffic stop.

Sunday, May 10

A caller in Haines reported a lost wallet. Item description and contact information was obtained.

A caller in the 900 block of Main Street reported a speeding vehicle.

Monday, May 11

A caller at Small Tracts Road and Tower Road reported a speeding vehicle swerving on and off the road.

An officer in the 1000 block of Haines Highway performed a welfare check on a citizen.

A caller in the 600 block of Haines Highway reported a smell of smoke. Haines police and fire personnel responded.

Tuesday, May 12

Police received an eviction notice to be served in the 1000 block of Haines Highway. An officer performed the service.

An officer in Haines performed a follow-up report.

A caller in the 1000 block of Haines Highway requested to speak with an officer about harassment and stalking behavior they experienced.

Wednesday, May 13

Haines firefighters performed a service call. Police in the 1000 block of Haines Highway performed civil paper service.

An officer in the 10 block of Front Street performed a follow-up report.

An officer at 2 Mile Mud Bay Road issued a verbal warning for headlight requirements.

Haines police and firefighters responded to a burn pile burning after hours at Major Road and Chilkat Street. The fire was extinguished.

Thursday, May 14

Haines firefighters performed a service call.

An officer on Sawmill Road performed a follow-up report.

A caller on Piedad Road reported a person sleeping in a vehicle on the side of the road. Police conducted a welfare check.

Friday, May 15

An officer in the 300 block of Haines Highway performed a follow-up report.

A caller in the 10 block of Main Street reported their property was broken into.

An officer in the 300 block of First Avenue attempted civil paper service.

A caller on Fair Drive reported a verbal custody dispute.

Saturday, May 16

An officer in the 1000 block of Lutak Road attempted civil paper service.

A caller on Soap Suds Alley reported their vehicle being charged by a bear. A Nixle alert was sent out.

A caller at 1000 Mud Bay Road reported multiple buckets missing. Item descriptions and contact information was obtained.

A caller on Second Avenue found a phone on the side of the road, contacted the phone owner, and told them the phone was turned in to local police. The owner picked up the phone.

An officer in the 100 block of Main Street performed a follow-up report.

An officer at Small Tracts and Mud Bay roads issued a verbal warning for tail-light requirements.

Officers on Beach Road assisted a driver with a disabled ATV.

Officers in the 300 block of First Avenue performed a follow-up report.

There were 46 burn permits issued, one 911 hang-up call and 16 EMS calls during this reporting period.

The post Blotter: May 2 – May 16 appeared first on Chilkat Valley News.

The Chilkat Valley’s first Dolly Varden fishing derby kicked off last Friday and will run until June 15. The idea came about when Doug Olerud and Gabe Long heard from locals who were eager for the salmon to return.

“Our dolly fishing is some of the best in the state and not a lot of people recognize that,” Olerud said. He also wanted to find an event to encourage people to go outside and recreate with friends and family.

Thus far, Olerud said that most of the participants have been kids ages 5-10 who have been fishing at the Small Boat Harbor.

“I think it is really cool that we got these young kids that want to go out there.”

Three age groups can participate in the derby and weekly drawings: ages 5-10, ages 11-15, and age 16 and above.

Participants need to have a valid fishing license (if of age) and have purchased a derby ticket. Each participant can submit two photos of their dolly catch each day during the contest. A random prize drawing will be drawn blindly from the photos each week. Olerud said the random drawing is intended to prevent people from thinking they have to catch a large fish to win. “It should be less damaging to the population as well.”

In addition to the weekly drawing that will occur on Thursdays, Olerud said there will be an overall drawing at the end of the derby.

Olerud and Long said submitting photos instead of killing and weighing their catch will encourage “good catch and release techniques.”

Olerud stressed the importance of handling fish with wet hands to give them a better chance of survival.

“You can go out with the right equipment and have fun, you don’t have to just catch any fish,” he said.

Popular fishing spots during the derby include the boat harbor and at Chilkoot Lake. According to the derby rules, fish must be caught in either the Chilkat or Chilkoot river systems and in the saltwater north of Eldred Rock. This time of year the dollies are feeding on the salmon fry as they hatch. 

Olerud said that the best lures for this time of year are the Kastmaster, small pixie or Mepps Aliga.

The proceeds go to the Haines Sportsmen’s Association Scholarship Fund. Olerud hopes to have enough participation to make it an annual event. He said there have been around 15 tickets sold so far but estimates more will participate as weather changes.

“Haines is such a beautiful place, let’s get people out, the best way to protect it is that people use it.” he said. 

The post Dolly Varden derby sees slow start appeared first on Chilkat Valley News.

The Alaska Legislature has approved new limits on the amount of money that can be donated to political candidates, but opponents of those limits are seeking to start those rules in the middle of the current election, something that could lead to a lawsuit that snarls the new rules altogether.

In a 21-19 vote on Wednesday, the Alaska House voted to advance House Bill 16, sending it to Gov. Mike Dunleavy. The Senate approved the bill on a 12-8 vote late Tuesday. 

If Dunleavy vetoes the bill, a substantially similar measure will be presented to voters on the August primary election ballot. If he signs the bill or allows it to become law without his signature, the ballot measure likely would be removed from the August vote because Article XI, Section 4 of the Alaska Constitution says passage of a law “substantially similar” to an upcoming ballot measure will cancel the vote.

As written, HB 16 would take effect Jan. 1, after the 2026 elections. 

But under Article II, Section 18 of the Alaska Constitution, a bill takes effect 90 days after the governor’s approval, unless two-thirds of legislators agree with a different date.

In this case, they didn’t. On Wednesday, the “effective date clause” vote failed by a 24-16 margin. That negates the Jan. 1 start date and means the bill would take effect in the middle of this year’s elections, depending on when it is sent to the governor for final action.

Rep. Calvin Schrage, I-Anchorage, sponsored HB 16 and helped organize the ballot measure campaign.

Speaking Tuesday night, he said he would have preferred that limits go in place before 2026 elections campaigns began. With that now impossible, he said he prefers waiting until 2027.

Implementing new limits in the middle of an election campaign is “impractical,” he said. 

“The reality is … if we were to impose contribution limits mid-cycle, it would create all sorts of consequences for candidates where maybe they’ve already received donations that are above that limit. Certainly, in the gubernatorial campaigns, I would expect that. And then, do you have to refund those?” he asked.

Affected candidates or contributors could sue, he said on Wednesday.

All of the votes against the bill and against the effective date clause came from Republicans who are members of the House’s minority caucus.

Seven said they thought their “no” votes on the effective date clause were a mistake. Most bills have immediate effective dates, and voting no on the clause typically delays a bill.

“I think it was just a misunderstanding,” said Rep. Julie Coulombe, R-Anchorage, who voted no.

But Rep. Justin Ruffridge, R-Soldotna, voted against the effective date and said there was also a strategic reason for doing so.

“It gives the governor a reason to veto it,” he said, giving a thumbs-down for emphasis. 

Legislators already believed the governor was likely to veto HB 16. 

Speaking in 2022, Dunleavy implied that he’s generally opposed to campaign finance limits.

“You know me: I’m the guy that wants people to be able to drive four wheelers on the road. I’m a freedom guy,” he said. “My tendency is to just let people do what they want in campaign finance law, as long as it’s disclosed and it’s accurate.”

Rep. Jeremy Bynum, R-Ketchikan and a member of the House minority, said he thinks the governor will veto HB 16.

“I don’t think that bill will survive the process,” he said.

If that happens, Alaska voters will get a chance to decide the issue on August 18, primary election day.

An Alaska Legislature defined by its conflicts with Gov. Mike Dunleavy came to an end at 9:43 p.m. Wednesday night as legislators officially adjourned their second regular session.

Lawmakers will return to work Thursday as they open a special session focused on the planned trans-Alaska natural gas pipeline. As with other topics, the Legislature and the governor appear far apart on the issue. 

“I would say farewell, except I get to see you at 10 a.m.,” said Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, shortly before final adjournment.

Before adjourning, the 34th Alaska State Legislature passed a large, multi-part crime bill that raises the state’s age of consent and criminalizes the act of using AI to create child sexual abuse material. Lawmakers voted to ban foam food containers, named the giant cabbage the state vegetable, approved a fast lane through airport security and passed dozens of small bills that were priorities for local communities and individuals across Alaska.

Bills that fail to pass before adjournment die and must be reintroduced at the start of the next Legislature. Among this year’s casualties were a proposal to offer paid leave for new parents, a bill to stabilize public school budgets, a right-to-repair bill, and all of the proposed constitutional amendments.  

This fall is an election year and many incumbents are retiring, which means that when lawmakers return next year, the House and Senate will include many new faces. They also will work with a new governor: Because of term limits, Dunleavy may not run for re-election.

The Alaska Legislature is the only one in the United States controlled by multipartisan coalitions in both the House and Senate. 

“The Senate majority and the House majority have worked extremely well together. We’ve been on the same page through this entire two years,” said Senate President Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak.

In their two-year term, the 34th Legislature passed 111 bills, on par with the 33rd Legislature, which passed 101 bills, and the 32nd Legislature, which passed 112.

Of the 111 bills passed by the 34th Legislature, Dunleavy has vetoed 12, including one he vetoed less than three hours before lawmakers adjourned on Wednesday. 

Dunleavy is vetoing bills at a higher rate than any governor since statehood. Though other governors have issued more vetoes, Dunleavy’s represent a higher proportion of the number of bills passed through the Capitol.

At the start of the 34th Legislature, the House and Senate majority coalitions set education funding as their top priority. 

Last year, they voted to permanently increase the core of the state’s public school funding formula, putting themselves at odds with the governor and setting up a historic set of veto override votes with the help of some Republicans from the House and Senate minority caucuses.

This year, the majorities passed a significantly less ambitious package of education policy reforms but also approved $144 million in one-time bonus payments to public schools and millions more in funding for maintenance and construction projects across the state. Some of the bonus payments are contingent on oil prices remaining high through July 1. 

They were less successful with other stated priorities, including pension legislation. Alaska has been without a public pension program since 2006, and the 34th Legislature was the first since then to pass a bill creating a new pension plan.

Dunleavy vetoed that bill on Monday and lawmakers failed to override it on Tuesday.

The governor’s veto came after legislators failed to reach agreement with him on one of their other stated priorities, energy. 

Dunleavy has urged lawmakers to cut the state’s petroleum property tax in order to incentivize  the proposed trans-Alaska natural gas pipeline. Building the pipeline, the governor has said, is critical for lowering energy prices and improving the state’s economy.

Many legislators are skeptical of those claims.

This week, Dunleavy and House Majority Leader Chuck Kopp, R-Anchorage, had negotiated a deal in which the governor would allow the pension bill to become law if legislators approved a gas pipeline bill that aligned with his vision. 

When the pipeline bill failed to materialize on Monday, the governor vetoed the pension bill.

The Senate Majority also prioritized elections reform and passed a bill on the topic earlier this year, but Dunleavy vetoed it. 

Legislators fell two votes short of an override because two Republican supporters flip-flopped and voted to sustain the governor’s choice. They had previously voted in favor of the bill.

“We passed the bills, and that’s all we can really get. It’s out of our hands at that point,” said Senate Majority Leader Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage.

The House Majority’s fourth priority was balancing the state’s budget, and while lawmakers successfully did so this year, the budget was balanced on the back of high oil prices caused by the Iran war, not because of a particular legislative action.

“In the beginning, we were worried about just keeping the (Permanent Fund dividend) alive and getting a balanced budget,” said Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, “and talking about how long our (Constitutional Budget Reserve) is going to last. Then, within a period of a couple of months, things totally changed, and the revenue forecast jumped up.”

When oil prices recede, legislators expect the state will again face major budget deficits.

“Next year will be a very, very difficult session,” Wielechowski said.

In the meantime, the state treasury is reaping wartime rewards, and lawmakers were able to balance the budget without spending from savings. 

They passed a multibillion-dollar state spending plan spread across four budget bills: $2.5 billion in construction and renovation projects, $13.9 billion for services, $450 million in retroactive budget changes, and a $1,000 Permanent Fund dividend bolstered by a $200 one-time energy relief bonus payment.

“Folks, this is what we accomplished, and we accomplished it on time and under budget,” said Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage, as he presented the final version of the operating budget bill on the House floor.

Members of the Republican House minority criticized the adopted budget for not spending more wartime oil revenue on the dividend. 

“My primary objection to this budget is that in FY26, the state is absolutely swimming in money,” said Rep. Will Stapp, R-Fairbanks.

“We should have waterfalled that extra money into the Permanent Fund dividend,” he said.

Both the operating budget and the capital budget are subject to the governor’s line-item veto powers. The governor can eliminate or reduce individual items, but he cannot add or increase them.

Kopp gave the majority coalition a “B” for its performance. Senate President Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak, thought the majority coalition there warranted an “A,” while Senate Minority Leader Mike Cronk, R-Tok, thought the Legislature overall merited a “B”. 

The last day of the session saw several lawmakers offer their goodbyes, including some who had not previously announced their retirement. 

“I am not planning on being back here for the 35th Alaska Legislature,” said Rep. Dan Saddler, R-Eagle River. Saddler has served for 12 nonconsecutive years in the House.

Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage, is retiring after 14 years in the House and received multiple rounds of applause. Rep. Louise Stutes, R-Kodiak, is leaving the House as well, but for a state Senate run rather than retirement.

Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, has not announced plans to leave the House, but he has been repeatedly named as a possible replacement for Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel. Hoffman is retiring as the longest-serving state legislator in Alaska history.

Senate President Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak and the oldest member of the Legislature, is also retiring. The Legislature’s youngest member is also leaving — Rep. David Nelson, R-Anchorage, is getting married this summer. 

After the final gavel fell, staff and legislators cheered and filed out of the chambers. 

Within an hour, Saddler was leading a group of them in songs that echoed up and down the Capitol’s stairwell.

Corinne Smith contributed reporting from Juneau.

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The Alaska Legislature has approved a state driver’s license data-sharing bill that would allow some travelers to speed through security at airports in Alaska.

On Wednesday, the Alaska Senate voted unanimously to approve Senate Bill 237, from Sen. Scott Kawasaki, D-Fairbanks. Because the House voted to pass the bill 40-0 on Tuesday, the Senate’s vote sends the bill to Gov. Mike Dunleavy for final approval or veto.

As originally drafted by Kawasaki, SB 237 would have only allowed the state Division of Motor Vehicles to share driver’s license information with “a nonprofit organization, governmental, or tribal entity.”

That would allow Alaskans to apply for a replacement Social Security card over the internet. Currently, someone who needs a replacement must visit an office in Juneau, Anchorage or Fairbanks in person. 

Alaska is the only state that does not allow residents to get a replacement card online.

In the House, Rep. Steve St. Clair, R-Wasilla, proposed an amendment that would allow the state to share driver’s license data with “an entity participating in the Transportation Security Administration’s Registered Traveler Programs.”

That includes CLEAR, a for-profit company that offers fast-lane service at airport security checkpoints across the country.

“There’s actually a contract between CLEAR and the (Anchorage) airport right now, they just can’t do anything or share data until we pass legislation saying that they can,” St. Clair said. 

House lawmakers approved that amendment unanimously.

At the urging of Rep. Andrew Gray, D-Anchorage, lawmakers also amended the bill with a section that will allow Alaskans to store digital copies of their driver’s licenses on their smartphones. 

If a police officer performs a traffic stop, that digital copy would be valid ID.

That amendment was originally a separate bill, House Bill 180, from the Office of the Governor. 

“For anyone who lives their life on their phone, this would be a wonderful convenience that the administration would like to offer,” Gray said.

That amendment passed the House by a 38-2 vote, and SB 237 proceeded toward a final vote in the Legislature without opposition.

Restaurants in Alaska will have to stop serving food in disposable polystyrene foam containers, under a bill passed by the Legislature and awaiting Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s signature.

The measure, House Bill 25, prohibits food establishments from using containers made of Styrofoam and similar plastic foam materials starting on Jan. 1. The bill applies to restaurants and to state agencies’ food operations, but it does not apply to containers sold in stores.

The prime sponsor, Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage, said he was inspired to introduce the bill after attending meetings of the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators and learning how other states are trying to curb plastic pollution.

There are several reasons to ban containers made from Styrofoam and other polystyrene, Josephson said at a May 11 hearing of the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee. The materials are linked to cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma and other health problems, like endocrine disruption. They cannot be recycled. And they crumble into tiny pieces that spread into the environment, including Alaska’s marine environment, he said.

The bill’s ban would be “historic,” Josephson said. “It would send a strong message that Alaska, with its massive coastlines, greater than the rest of the country, intends to clean up,” he said at the hearing.

Sen. Scott Kawasaki, D-Fairbanks, summarized the environmental concerns when he spoke in favor of the bill on the Senate floor on Monday. “Styrofoam never breaks down. It always floats away. And it can float through air and water,” he said.

Some Alaska municipalities already have such bans, Josephson and Kawasaki said, naming Bethel, Cordova and Seward as examples.

The bill went through several refinements after it was first introduced before the start of the 2025 session.

Lawmakers made some changes to ease the transition to non-polystyrene materials. The final bill allows restaurants to continue using polystyrene containers that had been stockpiled prior to the effective date of Jan. 1, 2027. Another change grants municipalities the option of allowing the containers.

The local-option change was important to Sen. Rob Yundt, R-Wasilla, and helped him overcome his earlier reluctance to support the bill. He and his wife own a restaurant and the ban “very well might cost us a little bit of money,” Yundt said in floor comments on Monday, when the bill won final passage in the Senate. “But I can tell you it’s common sense. It’s long overdue.”

Environmental groups praised the bill. Among the risks of polystyrene pollution cited by those groups is the damage to fish and wildlife, which mistake tiny bits of plastic for food.

“Alaska is on the frontlines of the global plastics crisis, and lawmakers are stepping up with meaningful solutions,” Christy Leavitt, senior campaign director at Oceana, said in a statement released Wednesday. “We are grateful to Rep. Andy Josephson as the bill’s sponsor and the support from legislators across party lines. By passing HB 25, Alaska is taking an important step to reduce harmful plastic pollution, protect ocean wildlife, and safeguard the health of Alaska’s communities.”

Other organizations that were prominent supporters were Alaska Community Action on Toxics and the Alaska Environment and Research Policy Center; the latter group conducted a study that found microplastics such in all 39 Southcentral Alaska water bodies it tested.

A national trade organization representing manufacturers of polystyrene materials opposed the bill.

Lindsay Stovall, director of state and regulatory affairs for the American Chemistry Council, described her organization’s objections in written comments and in committee testimony. She said the bill would impose costs on consumers, businesses and state agencies.

“While we support efforts to reduce plastic waste, we believe the legislation would increase costs, create implementation challenges, and fail to achieve its intended environmental objectives,” she said in testimony to the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee on May 15.

An analysis commissioned by her organization found that the Alaska Department of Corrections, for example, would have to spend an extra $1.8 million to switch to paper alternatives or $2.6 million to switch to degradable options, Stovall said.

However, the analysis of the bill conducted by the state Department of Revenue found that it would impose no additional costs on any state agency.

The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, which would oversee the ban, “can integrate compliance into existing processes without the need for regulatory development or significant additional staff workload,” and would be able to use previously allocated resources, according to the Department of Revenue’s fiscal analysis.

The bill does not apply to food-service items purchased in stores for home use or to storage containers such as those used to ship fish. The bill also contains an exemption for disaster emergencies.

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