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Trump administration sets terms for upcoming oil and gas lease sale in Alaska’s Cook Inlet

By: Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon

Low clouds hang over Cook Inlet north of Anchor Point on Oct. 23, 2025. The Trump administration is planning an oil and gas lease sale in federal territory of the inlet. It is set to be the first of at six Cook Inlet lease sales that Congress has mandated by held between now and 2032. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

The Trump administration on Monday outlined its plans to auction 1 million acres of federal offshore territory in what it has called the “Big Beautiful Cook Inlet Oil and Gas Lease Sale.”

The lease sale, to be held early next year under terms detailed in a notice published Monday in the Federal Register, is to be the first of at least six mandated for Cook Inlet through 2032 under the sweeping budget bill that Congress passed this summer. The bill also mandated 30 lease sales through 2040 in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

“President Trump’s signing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act marked the beginning of a new chapter for oil and gas development in the Gulf of America and Alaska’s Cook Inlet,” Matt Giacona, acting director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, said in a news release issued Friday. “BOEM is now moving forward with a predictable, congressionally mandated leasing schedule that will support offshore oil and gas development for decades to come.”

In the statement, the agency, which is the Department of the Interior division that oversees offshore oil and gas drilling in federal waters, touted the 12.5% royalty offered in the lease sale as an incentive to bidders. The agency statement noted that 12.5% is the lowest royalty rate allowed for offshore oil and gas production in federal territory.

Lease sale bids are to be opened on March 4.

Cook Inlet lease sales held in recent years, whether in federal or state territory, have drawn little industry interest. That is despite the use of some incentives, such as royalty-free terms.

There are only eight active leases in federal waters of Cook Inlet, all held by Hilcorp, the inlet’s dominant operator. One of those leases was acquired in a sale held at the end of 2022 under a requirement inserted into the Inflation Reduction Act; Hilcorp’s bid was the only one in that lease sale.

Hilcorp also was the sole bidder in a 2017 federal Cook Inlet lease sale, when it acquired 14 leases. Last year, it relinquished seven of those leases.

A map shows the planning area for the federal Cook Inlet oil and gas lease sale scheduled for early 2026. The lease sale is the first of six mandated under the budget bill passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump in July. (Map provided by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management)
A map shows the planning area for the federal Cook Inlet oil and gas lease sale scheduled for early 2026. The lease sale is the first of six mandated under the budget bill passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump in July. (Map provided by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management)

There is no pending exploration plan for Hilcorp’s eight federal Cook Inlet leases, according to the BOEM website.

Muted industry interest in past sales

Annual areawide Cook Inlet lease sales held by the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas, for both offshore and onshore state territory, have also produced few bids in recent years.

The 2025 state sale drew five bids, according to results released by the division in June. The 2024 sale drew three bids. The 2023 state sale drew six bids. Each sale offered more than 700 tracts spread over about 3 million acres, and in two of those lease sales, Hilcorp was the sole bidder.

For the upcoming federal lease Cook Inlet lease sale, rules used in the 2017 federal sale will apply, BOEM said.

The agency’s Federal Register notice kicked off a 60-day comment period — but only for Alaska’s governor and for local governments. It is unclear whether tribal governments or any other organizations are included among those invited to comment; a question posed to the Department of the Interior press office was not answered by Monday afternoon.

An automatic emailed message from BOEM spokesperson Jennifer Russo said she could not respond to questions on Monday because of the federal government shutdown.

One environmental group that opposes the lease sale plans to submit public comments nonetheless.

“They’re not asking for comments from the public. But we are still planning to make sure that the people who live in Cook Inlet and Alaska and around the country, their voices will be heard,” said Cooper Freeman, Alaska director of the Center for Biological Diversity.

There appears to be no prohibition on public comments, Freeman noted.

Even though recent Cook Inlet lease sales have drawn little industry interest, he said the center has worries about future leasing.

“We hope that there’s no bids, but we’re taking it very seriously,” he said. “All it takes is one drill rig, one pipeline to burst, and it would be over for the inlet.”

The upcoming Cook Inlet lease sale process is separate from a court-mandated review of the 2022 lease sale.

A lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity and other organizations resulted in a federal court ruling last year that found the presale analysis to be flawed. U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason ordered BOEM to conduct further analysis of leasing impacts to endangered Cook Inlet beluga whales and other natural resources.

BOEM, in a Federal Register notice published in September, said it plans to complete the supplemental impact statement by the end of the year.

The agency said that it will not release the draft study for public comment and will hold no public hearings on the draft, a departure from procedures followed in past environmental studies.

The lack of public comment opportunities or planned public hearings has angered some Cook Inlet area organizations.

Cook Inletkeeper, an environmental group, has launched a petition drive calling for the normal public process to be reinstated.

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DNA testing of bones at the Alaska crime lab can help shed light on cold cases, officials say

By: Corinne Smith, Alaska Beacon

The Alaska state crime lab in Anchorage seen on May 6, 2024. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

State and local law enforcement officials announced a breakthrough on a more than 25 year old cold case in Juneau this summer, thanks in part to a DNA analysis tool at the Alaska Scientific Crime Detection Lab.

Darryl Bruce Fawcett, an Alaska Native man, was 28 years old when he went missing in 1999. His remains were found by divers in the Gastineau Channel in 2004. In July, with the help of a tool that analyzes DNA from bones, officials said they were able to compare a sample with a family member’s DNA and identify Fawcett.

Darryl Bruce Fawcett was identified in July of 2025, after going missing in 1999. (Photo from Juneau Police Department's missing persons page)
Darryl Bruce Fawcett was identified in July of 2025, after going missing in 1999. (Photo from Juneau Police Department’s missing persons page)

“It is pretty rare, especially (with) that amount of time to have passed,” said Juneau Deputy Chief Krag Campbell, in August. “So I’m just happy that the family was able to get some closure on this.”

The forensic method is not new, but the Alaska Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory was able to adopt it with new federal grant funding, said crime lab chief David Kanaris. Forensic scientists are able to extract DNA from bones or teeth, which can be compared to DNA of a missing person or relative to make an identification.

Previously, bone samples would be sent out-of-state for testing, usually to the University of North Texas, Kanaris said. The state may continue that practice as needed. “We saw real value in bringing on an ability to do most of the work here in Alaska, where we can,” he said. 

Cheryl Duda, a forensic scientist and DNA technical leader at the crime lab, said this forensic method is one of many that investigators use when unidentified remains are recovered. 

“For many years now, our laboratory has been able to do testing on a very wide variety of body tissues like blood, saliva, hair roots and skin cells, but all of those are very soft tissue types,” she said. “What is different about this technology that we’re bringing online is it’s a method to extract DNA from bones.”

Duda said that first, any unidentified remains reported to the state go through the Alaska State Medical Examiner’s Office, which determines first if they are human or animal. If deemed human, and a bone or tooth is recoverable, the agency will send a sample to the crime lab for analysis. The DNA is then entered into a national DNA database, the Combined DNA Index System, commonly called CODIS, where investigators can search for a match.

The database can compare the sample with samples of known missing persons, family members, or other samples that law enforcement has collected from crimes or that have been submitted by the public.   

“That’s the big first step for us, is generating this profile in the hopes of getting that match or that association in state, so that we can report those results,” Duda said. 

Jennifer Foster is a forensic scientist and supervisor at the crime lab, and said that the next step requires coordination across agencies. State employees work with the Federal Bureau of Investigation that governs CODIS, other forensic labs, and local and state law enforcement departments conducting investigations. “So there’s a lot of communication,” she said.

Officials at the crime lab say they’re working on a list of remains to be tested from the Alaska Medical Examiner’s Office, and cases are prioritized as they come into the lab. Once DNA samples are entered into the national database, the search continues. 

“So that profile routinely searches every night,” Duda said. “It does missing persons searches monthly. Relatives of missing person searches monthly. So as long as it doesn’t need to be removed for whatever reason, it stays in there and will search.”

Austin McDaniel, director of communications for the Alaska Department of Public Safety, said the state has analyzed three more cases since August, but no identifications have been made.

McDaniel said each case of unidentified remains is prioritized as it comes in through the Medical Examiner’s office, and investigators pursue and coordinate leads for identification. He said the new tool won’t necessarily unlock the state’s cold cases.

“If pulling DNA from bone fragments would have been helpful before, you know, either the crime lab or the medical examiner could have sent that out to other labs to have it completed. So I wouldn’t say there’s, like, this huge backlog of cases that just haven’t ever been worked,” he said.

There are currently 60 unidentified persons cases open in Alaska, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons Database, which goes back to 1968. The most recent unidentified remains on that list are bones found in a creek on Aug. 24 in Anchorage.

McDaniel said new DNA samples also get shared with the national database by the public through commercial at-home genetic testing, which can be shared with law enforcement. “That’s usually a box people can check, something like that might happen. Or maybe we go through and have family members reach out to us and offer familial DNA samples that can be compared against,” he said.

McDaniel said local law enforcement investigators can request the DNA analysis as they pursue leads. “An investigator from any number of agencies, not just the Troopers, as they’re trying to go through and maybe work on some of these cases they might go through to reach out to a family member proactively that they suspect might be related to the decedent, and see they can collect a voluntary sample from from them,” he said. 

Kanaris, as head of the crime lab, acknowledged these are sensitive cases, especially as Alaska grapples with a crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people. Alaska Native residents are disproportionately victims of violent crime. At least 27% of the 1,268 known cases on the state’s Missing Persons Clearinghouse database, managed by the Alaska Department of Public Safety, involve Alaska Native people. 

“We have worked with the tribal liaisons, understanding that a lot of these bones may come from Alaska Native remains,” Kanaris said. “And so we want to handle these samples as sensitively as we can and be as culturally aware as we can.”

He said another benefit of having this DNA analysis tool in the state’s crime lab, is handling cases more promptly. 

“They’re going to involve less transit time. The bones are going to stay in state, and they will, hopefully, be able to be returned to the families for closure as soon as possible. That would be one of the benefits of this,” he said. 

“I’d like to see us be able to work as many of the samples, not just with bones, but across the board, with forensic science samples in Alaska, at the Alaska crime lab,” he said. “So I think this is a big step forward for us.”

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Juneau will observe Veterans Day with Ceremonies and Community Meals

NOTN- Juneau residents are honoring military service members today with Veterans Day ceremonies and community gatherings across the city, including events at Centennial Hall and the American Legion Post 25 near the ferry terminal.

At 11 a.m., a formal Veterans Day observance is taking place at Centennial Hall.

“Veterans Day is celebrating the service and sacrifice of veterans living and deceased. So on Veterans Day, you could say Happy Veterans Day, or thank you for your service and thank you for all that you’ve done for our country.” said Duff Mitchel of the American Legion.

Later in the day, the American Legion Post 25 will host a free community dinner for veterans and their families beginning at 5 p.m.

“It’ll go until the food runs out,” Duff said.

Duff added the City and Borough of Juneau helped with the observation at Centennial Hall.

“They gave us some financial background to help at Centennial Hall, and many communities across the country really help the veterans groups on on Veterans Day.”

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Anchorage state senator enters crowded Alaska gubernatorial field

By: Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon

Sen. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, speaks at a March 19, 2024, news conference held by the Senate majority caucus. Claman on Monday became the 14th candidate and second Democrat in the race to become Alaska’s next governor. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

There are now 14 candidates vying to become Alaska’s next governor.

State Sen. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, announced his candidacy on Monday. He is the second Democrat in the race, after former Senate Minority Leader Tom Begich, also of Anchorage. The other 12 declared candidates are Republicans.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, is term-limited and not running.

Claman, an attorney and former Anchorage Assembly chair and acting mayor, has served in the Legislature since 2015. He served first in the House before being elected to the Senate in 2022. He is among the leaders of that body’s bipartisan majority caucus and chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.

In a statement, Claman referred to his experience in the bipartisan caucus.

“As Governor, I’ll work every day to ensure our state government reflects the values we all share: safe streets, great schools, business-friendly regulations, and a growing economy that works for businesses and working families,” he said in the statement. “Our state deserves a leader who listens to and works together with the people of Alaska, leads with care, upholds our constitution, and sets partisanship aside to deliver real results. That’s exactly what I’ve done in the Legislature and what I’ll do for you as your governor.”

Claman, who represents West Anchorage, was reelected to the Senate last year. He would not be up for reelection until 2028.

In a brief interview Monday, Claman said he timed his announcement with fundraising rules in mind.

“It’s basically a year before the election. Because of the limits on fundraising – and I’m not going to resign – I need to get started before the session,” he said.

Under state law, sitting legislators may not raise campaign funds during legislative sessions, which in 2026 is scheduled to run from Jan. 21 to May 20.

Claman said he started sending out fundraising solidifications after he filed his notice of intent to run for governor.

Former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola is considered by observers to be the strongest potential Democratic candidate for governor, but she is also a possible candidate for U.S. Senate. Several Democratic leaders have urged her to challenge Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, who is up for reelection next year.

The primary election date is Aug. 18, 2026. The candidate filing deadline is June 1.

Alaska’s gubernatorial candidates will compete in an open primary, with the top four finishers facing off in the general election under the state’s ranked-choice system.

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Shutdown leaves a mark on an already-struggling economy, from lost paychecks to canceled flights

The Alaska and American flags fly in front of the Alaska State Capitol on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
The Alaska and American flags fly in front of the Alaska State Capitol on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

AP- The longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history appears to be nearing an end, but not without leaving a mark on an already-struggling economy.

About 1.25 million federal workers haven’t been paid since Oct. 1. Thousands of flights have been canceled, a trend that is expected to continue this week even as Congress moves toward reopening the government. Government contract awards have slowed and some food aid recipients have seen their benefits interrupted.

Most of the lost economic activity will be recovered when the government reopens, as federal workers will receive back pay. But some canceled flights won’t be retaken, missed restaurant meals won’t be made up, and some postponed purchases will end up not happening at all.

“Short-lived shutdowns are usually invisible in the data, but this one will leave a lasting mark,” Gregory Daco, chief economist at accounting giant EY said, “both because of its record length and the growing disruptions to welfare programs and travel.”

The Congressional Budget Office estimated that a six-week shutdown will reduce growth in this year’s fourth quarter by about 1.5 percentage points. That would cut growth by half from the third quarter. The reopening should boost first-quarter growth next year by 2.2 percentage points, the CBO projected, but about $11 billion in economic activity will be permanently lost.

The previous longest government shutdown, in 2018-2019, lasted 35 days but only partially shut the government because many agencies had been fully funded. It only nicked the economy by about 0.02% of GDP, the CBO said then.

The current shutdown is adding to the economy’s existing challenges, which include sluggish hiring, stubbornly elevated inflation, and President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which have caused uncertainty for many businesses. Still, few economists foresee a recession.

About 650,000 federal workers didn’t work during the shutdown, which will likely boost the unemployment rate by about 0.4 percentage points in October, or to 4.7% from 4.3% in August, when the last report was released. Those workers would all then be counted as employed once the government reopens.

Here are the ways the government closure is weighing on the economy:

Missed paychecks

All told, federal workers will have missed about $16 billion in wages by mid-November, the CBO estimates. That has meant less spending at stores, restaurants, and likely reduced holiday travel. Large purchases will probably be postponed, slowing the broader economy.

Trump had threatened during the shutdown to not provide back pay but the deal struck in Congress would replace those lost wages once the government reopens.

The shutdown has added to the Washington, D.C. area’s economic woes, where the unemployment rate was already 6% before the shutdown, after Trump’s cuts to the federal workforce this spring caused job losses. While the Washington, D.C. area — including the nearby suburbs in Virginia and Maryland — has the highest concentration of federal workers, most live and work outside of the nation’s capital.

Federal workers make up about 5.5% of Maryland’s workforce, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center. But they also comprise 2.9% of New Mexico’s workers, 2.6% of Oklahoma’s, and 3.8% of Alaska’s.

Then there are the federal contractors. Bernard Yaros, an economist at Oxford Economics, estimates they could total as many as 5.2 million, and they are not guaranteed back pay once the shutdown ends.

Flight disruptions

Airlines scrapped more than 2,000 flights by Monday evening after canceling 5,500 since Friday on orders from the Federal Aviation Administration, which is seeking to reduce the burden on overworked air traffic controllers, who have now missed two paychecks.

Even before the flight cancellations, Tourism Economics, an economic consulting firm, estimated that the shutdown would reduce travel spending by $63 million a day, which means a six-week standoff would cost the travel industry $2.6 billion.

The canceled flights also mean less business for hotels, restaurants, and taxi drivers. And federal employees have already pulled the plug on upcoming trips, according to Tourism Economics, which may not be able to be rescheduled even when the government does reopen.

Consumer sentiment

The shutdown has worsened Americans’ outlook on the broader economy. Declining consumer sentiment can over time reduce spending and slow growth, though in recent years Americans have kept shopping even when their outlooks turned grim.

Consumer sentiment dropped to a three-year low and close to the lowest point ever recorded in a survey by the University of Michigan, reported Friday, with pessimism over personal finances and anticipated business conditions weighing on Americans.

The November survey showed the index of consumer sentiment at 50.4, down a startling 6.2% from last month and a plunge of nearly 30% from a year ago.

Federal spending

While the shutdown hasn’t cut off all federal government spending, it has reduced purchases of equipment and has cut off the issuance of new contracts.

Yaros estimates that about $800 million in new contracts were at risk of not being awarded each day of the shutdown.

“The federal award spigot has all but turned off at the Department of Defense, NASA, and the Department of Homeland Security,” Yaros wrote.

SNAP benefits

The shutdown delayed the payment of $8 billion in monthly SNAP food aid to 42 million recipients in November, creating a significant financial disruption for many households that likely reduced spending. Some states have managed to pay full benefits for this month, though the Trump administration is still fighting over the issue in court.

The deal currently under consideration in Congress to reopen the government includes full funding of SNAP benefits.

Interest rate cuts

The government shutdown cut off the flow of economic data on unemployment, inflation, and retail spending that the Federal Reserve depends on to monitor the economy’s health. Even as the government reopens, some of that data will still be delayed. As a result, the Fed may not deliver a third interest rate cut at its December meeting, which was widely expected before the shutdown.

“What do you do if you’re driving in the fog? You slow down,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at a news conference late last month.

Powell said the Fed’s interest-rate setting committee is deeply divided over whether to reduce its key rate, partly because the economy’s health is unusually cloudy right now. The government has missed two monthly jobs reports and the October inflation data, scheduled to be published Thursday, will likely never be issued.

Powell said a rate cut in December was not a “foregone conclusion” and added that the lack of data could contribute to a decision by the Fed to skip a rate cut at its next meeting December 9-10. Fewer rate cuts could discourage borrowing and spending and weigh on the economy in the coming months.

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Senate approves bill to end the shutdown, sending it to the House

AP-The Senate passed legislation Monday to reopen the government, bringing the longest shutdown in history closer to an end as a small group of Democrats ratified a deal with Republicans despite searing criticism from within their party.

The 41-day shutdown could last a few more days as members of the House, which has been on recess since mid-September, return to Washington to vote on the legislation. President Donald Trump has signaled support for the bill, saying Monday that “we’re going to be opening up our country very quickly.”

The final Senate vote, 60-40, broke a grueling stalemate that lasted more than six weeks as Democrats demanded that Republicans negotiate with them to extend health care tax credits that expire Jan. 1. The Republicans never did, and five moderate Democrats eventually switched their votes as federal food aid was delayed, airport delays worsened and hundreds of thousands of federal workers continued to go unpaid.

House Speaker Mike Johnson urged lawmakers to start returning to Washington “right now” given shutdown-related travel delays, but an official notice issued after the Senate vote said the earliest the House will vote is Wednesday afternoon.

“It appears our long national nightmare is finally coming to an end,” said Johnson, who has kept the House out of session since mid-September, when the House passed a bill to continue government funding.

How the stalemate ended

After weeks of negotiations, A group of three former governors — New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine — agreed to vote to advance three bipartisan annual spending bills and extend the rest of government funding until late January. Republicans promised to hold a vote to extend the health care subsidies by mid-December, but there was no guarantee of success.

Shaheen said Monday that “this was the option on the table” after Republicans had refused to budge.

“We had reached a point where I think a number of us believed that the shutdown had been very effective in raising the concern about health care,” she said, and the promise for a future vote “gives us an opportunity to continue to address that going forward.”

The legislation includes a reversal of the mass firings of federal workers by the Trump administration since the shutdown began on Oct. 1. It also protects federal workers against further layoffs through January and guarantees they are paid once the shutdown is over.

In addition to Shaheen, King and Hassan, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, home to tens of thousands of federal workers, also voted Sunday in favor of moving forward on the agreement. Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman and Nevada Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen also voted yes. All other Democrats, including Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York, voted against it.

The moderates had expected a larger number of Democrats to vote with them as 10 to 12 Democratic senators had been part of the negotiations. But in the end, only five switched their votes — the exact number that Republicans needed. King, Cortez Masto and Fetterman had already been voting to open the government since Oct. 1.

Many Democrats call the vote a “mistake”

Schumer, who received blowback from his party in March when he voted to keep the government open, said he could not “in good faith” support it after meeting with his caucus for more than two hours on Sunday.

“We will not give up the fight,” Schumer said, adding that Democrats have now “sounded the alarm” on health care.

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who caucuses with the Democrats, said giving up the fight was a “horrific mistake.” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., agreed, saying that voters who overwhelmingly supported Democrats in last week’s elections were urging them to “hold firm.”

House Democrats swiftly criticized the Senate.

Texas Rep. Greg Casar, the chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said a deal that doesn’t reduce health care costs is a “betrayal” of millions of Americans who are counting on Democrats to fight.

Others gave Schumer a nod of support. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries had criticized Schumer in March after his vote to keep the government open. But he praised the Senate Democratic leader on Monday and expressed support for his leadership throughout the shutdown.

“The American people know we are on the right side of this fight,” Jeffries said Monday, pointing to Tuesday’s election results.

Health care debate ahead

It’s unclear whether the two parties would be able to find any common ground on the health care subsidies before a promised December vote in the Senate. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has said he will not commit to bringing it up in his chamber.

On Monday, Johnson said House Republicans have always been open to voting to reform what he called the “unaffordable care act” but again did not say if they would vote on the subsidies.

Some Republicans have said they are open to extending the COVID-19-era tax credits as premiums could skyrocket for millions of people, but they also want new limits on who can receive the subsidies. Some argue that the tax dollars for the plans should be routed through individuals.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins said Monday that she’s supportive of extending the tax credits with changes, like new income caps. Some Democrats have signaled they could be open to that idea.

“We do need to act by the end of the year, and that is exactly what the majority leader has promised,” Collins said.

Other Republicans, including Trump, have used the debate to renew their yearslong criticism of the law and called for it to be scrapped or overhauled.

In a possible preview, the Senate voted 47-53 along party lines Monday not to extend the subsidies for a year. Majority Republicans allowed the vote as part of a separate deal with Democrats to speed up votes and send the legislation to the House.

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US flight cancellations expected to drag on even after the government shutdown ends

Alaska Airlines planes are shown parked at gates with Mount Rainier in the background on March 1, 2021, at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

AP- The flight cancellations at airports across the U.S. are expected to persist even after the government shutdown ends.

The Federal Aviation Administration has reduced flights as some air traffic controllers — unpaid for weeks — have stopped showing up for work.

The Senate took a first step toward ending the shutdown Sunday, but final passage could still be several days away. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy made clear last week that flight cuts will remain in place until the FAA sees safety metrics improve.

Over the weekend, airlines canceled thousands of flights to comply with the order to eliminate 4% of flights. The cancellations are scheduled to rise to 6% of all flights at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports on Tuesday. By the end of the week, flight cancellations are scheduled to reach 10% of all flights at those airports.

Already, travelers are growing frustrated.

“All of this has real negative consequences for millions of Americans, and it’s 100% unnecessary and avoidable,” said Todd Walker, whose flight from San Francisco to Washington state was canceled over the weekend, causing him to miss his mom’s 80th birthday party.

As of Monday morning, airlines had already canceled 1,600 flights for Monday and nearly 1,000 for Tuesday. International flights have not been affected.

Beyond the mandated cuts, flight delays have been rippling through airports nationwide at times ever since the shutdown began. That’s because the FAA slows air traffic anytime it’s short on controllers at one of its facilities to ensure flights remain safe.

Tuesday will be the second missed payday for air traffic controllers and other FAA employees. It’s unclear how quickly they might be paid once the shutdown ends. The head of the controllers union, Nick Daniels, plans a news conference Monday morning to address the shutdown’s toll.

“More controllers aren’t coming to work day by day, the further they go without a paycheck,” Duffy said.

The government has struggled for years with a shortage of air traffic controllers, and Duffy said the shutdown has worsened the problem, prompting some controllers to retire early or quit. Before the shutdown, Duffy had been working to address the shortage by hiring more controllers, speeding up training and offering bonuses to retain experienced controllers.

Duffy warned over the weekend that if the shutdown drags on, the situation could deteriorate further as the U.S. heads into the busy holiday travel season. He said air travel may “be reduced to a trickle” by the week of Thanksgiving.

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Alaska Division of Elections begins reviewing petition to repeal election reform law

By: James Brooks, Alaska Beacon

“I voted” stickers are seen on display in the headquarters offices of the Alaska Division of Elections in Juneau on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

State elections officials have begun reviewing signatures gathered by people opposed to Alaska’s system of open primary elections and ranked-choice general elections to determine whether a repeal ballot measure will appear before voters in 2026.

Alaskans enacted the state’s existing elections system via a ballot measure in 2020, and a repeal measure last year failed by only 737 votes out of 320,985 cast. 

Proponents of the repeal vowed at that time to renew their effort and began gathering signatures in February to force another vote. 

Based on state law and the number of people who voted in the 2024 statewide election, repeal supporters needed to collect signatures from at least 34,099 registered voters, including a certain minimum number in at least 30 of the 40 state House districts.

This week, supporters of the repeal measure said they were submitting more than 48,000 signatures to the Alaska Division of Elections for review. 

If the repeal petition is deemed to have enough signatures, it would go before voters in either the 2026 primary or the 2026 general election, depending upon the length of next year’s state legislative session.

If voters approve the measure in 2026, all three components of the 2020 ballot measure would be repealed. 

That would have three main results. Financial donors to political campaigns would be able to conceal their identity by contributing to a political nonprofit, which could donate money to causes on their behalf. 

The 2020 law, currently in effect, requires campaigns to disclose the “true source” of their money.

The second effect would be the repeal of the state’s open primary system, in which all candidates, regardless of political party, run in the same race. Under the current law, the top four vote-getters in a given race advance to the general election.

If that is repealed, political parties would be able to determine the rules for deciding which of their candidates advance to the November general election.

The third change is to general election. Instead of voters being allowed to rank all candidates in order of preference, voters would be able to choose only one candidate, and the candidate with the most votes would win.

One other ballot measure, which would reimpose a limit on financial donations to political candidates, has already been certified and is slated for the 2026 ballot.

Two other ballot measures remain in the signature-gathering process. One would decriminalize several psychedelic substances, and the other would reinforce the state’s existing prohibition on noncitizen voting. 

Backers of those measures must gather sufficient signatures before the start of the January legislative session in order to force a vote in 2026.

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States face uncertainty as Trump administration tries to reverse SNAP food payments

AP- States administering a federal food aid program serving about 42 million Americans faced uncertainty Monday over whether they can — and should — provide full monthly benefits during an ongoing legal battle involving the U.S. government shutdown.

President Donald Trump’s administration over the weekend demanded that states “undo” full benefits that were paid under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program during a one-day window between when a federal judge ordered full funding and a Supreme Court justice put a temporary pause on that order.

A federal appeals court in Boston left the full benefits order in place late on Sunday, though the Supreme Court order ensures the government won’t have to pay out for at least 48 hours.

“The record here shows that the government sat on its hands for nearly a month, unprepared to make partial payments, while people who rely on SNAP received no benefits a week into November and counting,” Judge Julie Rikleman of the U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals wrote.

The Supreme Court gave the Trump administration until 11 a.m. EST Monday to say whether it wanted to keep the full payments on hold. The pause the court imposed last week will expire Tuesday night without further court action. Congress is considering whether to fund SNAP as part of a proposal to end the government shutdown.

Some states are warning of “catastrophic operational disruptions” if the Trump administration does not reimburse them for those SNAP benefits they already authorized. Meanwhile, other states are providing partial monthly SNAP benefits with federal money or using their own funds to load electronic benefit cards for SNAP recipients.

Millions receive aid while others wait

Trump’s administration initially said SNAP benefits would not be available in November because of the government shutdown. After some states and nonprofit groups sued, judges in Massachusetts and Rhode Island each ruled the administration could not skip November’s benefits entirely.

The administration then said it would use an emergency reserve fund to provide 65% of the maximum monthly benefit. On Thursday, Rhode Island-based U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell said that wasn’t good enough, and ordered full funding for SNAP benefits by Friday.

Some states acted quickly to direct their EBT vendors to disburse full monthly benefits to SNAP recipients. Millions of people in those states received funds to buy groceries before Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson put McConnell’s order on hold Friday night, pending further deliberation by an appeals court.

Millions more people still have not received SNAP payments for November, because their states were waiting on further guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers SNAP.

“Continued delays deepen suffering for children, seniors, and working families, and force nonprofits to shoulder an even heavier burden,” Diane Yentel, President and CEO, National Council of Nonprofits, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said in a statement Monday. “If basic decency and humanity don’t compel the administration to assure food security for all Americans, then multiple federal court judges finding its actions unlawful must.”

Trump’s administration has argued that the judicial order to provide full benefits violates the Constitution by infringing on the spending power of the legislative and executive branches.

States are fighting attempt to freeze SNAP benefits

On Sunday, the Trump administration said states had moved too quickly and erroneously released full SNAP benefits after last week’s rulings.

“States must immediately undo any steps taken to issue full SNAP benefits for November 2025,” Patrick Penn, deputy undersecretary of Agriculture, wrote to state SNAP directors. He warned that states could face penalties if they did not comply.

Wisconsin, which was among the first to load full benefits after McConnell’s order, had its federal reimbursement frozen. As a result, the state’s SNAP account could be depleted as soon as Monday, leaving no money to reimburse stores that sell food to SNAP recipients, according to a court filing submitted by those that had sued.

Some Democratic governors vowed to challenge any federal attempt to claw back money.

In Connecticut, Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont said “those who received their benefits should not worry about losing them.”

“No, Connecticut does not need to take back SNAP benefits already sent to the 360,000 people who depend on them for food and who should have never been caught in the middle of this political fight,” Lamont said. “We have their back.”

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Senate takes first step toward ending the government shutdown

AP-The Senate took the first step to end the government shutdown on Sunday after a group of moderate Democrats agreed to proceed without a guaranteed extension of health care subsidies, angering many in their caucus who say Americans want them to continue the fight.

In a test vote that is the first in a series of required procedural maneuvers, the Senate voted 60-40 to move toward passing compromise legislation to fund the government and hold a later vote on extending Affordable Care Act tax credits that expire Jan. 1. Final passage could be several days away if Democrats object and delay the process.

The agreement does not guarantee the health care subsidies will be extended, as Democrats have demanded for almost six weeks. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York voted against moving ahead with the package, along with all but eight of his Democratic colleagues.

A group of three former governors — New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine — broke the six-week stalemate on Sunday when they agreed to vote to advance three bipartisan annual spending bills and extend the rest of government funding until late January in exchange for a mid-December vote on extending the health care tax credits.

The agreement also includes a reversal of the mass firings of federal workers by the Trump administration since the shutdown began on Oct. 1 and would ensure that federal workers receive back pay.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune quickly endorsed the deal and called an immediate vote to begin the process of approving it as the shutdown continued to disrupt flights nationwide, threaten food assistance for millions of Americans and leave federal workers without pay.

“The time to act is now,” Thune said.

Returning to the White House on Sunday evening after attending a football game, President Donald Trump did not say whether he endorsed the deal. But he said, “It looks like we’re getting close to the shutdown ending.”

Five Democrats switch votes

In addition to Shaheen, King and Hassan, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, home to tens of thousands of federal workers, also voted in favor of moving forward on the agreement. Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman and Nevada Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen also voted yes.

The moderates had expected a larger number of Democrats to vote with them as 10-12 Democratic senators had been part of the negotiations. But in the end, only five Democrats switched their votes — the exact number that Republicans needed. King, Cortez Masto and Fetterman had already been voting to open the government since Oct. 1.

The vote was temporarily delayed on Sunday evening as three conservatives who often criticize spending bills, Republican Sens. Mike Lee of Utah, Rick Scott of Florida and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, withheld their votes and huddled with Thune at the back of the chamber. They eventually voted yes after speaking to Trump, Lee said.

Another Republican, Sen John Cornyn of Texas, had to fly back from Texas to deliver the crucial 60th vote.

Schumer votes no

After Democrats met for over two hours to discuss the proposal, Schumer said he could not “in good faith” support it.

Schumer, who received blowback from his party in March when he voted to keep the government open, said that Democrats have now “sounded the alarm” on health care.

“We will not give up the fight,” he said.

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who caucuses with the Democrats, said giving up the fight was a “horrific mistake.”

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., agreed, saying that in last week’s elections people voted overwhelmingly Democratic “to urge Democrats to hold firm.”

A bipartisan agreement

Democrats had voted 14 times not to reopen the government as they demanded the extension of tax credits that make coverage more affordable under the Affordable Care Act. Republicans said they would not negotiate on health care, but GOP leaders have been quietly working with the group of moderates as the contours of an agreement began to emerge.

The agreement includes bipartisan bills worked out by the Senate Appropriations Committee to fund parts of government — food aid, veterans programs and the legislative branch, among other things. All other funding would be extended until the end of January, giving lawmakers more than two months to finish additional spending bills.

The deal would reinstate federal workers who had received reduction in force, or layoff, notices and reimburse states that spent their own funds to keep federal programs running during the shutdown. It would also protect against future reductions in force through January and guarantee federal workers would be paid once the shutdown is over.

House Democrats push back

House Democrats swiftly criticized the Senate.

Texas Rep. Greg Casar, the chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said a deal that doesn’t reduce health care costs is a “betrayal” of millions of Americans who are counting on Democrats to fight.

“Accepting nothing but a pinky promise from Republicans isn’t a compromise — it’s capitulation,” Casar said in a post on X. “Millions of families would pay the price.”

Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota posted that “if people believe this is a ‘deal,’ I have a bridge to sell you.”

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries blamed Republicans and said Democrats will continue to fight.

“Donald Trump and the Republican Party own the toxic mess they have created in our country and the American people know it,” Jeffries said.

Health care debate ahead

It’s unclear whether the two parties would be able to find any common ground on the health care subsidies before a promised December vote in the Senate. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has said he will not commit to bring it up in his chamber.

Some Republicans have said they are open to extending the COVID-19-era tax credits as premiums could skyrocket for millions of people, but they also want new limits on who can receive the subsidies and argue that the tax dollars for the plans should be routed through individuals.

Other Republicans, including Trump, have used the debate to renew their yearslong criticism of the law and called for it to be scrapped or overhauled.

Shutdown effects worsen

Meanwhile, the consequences of the shutdown have been compounding. U.S. airlines canceled more than 2,000 flights on Sunday for the first time since the shutdown began, and there were more than 7,000 flight delays, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks air travel disruptions.

Treasury Secretary Sean Duffy said on CNN’s “State of the Union” that air travel ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday will be “reduced to a trickle” if the government doesn’t reopen.

At the same time, food aid was delayed for tens of millions of people as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits were caught up in legal battles related to the shutdown.

And in Washington, home to tens of thousands of federal workers who have gone unpaid, the Capital Area Food Bank said it is providing 8 million more meals ahead of the holidays than it had prepared for this budget year — a nearly 20% increase.

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