Alaska news

• Search on for escaped inmate in Petersburg

  12-02-2016 23:57
  
  Petersburg police are searching for an inmate who escaped from the Petersburg jail Friday morning.
  Police reported the escape of 22-year-old Jacob Sturgeon of Petersburg just before 11 a.m. on Friday. He reportedly removed his shirt and shoes while running past the borough’s public works shop on South Second Street. Sturgeon was described as 5 foot nine inches, 180 pounds with brown hair.
  Sturgeon was in custody and charged with two counts of assault and one count of resisting arrest. 
  
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• Anchorage apparel brand highlights everyday experiences in Alaska - KTVA.com - Alaska News and Weather

  12-02-2016 23:11
  KTVA.com - Alaska News and Weather
  Anchorage apparel brand highlights everyday experiences in Alaska
  KTVA.com - Alaska News and Weather
  Brett Connor's new shop, located at the corner of Spenard Road and Fireweed Lane, is a world apart from his humble beginnings. Connor got his start designing and screenprinting the artwork for his brand, Hulin Alaskan Design, in a shed. “There happened ...
  

• Schools: What’s working

  12-02-2016 23:00
  
  News of the moment in Alaska can be unsettling: budget cuts, education leadership shifts, testing challenges—the list goes on. But something we all know is this:  Every day, thousands of Anchorage School District students walk into classrooms with focused teachers standing there, ready to make great things happen. And they do! We thought it worthy of our time to take a minute and hear from teachers and leaders in the trenches on what they are working on, and the results they are seein
  
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• WISH on probation, but questions arise

  12-02-2016 22:55
  
  Ketchikan’s Women in Safe Homes (WISH) has been on probation since last fall after a site visit by the state Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault found the emergency shelter out of compliance with various regulations.
  WISH officials, though, say there was no warning from the state council that there were any problems. In fact, just a few months prior, the shelter had received notice of compliance, praising the program for following regulations.
  In summer of 2015, a representativ
  
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• 49 Voices: Laurie Fernandes of Anchorage

  12-02-2016 22:30
  
  This week we’re hearing from Laurie Fernandes. Laurie moved to Anchorage with her husband and children last June from Houston, TX.
  Laurie Fernandes (Photo by Wesley Early, Alaska Public Media)
  FERNADES: When we told people we were moving up here, we got different reactions. There were some people who kind of chuckled like, “Well… you know, have a good life. We’ll see you. You’re way up there.” And then other people had been here and were so excited and said,
  
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• Anchorage, Willow will host Iditarod starts despite low snow

  12-02-2016 22:19
  
  Willow musher Lisbet Norris prepares for the 2015 Iditarod ceremonial start. (Photo by Zachariah Hughes, KSKA – Anchorage)
  Organizers have decided that a lack of snow in the Anchorage area won’t force a route change for this year’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.
  The decision was made Friday by the race board of directors.
  The start of the race will be staged as usual in Willow, about 50 miles north of Anchorage. The board had considered moving it further north over the Alaska Ra
  
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• How safe is Alaska’s drinking water?

  12-02-2016 22:00
  
  How safe is your drinking water? Most communities can be confident that their supply is fine, but Flint Michigan showed the nation that bad things can happen.
  HOST: Lori Townsend
  GUESTS:
  Brett Jokela, Anchorage Water and Wastewater utility
  Cindy Christian, manager, DEC Drinking Water Program
  Marc Harmon, environment manager, Golden Heart Utility
  Statewide callers
  Participate:
  Call 550-8422 (Anchorage) or 1-800-478-8255 (statewide) during the live broadcast
  Post your comment before, during o
  
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• Legislative Council seeks advice on downtown Anchorage office

  12-02-2016 21:29
  
  Sen. Gary Stevens addresses a joint session of the Alaska Legislature during debate about confirmations of the governor’s appointees, April 17, 2014. (Photo by Skip Gray/Gavel Alaska)
  The Legislative Council is seeking advice from an independent finance expert on what to do about the controversial lease on the Legislative Information Office in downtown Anchorage.
  Council Chairman Sen. Gary Stevens, a Kodiak Republican, said Thursday the council would benefit from a fresh perspective.
  
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• Walker administration and union reach tentative 3-year deal with furloughs, no raises

  12-02-2016 21:25
  
  Walker administration and union reach tentative 3-year deal with furloughs, no raises The proposal, which comes with the Alaska's massive budget crisis as a backdrop, must still be approved by the full membership of the union and the Legislature.February 12, 2016
  
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• Quintillion plans to deliver fiber optic cable, high-speed internet by early 2017

  12-02-2016 21:24
  
  Quintillion will start laying cable in June and finish construction in early September, according to spokesperson Tim Woolston. He said local customers should have faster internet by early 2017. (Image: Quintillion Networks)
  After delays last year, Quintillion Networks has an update on the fiber optic cable project that will bring high-speed internet to western Alaska.
  The company will start laying cable in June and finish construction in early September. That’s according to Tim Woolston,
  
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• Small commercial fishing boats need life rafts this month

  12-02-2016 21:20
  
  (Photo from http://pacificmarinedist.com)
  Fishermen in Southeast Alaska are learning about new safety requirements for life rafts that take effect later this month. The changes are included in past Coast Guard re-authorization bills and will mean smaller fishing boats will have to have a life raft to go three miles offshore.
  Coast Guard commercial fishing vessel examiners were in Petersburg this month offering free dockside exams for boats getting ready to go out in a variety of fisheries this m
  
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• Organizations call for ban of heavy fuel oil in Arctic waters

  12-02-2016 21:08
  
  A group of non-governmental organizations recently sent a letter to the state department calling for a ban on heavy fuel oil, or HFO, in Arctic waters. HFO is tough to cleanup, but the widespread use of HFO throughout the Arctic makes the ban an especially hard sell.
  In the Arctic, HFO is used in both big and small ways. It fuels large cargo ships and helps heat and power homes in Canada and Russia. It’s banned in Antarctic waters and in northern Europe, partly due to its dirty e
  
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• Oragnizations call for ban of heavy fuel oil in Arctic waters

  12-02-2016 21:08
  
  A group of non-governmental organizations recently sent a letter to the state department calling for a ban on heavy fuel oil, or HFO, in Arctic waters. HFO is tough to cleanup, but the widespread use of HFO throughout the Arctic makes the ban an especially hard sell.
  In the Arctic, HFO is used in both big and small ways. It fuels large cargo ships and helps heat and power homes in Canada and Russia. It’s banned in Antarctic waters and in northern Europe, partly due to its dirty e
  
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• The Story of “Anne” Continues… at VPA

  12-02-2016 19:17
  
  L-R Shane Conrad, Amanda Mayer
  Those who are familiar with Anne of Green Gables may or may not be surprised that author L. M. Montgomery wrote several more books about the character of Anne Shirley, and some of those have been tuned into stage plays as well. Valley Performing Arts is presenting the second episode in the life of Anne in the play, Anne of Avonlea opening February 19th and running through March 13th. The mother/daughter actress team of Laura and Kayla Horning along with VPA Executi
  
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• The push to hire locally in AK

  12-02-2016 19:00
  
  
  The number of nonresident workers in Alaska surpassed the number of residential workers in 2014. What’s causing this statistic and what can be done to encourage local hiring within the state? This week’s Alaska Edition tackles these questions and looks at the legality of policies aiming to increase the number of Alaskan workers.Listen Now:
  HOST: Ellen Lockyer
  GUESTS:Rebecca Logan, General Manager, The Alliance
  Renea Saade, Partner, Stoel Rives LLP Attorneys at Law
  KSKA (FM 91.1)
  
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• FAA break-up bill clears U.S. House committee

  12-02-2016 17:36
  
  Juneau International Airport (File photo by James Brooks)
  A bill to break up the FAA and privatize the nation’s air traffic controllers cleared the Transportation Committee in the U.S. House last night.
  Alaska Congressman Don Young says he made changes to the bill to make it more palatable in Alaska, where dozens of small airports benefit from a government subsidy called Essential Air Service.
  “It was a bad bill when it started,” Young said in a statement recorded late at
  
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• After 4 years, 50000 miles, traveler denied US visa to finish Alaska adventure - KTVA.com - Alaska News and Weather

  12-02-2016 08:14
  KTVA.com - Alaska News and Weather
  After 4 years, 50000 miles, traveler denied US visa to finish Alaska adventure
  KTVA.com - Alaska News and Weather
  We live in a place that people around the world dream of visiting, but not everyone would go to the lengths one man did to get to Alaska. Ben Jamin, not his real name, has been traveling the world for the last 7 years. But perhaps his biggest adventure ...
  

• Alaska marijuana board weighs specifics of pot use in retail stores - Alaska Dispatch News

  12-02-2016 07:06
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Alaska marijuana board weighs specifics of pot use in retail stores
  Alaska Dispatch News
  In less than two weeks, Alaskans will be able to apply for the state's first commercial marijuana licenses. With the Feb. 24 deadline fast approaching and the state's marijuana regulations mostly approved by the Department of Law, on Thursday the ...and more »
  

• USO Alaska Center opens at JBER - youralaskalink

  12-02-2016 06:02
  youralaskalink
  USO Alaska Center opens at JBER
  youralaskalink
  It was a celebration at the grand opening of the USO Alaska Center. The USO brought an atmosphere of warmth to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. The organization has had ties with Alaska dating back to World War II, and just today they established a ...
  

• Right-size government and the Alaska budget follies - Alaska Dispatch News

  12-02-2016 05:34
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Right-size government and the Alaska budget follies
  Alaska Dispatch News
  The Republicans who lead the Alaska Legislature are comfortable talking about the desire to “right-size government,” the ideal one-size-fits-all euphemism. Every time I hear those words I think of someone picking out a new pair of pants for the seat of ...and more »
  

• ConocoPhillips looks west, to the National Petroleum Reserve

  12-02-2016 05:14
  
  
  For forty years, Alaska’s North Slope oil production has taken place on a stretch of state land sandwiched between two major federal reserves: to the east is the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. To the west, the much larger National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPRA) — which, despite its name, never produced any oil until this fall.
  ConocoPhillips hopes to change that in a big way. Despite oil prices hovering around $30 a barrel, the company is plowing ahead with efforts to de
  
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• Lawmakers say they still need more time for final decision on Anchorage offices

  12-02-2016 05:06
  
  Lawmakers say they still need more time for final decision on Anchorage offices Lawmakers on Thursday again delayed a final decision on whether they should stay in their renovated Anchorage offices or decamp to a state-owned building elsewhere downtown — prolonging an already lengthy debate over the expensive lease.February 11, 2016
  
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• U.S. and Russia agree on plan for cease-fire in Syria - Alaska Dispatch News

  12-02-2016 05:00
  Alaska Dispatch News
  U.S. and Russia agree on plan for cease-fire in Syria
  Alaska Dispatch News
  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, right, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov attend a news conference after the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) meeting in Munich, Germany, Friday, Feb. 12, 2016. Talks aimed at narrowing differences ...and more »
  

• Gara proposes tax on S-corporations

  12-02-2016 04:10
  
  
  Download Audio
  The focus of most Alaska lawmakers in the first three weeks of the legislative session has been on cutting the state’s budget.
  But Anchorage Democratic Representative Les Gara wants to make sure that these cuts don’t fall too heavily on working-class and low-income people.
  Gara has instead proposed a bill that would apply a 6 percent tax on the owners of businesses that aren’t currently taxed by the state.
  These businesses are called S-corporations and their owne
  
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• Alaska News Nightly: Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016

  12-02-2016 04:07
  
  
  Stories are posted on the APRN news page. You can subscribe to APRN’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @aprn.
  Download Audio
  Obama budget slows pace of buying F35s.
  Liz Ruskin, APRN – Washington D.C.President Obama’s 2017 Air Force budget would slow the pace of buying F-35s. That is the new fighter jet slated for Eielson Air Force Base. But&nb
  
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• Agreement expected soon between state and Ma-Su Borough on railroad right of way

  12-02-2016 03:55
  
  An agreement between the state and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough is soon to be finalized regarding state land the Borough wants for a railroad right of way. The Borough had purchased several agricultural parcels from the state in the Point MacKenzie area for a right of way for the rail spur between Port MacKenzie and Houston. But agricultural covenants on the land didn’t allow industrial use.
  The Borough sued to have the covenants removed, according to state attorney Bob McFarlane. McFarla
  
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• Dustin Darden, former mayoral candidate, running for Anchorage Assembly

  12-02-2016 03:40
  
  Dustin Darden, former mayoral candidate, running for Anchorage Assembly Dustin Darden, a 32-year-old city maintenance worker, is running for a West Anchorage seat. He became known during the mayoral race last year for his homemade campaign signs and outlandish proposals. February 11, 2016
  
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• Alaska's wild sheep need proactive protection from pneumonia - Alaska Dispatch News

  12-02-2016 03:17
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Alaska's wild sheep need proactive protection from pneumonia
  Alaska Dispatch News
  OPINION: Alaska, home to 25 percent of North America's wild sheep, needs to protect that population from domestic respiratory disease. Pictured: Dall sheep in Gates of the Arctic National Park. ZAK RICHTER/National Park Service. More than 25 percent of ...
  

• Breakwater project funded in Port Lions

  12-02-2016 03:15
  
  Port Lions just obtained federal funding for a breakwater construction that will help ease the wear and tear on its harbor. The project will be completed through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which works on the construction and maintenance of water resources and other forms of infrastructure.
  Bruce Sexauer is the chief of the civil works branch at the Alaska District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and says additional breakwater is necessary to provide complete protection for Port Lion’s
  
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• “Hero dog” dies after battle with cancer

  12-02-2016 03:10
  
  Buddy, the “hero dog” that led an Alaska State Trooper to a structure fire in the spring of 2010 has died after a battle with cancer.
  Buddy the “hero dog” and his owner Ben Heinrichs in 2010 (Photo by Diana Haecker, KTNA – Talkeetna.)
  Ben Heinrichs, Buddy’s owner, described the fire that led to his German Shepard becoming a national celebrity.
  “I was out working in the shop.  I was using gas to clean parts on a truck, and I had an electric heater in
  
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• Future of heavy fuel oil in Arctic waters challenged

  12-02-2016 03:06
  
  A group of nongovernmental organizations recently sent a letter to the US Department of State calling for a ban on heavy fuel oil, or HFO, in Arctic waters. HFO is hard to cleanup, but the widespread use of HFO throughout the Arctic makes the ban an especially hard sell.
  In the Arctic, HFO is used in both big and small ways. It fuels large cargo ships and helps heat and power homes in Canada and Russia. It’s banned in Antarctic waters and in northern Europe, partly due to it
  
  Read more

• This Alaska grad is paddleboarding from New York to Miami - KTUU.com

  12-02-2016 03:00
  KTUU.com
  This Alaska grad is paddleboarding from New York to Miami
  KTUU.com
  A Palmer woman is just one day away from completing an epic, 1,500 mile stand up paddleboarding expedition from New York to Miami. Palmer High School graduate LouAnne Harris, 28, and her friend Jules Gismondi will be arriving in Miami on Friday, ...
  

• Fainting aside, Air Force says F-35 is OK

  12-02-2016 02:17
  
  The F-35a, the Air Force version of the joint strike fighter. (Photo Lockheed Martin)
  President Obama’s 2017 Air Force budget would slow the pace of buying F-35s. That’s the new fighter jet slated for Eielson Air Force Base. But top Air Force officials still speak highly of the plan to station them at the Fairbanks base.
  Massive cost overruns and delays have dogged the F-35. But the Pentagon insists those problems are now under control. So it was unfortunate optics that the general i
  
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• Alaska teachers union gets new president - Alaska Dispatch News

  12-02-2016 01:42
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Alaska teachers union gets new president
  Alaska Dispatch News
  A Fairbanks English teacher was elected president of Alaska's National Education Association, the 13,000-member teachers union, this week. Tim Parker will start his two-year term on July 7, replacing outgoing president Ron Fuhrer, who was elected in ...and more »
  

• Anchorage tax cap initiative headed for April ballot

  12-02-2016 01:30
  
  Anchorage tax cap initiative headed for April ballotAnchorage voters will see an initiative targeting the calculation for the city's tax cap on the April ballot. February 11, 2016
  
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• Alaska adopts new rules for dispersant use in oil spills - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

  12-02-2016 01:13
  Alaska adopts new rules for dispersant use in oil spills
  Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
  ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Alaska oil spill responders have adopted new rules for the rapid use of chemical dispersant but say dispersant will continue to be considered only rarely when mechanical cleanup is not practical. Chemical dispersant has been ...and more »
  

• 'Dave & Buster's bill' unanimously passes Alaska Senate - Alaska Dispatch News

  12-02-2016 00:12
  Alaska Dispatch News
  'Dave & Buster's bill' unanimously passes Alaska Senate
  Alaska Dispatch News
  A bill that would make way for restaurant-entertainment chain Dave & Buster's to open a location at the Dimond Center in Anchorage unanimously passed the Alaska Senate on Wednesday. Senate Bill 157 would tweak the state's gambling law, clarifying that ...and more »
  

• Ex-Alaska Airlines pilot from Newport Beach indicted on drunk flying charge - MyNewsLA.com

  12-02-2016 00:08
  MyNewsLA.com
  Ex-Alaska Airlines pilot from Newport Beach indicted on drunk flying charge
  MyNewsLA.com
  A Los Angeles federal grand jury Thursday indicted a former Alaska Airlines pilot from Newport Beach on a charge of operating a passenger plane while under the influence of alcohol, federal prosecutors said. David Hans Arntson, 60, was arrested last ...and more »
  

• ‘Dave & Buster’s bill’ unanimously passes Alaska Senate

  12-02-2016 00:07
  
  ‘Dave & Buster’s bill’ unanimously passes Alaska Senate A bill that would make way for restaurant-entertainment chain Dave & Buster’s to open a location at the Dimond Center in Anchorage unanimously passed the Alaska Senate on Wednesday.February 11, 2016
  
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