Alaska news

• Assembly approves granting immunity to sex workers who aid police

  28-06-2017 22:06
  
  On Tuesday night, the Anchorage Assembly approved a measure that gives immunity to sex workers who tell police when more serious crimes have occurred.
  When the ordinance was first introduced it drew support from advocates, as well as several women who had previously engaged in prostitution. Many testified they’d encountered heinous and violent crime, but were afraid of reporting it to law enforcement for fear of prosecution.
  However critics said the proposal was vague, hard to enforce and
  
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• Ask a Climatologist: Utqiagvik ends above normal temperature streak

  28-06-2017 19:54
  
  Utqiagvik, Alaska (File photo by Steven Kazlowsk)Residents of Utqiagvik have experienced above normal temperatures for the last 17 months. But a cooler-than-normal June will end that streak.
  Brian Brettschneider with our Ask a Climatologist segment said the rest of the state has drifted back toward normal temperatures this year, after spending several years in above normal territory.
  But he said Utqiagvik stayed warm — until this month.
  Interview Transcript:
  Brian: They’re going to b
  
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• New measure gives immunity to sex workers reporting crimes

  28-06-2017 09:15
  
  The Anchorage Assembly chambers at the Z. J. Loussac Public Library in Anchorage. (Staff photo)During its Tuesday meeting, the Anchorage Assembly approved a measure that gives immunity to sex workers who tell police when more serious crimes have occurred.
  When the ordinance was first introduced two weeks ago it drew support from advocates, as well as several women who told the Assembly they had previously engaged in prostitution. Many testified they had encountered heinous or violent c
  
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• Cancer patient to senators: Dump this bill

  28-06-2017 04:33
  
  Steve Taylor confers with Rosalee Abbott outside Sen. Murkowski’s office. Abbott, also Alaskan, works for American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.U.S. Senate leaders postponed a vote on their health care reform bill, but Alaskans opposed to the bill aren’t letting up. One Alaskan, a three-time cancer survivor, went to Washington to make his pitch directly.
  Steve Taylor is 42 and looks solid and strong. You wouldn’t pick him out as a person who requires expensive
  
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• Video: Driving the haul road

  28-06-2017 04:09
  
  Every day of the year, no matter the conditions, commercial truck drivers make the trip from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay. The haul road is the only supply route to North America’s largest oil field, and John Slater has been driving this road for 16 years.
  
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• Hughes leaves Senate majority over budget

  28-06-2017 04:01
  
  
  Sen. Shelley Hughes, R-Anchorage, describes education legislation to the Senate Finance Committee in April. Hughes left the Senate majority caucus over the budget. (Photo by Skip Gray/360 North)For the second time this year, a Republican from Matanuska-Susitna Borough left the state Senate majority caucus. Palmer Sen. Shelley Hughes left the caucus last Thursday to oppose the state budget.
  Listen now
  Hughes was the only senator to vote against the $4.1 billion operating budget. She said she
  
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• Alaska News Nightly: Tuesday, June 27, 2017

  28-06-2017 04:00
  
  
  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
  Listen now
  Mat-Su lawmaker leaves Senate Majority, dissatisfied with budget compromise
  Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau
  For the second time this year, a Republican from Matanuska-Susitna Borough left the state Senate majority caucus. Palmer Senator Shelley Hughes left the caucus last week to oppose the sta
  
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• New treasure trove of Inupiat recordings being assessed for possible digital use

  28-06-2017 03:44
  
  
  In Kotzebue, An aging trove of Inupiat photographs, books and recordings at risk of deteriorating are being assessed in the hope they can be digitized for future use. Aqqaluk Memorial Trust, a cultural arm of NANA regional corporation received a small grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to bring in a preservation specialist this week, to examine the materials.
  More than 4000 items including 500 recordings made from 1965 into the 1980s are in the collection. Arctic Sounder report
  
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• New treasure trove of Inupiaq recordings being assessed for possible digital use

  28-06-2017 03:44
  
  
  In Kotzebue, An aging trove of Inupiat photographs, books and recordings at risk of deteriorating are being assessed in the hope they can be digitized for future use. Aqqaluk Memorial Trust, a cultural arm of NANA regional corporation received a small grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to bring in a preservation specialist this week, to examine the materials.
  More than 4000 items including 500 recordings made from 1965 into the 1980s are in the collection. Arctic Sounder report
  
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• As Uber arrives in Alaska, towns without taxis have new transportation option

  28-06-2017 01:24
  
  Haines resident Alex Stock has signed up to drive for Uber. He’s waiting on a background check and vehicle inspection. (Photo by Emily Files/KHNS)In visits to the Lower 48, Alaskans may have caught a ride in an Uber or Lyft car.
  Now, people around the state can use the ride-hailing companies at home. This month, Alaska became the latest state to make way for the transportation apps.
  In small towns where taxi service has struggled to survive, the companies could fill a need.
  If you&rsq
  
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• Redington High School commemorates ‘father of the Iditarod’ with bronze statue

  28-06-2017 01:01
  
  The statue titled “Joe Redington Senior on the Trail.” (Henry Leasia / Alaska Public Media)A new bronze sculpture of Iditarod co-founder Joe Redington Sr. was unveiled at Redington High School in Knik on Friday. The ribbon-cutting ceremony was held the day before signups for the 2018 Iditarod race.
  Patrick Garley, a bronze sculptor from Palmer, spent roughly 18 months making this life-size sculpture of Joe Redington Sr. and his seven-dog team. Redington, a dog musher who ran a k
  
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• Alaska communities to receive millions in Payments In Lieu of Taxes

  28-06-2017 00:37
  
  Cruise ship approaches Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay National Park. (NPS)On Monday, the Department of the Interior announced that Alaska would receive $29.7 million in Payment in Lieu of Taxes funds, or PILT.
  PILT funding is determined by Congress and provides local governments with funding they can’t get from tax-exempt federal lands within their boundaries. It pays for services in communities containing national parks, national forests and other public lands.
  “Because there are i
  
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• Anchorage seeks proposals for Transit Center overhaul

  28-06-2017 00:30
  
  A People Mover bus. (Anne Hillman/Alaska Public Media)Anchorage is trying to figure out what’s next for the downtown Transit Center. The facility was a central hub for city buses, but problems with loitering, substance abuse, and crime created what some have called a “hazard to health and safety.” Now, officials are reaching out to developers and the business community for ideas on how to re-invent the property.
  On a relatively quiet Monday morning inside the Transit Center&rsq
  
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