Climate change and rural aviation are major issues in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski addressed both during her visit to the region last week.
Murkowski visited Quinhagak as part of her trip. It’s one of 56 villages in the region and sits on the coast near Kuskokwim Bay. Like many Y-K Delta communities, it’s experiencing erosion from rising sea levels and melting permafrost, and is struggling to maintain its gravel airstrip.
“[I] had an opportunity to look at the impacts of erosion and some of the issues that they are dealing with, whether it’s their airport or sewer lagoon, but the impacts to infrastructure that will be necessary to review,” Murkowski said.
The Yup’ik community is also the site of a massive archaeological dig. Quinhagak is trying to save its heritage, thousands of artifacts from the Bow and Arrow Wars of the 1600s, from washing into the sea. Murkowski says that she is focused on tackling both rural aviation and climate change. For rural aviation, she says that Congress just passed legislation that would prioritize airport construction in “cold weather” locations.
“We just don’t have enough time in the summer season, and airports are being used day in and day out,” Murkowski said.
The legislation makes sure that safety equipment arrives more quickly at rural airports, and allows cargo planes in Alaska to deliver fully charged lithium ion batteries.
“These are often used in things like pacemakers, so well, if you can’t get these fully charged batteries out to the region on an airplane, how do folks get this necessary medical equipment?” Murkowski said. “So that’s a very specific Alaska exemption.”
Maintaining a rural airstrip also means battling melting permafrost, which can cause dips in the runway. And of course, some Y-K Delta villages like Quinhagak and Newtok face another big infrastructure problem: erosion, which is expensive to fix.
KYUK asked Murkowski if Congress plans to define climate change as an emergency under the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). That would make it easier for communities like Newtok and Quinhagak, who are facing relocation and major infrastructure problems because of erosion linked to climate change, to get federal funding to replace buildings or move. Murkowski did not think that was a good idea.
“When you think about climate change and the impacts, these are slow-moving disasters. We can see it coming,” Murkowski said. “But the reality is, from my viewpoint, is that FEMA is not the best entity for addressing the potential disaster that you can see coming.”
She said that FEMA is an agency focusing on responding to disasters, not trying to prevent or mitigate them. She thinks that it makes more sense for an agency like the Army Corps of Engineers to take preventative measures to contend with climate change. KYUK asked Murkowski if she thought that was possible with the current administration; the Trump administration is trying to roll back major environmental regulations that would cut down on greenhouse gas emissions.
“If what we’re talking about is a wholesale kind of an overhaul of a department that would allow for prevention, adaptation, and mitigation focused specifically on climate change in the two years of the Trump administration, I don’t see that happening,” Murkowski said.
But she says that the solution could happen with a little different phrasing.
“If you are an administration that says ‘well we want to be smarter with taxpayer dollars,’ then you work on infrastructure and technologies that will, for instance, be more enduring when you build out an airstrip,” Murkowski said. “For many in this administration, it’s how you talk about getting to the same goal. I think that’s very important.”
Murkowksi says that there are plans underway in agencies to help build more “resilient” infrastructure that will withstand the impacts of climate change: from more hurricanes, to rising sea levels, to melting permafrost.
Kelly and Kawasaki face off Monday night in a candidate forum sponsored by the Associated Students of the University of Alaska Fairbanks in the Wood Center on campus. (Photo credit Tim Ellis/KUAC)
Cuts to the state budget and Permanent Fund dividend dominated a debate Monday between Republican Senate President Sen. Pete Kelly and Democratic Rep. Scott Kawasaki, running for state senate in District A. The incumbent and challenger also clashed over state Medicaid and climate change in their last debate before voters next Tuesday decide the outcome of the Interior’s most heated legislative races.
Pete Kelly told about 40 people at the forum on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus that he supported cutting the university system’s operating budget by 10 percent in 2015 because state revenues had dropped sharply due to the plummeting price of oil.
“Our revenue was cut by a tremendous amount,” he said, “We had oil that funds our budget at about $110 per barrel. And it went down to $26 per barrel. And there were decisions that had to be made.”
Kelly says he was able to help UAF by convincing lawmakers to go along with appropriating $245 million to build a new coal-fired power plant for the campus. But he returned several times to his refrain about falling oil prices forcing budget cuts in response to Kawasaki’s criticism of the senator’s refusal to consider any alternative that included raising revenues.
“We should have every option on the table when it comes to figuring out how we pay for education. And how we pay for troopers. And how we pay for the university,” the challenger said. “The income tax that I supported during that time was one that I supported because it was part of a comprehensive fiscal plan.”
Kawasaki says the plan included a combination of budget cuts and taxes proposed by Gov. Bill Walker and supported by the bipartisan House leadership. He says the cuts demanded by Kelly and other Republicans cuts deepened the recession that has left Alaska with the nation’s poorest-performing economy.
“We’re fiftieth in employment rate,” Kawasaki said. “We’re also fiftieth in job growth. We’re number 40 in job growth for the private sector.”
Kawasaki likened his support for additional revenue sources to Kelly’s comment about making tough decisions to continue cutting the budget.
“Sometimes, it will take a legislator that says ‘Y’know what? We do need more money for this particular thing,’” he said.
But Kelly attacked Kawasaki for supporting Walker’s reduction of Alaskans’ PFDs to $1,600, which the governor proposed after Senate Republicans refused to go along with the other proposed revenue sources. And Kelly says hiking taxes while the economy was tanking would’ve only aggravated the job losses.
“When you have 12,000 people being laid off, what you don’t want to do is start putting an income tax on people who have a job. So we fought against the income tax,” he said.
Kelly says revenues have picked up in recent weeks as oil prices have risen. And he says some university funding has been restored. On another issue, Kelly said in response to a student-moderator’s question that the state’s Medicaid system is broken. He says reforms included in a measure he introduced and helped pass in 2015 fixes some of the problems and has saved the state some $400 million.
“The crux of my bill was eligibility verification; making sure people didn’t use ‘boutique drugs,’ when they could take generic drugs; travel restrictions, emergency room restrictions,” he said.
Kelly didn’t respond to a question about whether he supports Medicaid expansion in Alaska.
In answer to a question on how the state should respond to climate change, Kelly says the state should try to help people in littoral communities where erosion is chewing away the coastline. But he cautioned against involving the state too deeply in the issue.
“What I’m nervous about when I hear about climate change is that we will adopt kind of the larger political agenda that is extremely expensive and is very difficult to navigate through the United Nations treaties and some of the regulations that come out places like the EPA, et cetera,” Kelly said.
Kawasaki pounced on that response, accusing Kelly of denying climate change, which he says affects all Alaskans. And he says it’s an issue UAF researchers have been studying for decades.
“Alaskans and this university can be front and center in research to try and figure out how we mitigate the problems,” he said.
Kawasaki says despite dire warnings and predictions, such as one issued earlier this month by the UN’s Intergovernment Panel on Climate Change, he’s hopeful that an immediate and concerted response could slow or reverse global warming.
At 8:35 each morning, a community member leads all 64 students in kindergarten through 12th grade in the Yup’ik pledge. It is an effort to integrate the language into the school day in the absence of a Yup’ik teacher.
“The school board asked me where we’re at on our Yup’ik teacher, and at this present time, there’s nobody who has filled that position yet,” Principal Sally Benedict explained. “We wanted to make sure that we still had Yup’ik going on in the school. So we all went into the Yup’ik room, and we looked on our wall and saw the Pledge of Allegiance. And we thought that would be a great place to start.”
The Pledge of Allegiance, written in Yup’ik. (Photo courtesy of Sally Benedict)
Unlike many dual-language schools in the Lower Kuskokwim School District that teach in both Yup’ik and English, Rocky Mountain is “English first.” And finding a Yup’ik language teacher in the small community has been challenging.
“You have to be able to speak, read and write Yup’ik, and you have to be able pass proficiency exams on the speaking, reading, and writing, as well as being able to pass what’s called a Praxis exam,” Benedict said.
The school must hire non-regular certified instructors as associate teachers enrolled in an education program. Since 2013, LKSD has required teachers who do not hold a degree to earn one by taking nine credits per year. The goal is to have more state-qualified Yup’ik teachers.
The biggest hurdle to finding a teacher, Benedict said, is that the position is part-time.
“It’s two hours, four days a week. It is not a full-time job. So, it’s super hard to get somebody,” she explained.
To fill the curricular void, the school is looking for a traditional cultural specialist for next semester.
Applicants still need to pass a proficiency exam in Yup’ik, but they do not have to take college classes. The teaching position will remain open in hopes of attracting an instructor willing to become a certified teacher. For now, the students at Rocky Mountain School will learn the Yup’ik Pledge of Allegiance line by line.
Republican Mike Dunleavy, left, and Democrat Mark Begich participate in a debate Thursday, Oct. 25, 2018, hosted by Alaska Public Media and KTUU Channel 2. (Video stills via Debate for the State)
Republican Mike Dunleavy’s lead in the race for governor has become razor thin. That’s according to the latest tracking poll by Alaska Survey Research.
Dunleavy led Democrat Mark Begich 42.5 percent to 42.3 percent in the poll, which was taken from last Friday through Monday.
Pollster Ivan Moore said the number of people who view Begich positively has grown steadily since September, while those who view Dunleavy negatively has also grown.
“This race might end up being the latest in a long tradition of very close Alaska elections,” Moore said.
Independent Gov. Bill Walker drew 7.7 percent, though most of his supporters know he ended his campaign.
Moore said some of those Walker backers may shift to other candidates – particularly Begich.
“I think they’re in mourning, frankly, and finding it a little bit hard to let go,” Moore said. “I don’t think it’s a permanent state of affairs.”
The poll included Libertarian Billy Toien for the first time. He drew 3.3 percent, while 4.1 percent were undecided.
It was the last Alaska Survey Research poll before the election on Tuesday. Moore didn’t disclose who paid for the polls. He said it was a consortium that included people who supported different candidates.
Open enrollment for the individual health insurance market starts November 1. For the second year in a row, Alaska residents will see cheaper monthly rates. But insurance rates remain high, compared to most other states in the country.
In 2018, the state saw an average rate decrease of 22.4 percent on the individual market. Rates are going down again this year, though by a much smaller amount: 6.5 percent.
Lori Wing-Heier, the director of the Alaska Division of Insurance. (Photo by Skip Gray/360 North)
“This year we’re looking at a Premera gold plan, for somebody who’s 45, last year it would have been $858/month. This year, it’s down to $740,” said Lori Wing-Heier, the director of the state’s division of insurance. That’s the agency that regulates the individual insurance market.
One of the reasons rates are lower: the state established a reinsurance program that separates the highest cost patients from the rest of the market.
Wing-Heier says the decrease in rates is not guaranteed to continue.
“Depending on the claims experienced, it most certainly could go back up again,” Wing-Heier said. “But Alaska is fortunate in that we have the reinsurance program, which does provide us some stability.”
She says in the last two years, the state has also seen healthcare costs decrease through some medical providers, based on agreements with insurers.
There is only one insurance carrier in Alaska for individual market customers seeking insurance through the Affordable Care Act: Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska.
Jim Havens, with Premera, says the reinsurance program is a major reason rates went down but there are other factors.
“If people move in and move out of the state at an abnormal level, that changes rates, and then ultimately, if the providers decide to change less for goods or services, or if we’re able to convince people to go to states where the cost of care is less, like Washington State, then we encourage that and make it easy for them to go to a state like Washington to seek their care,” Havens said.
Despite lower monthly rates, Premera hasn’t seen an increase in enrollment. Wing-Heier says last year, the market actually lost customers. She says uncertainty in the insurance world likely contributed to that.
“I think a lot of people were just concerned that the ACA would still be there, that the subsidies would still be there, and how much the plans would be,” Wing-Heier said. “This year it hasn’t been as tumultuous in the ACA market. So we’re hoping that people come back and give it a look and see what the premiums really are.”
And Havens, with Premera, says rate decreases mean more to customers who aren’t eligible for insurance subsidies. The vast majority of Alaskans who buy insurance on the individual market receive subsides.
Open enrollment lasts through December 15. Anyone who wants coverage through the individual market has to take action within this window.
And those residents who already have coverage through the end of this year and don’t choose a new plan will be automatically signed up for the most similar plan available in 2019.
The state encourages residents to look at how plans may be different in the new year, based on changes within the network. One of those changes affects the cost of care outside of Alaska and Washington.
PFAS levels around Gustavus. (Image courtesy of the Alaska Department of Transportation)
There’s a kind of chemical foam used to suppress oil fires. But that foam can leach into the environment and contaminate groundwater. In Alaska, it’s been detected close to some airports and military bases in Fairbanks, where routine drills occur. It’s also cropping up in other places around the state.
Kelly McLaughlin’s family has owned property in Gustavus since the 1960s on what was once part an old territorial homestead. Most of it is close to the airport.
Many of the residents of Gustavus are on their own water system, including McLaughlin. So, she asked the state to test her water, too. She says it took some convincing, but in September, she got the results back, and she was floored. Her well tested positive for the contaminant. It had twice as much as the federal government advises for human health.
“You don’t think the water you’ve been drinking and assume is safe is poison,” McLaughlin said. “That’s not a thought that crossed my mind ever. I was wasn’t prepared for the results to be that bad.”
The state is now providing McLaughlin’s home with shipped-in jugs of water. Eleven other private wells also qualified.
A spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Transportation said this is a growing national issue, and that’s what tipped off the state to test the wells near the Gustavus airport.
Over the summer, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report suggesting that PFAS may be more hazardous to health than previously thought.
McLaughlin says she’s stayed awake at night thinking about the impact this could have on her family.
“My daughter of course drinks the bathwater and there’s no keeping kids from engaging with the contaminated water,” McLaughlin said.
Exposure to the chemical compound has been to linked to an increased risk of cancer. It can affect growth and learning development in children and interfere with hormone levels.
McLaughlin says she’d like the state to offer some kind of blood tests to the residents, but so far, they haven’t made the offer.
“No. And I’ve asked and asked, and I’d given every reason I can think of,” McLaughlin said. “I’d like my breast milk tested. I would like my blood tested and my kid’s blood tested. I think at the very least, it’s information that can be applied at a later date.”
The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services didn’t respond in time for this story about whether they’d be offering any additional tests.
In the meantime, McLaughlin is considering paying for her own test to at least get a baseline for her medical records.
She’s still hoping the state will be responsive.
“This was nobody’s fault. As far as I know, nobody knew how bad these chemicals were,” McLaughlin said. “Nobody knew how far they would travel. The DOT did not intentionally poison the people in Gustavus. But it happened.”
Now, McLaughlin says the ball is in the state’s court to to try to make this right.
A spokesperson for the Department of Transportation says they’re bringing in an engineer to start to develop some long term solutions.
The state is also currently taking public comment until Nov. 5 to institute some kind of enforceable levels for the chemical compound — beyond the federal guidelines.
Meet the two men who have spent $700,000 trying to make Mike Dunleavy Alaska’s governor
Nathaniel Herz, Alaska’s Energy Desk – Anchorage
Until a late influx of money in the final weeks of the campaign, most of the cash for the pro-Dunleavy independent expenditure group came from two people. Dunleavy’s brother Francis and Bob Penney, the developer and recreational fishing advocate who’s long donated to Republican candidates and causes.
Poll finds less than one percent margin in race for governor
Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau
Mike Dunleavy leads Mark Begich 42.5 percent to 42.3 percent in the poll, which was taken from last Friday through Monday.
Campaign filings show focus on Fairbanks Senate, House races
Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau
The state Senate race in Fairbanks between Republican Senator Pete Kelly and Democratic Representative Scott Kawasaki has seen the most spending of any legislative race, by a wide margin.
Utqiagvik fugitive in fatal shooting taken into custody
Associated Press
A police manhunt in northern Alaska has ended with the arrest of a man accused of fatally shooting a one person and injuring two others at a gathering to celebrate his 27th birthday.
Woman struck, killed after stepping out of crashed vehicle
Associated Press
A woman who left her vehicle after a two-car crash on the Glenn Highway was struck and killed by a third vehicle.
Open enrollment for individual health insurance begins Nov. 1
Abbey Collins, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
For the second year in a row, Alaska residents will see cheaper monthly rates. But, insurance rates remain high, compared to most other states in the country.
Gustavus households offered safe drinking water after latest PFAS scare
Elizabeth Jenkins, Alaska’s Energy Desk – Juneau
It’s a growing national issue: A foam used to suppress oil fires can leach into the environment and contaminate groundwater.
Public comments for onsite marijuana consumption due by Thursday evening
Tim Ellis, KUAC – Fairbanks
The Marijuana Control Board is considering legal, on-site consumption of marijuana at cannabis retail shops. And members of the public interested in submitting comments on the proposal must comment by 5 p.m. tomorrow.
Amid growing global demand for aircraft mechanics, local training program opens in Y-K Delta
Anna Rose MacArthur, KYUK – Bethel
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta has a severe shortage of aircraft mechanics. A new Bethel training program wants to fill the gap with local workers.
In Goodnews Bay, the Pledge of Allegiance is a way to speak Yup’ik in school
Isabelle Ross, KDLG – Dillingham
There’s no Yup’ik teacher in Goodnews Bay, so for now, the students practice by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in Yup’ik instead.
Former state senator and gubernatorial candidate Mike Dunleavy talks to the audience during a Juneau Chamber of Commerce forum on Thursday, September 6, 2018, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by Rashah McChesney/Alaska’s Energy Desk)
The signs for Republican gubernatorial candidate Mike Dunleavy are all over Anchorage, paid for by a political campaign.
The same campaign spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on pro-Dunleavy television and radio commercials. It bought ads on political blogs and produced campaign hats and shirts. It even opened its own office.
This pro-Dunleavy campaign, though, was not controlled by Dunleavy himself.
Instead, it was an independent effort coordinated by an Anchorage Republican political consultant, Matt Larkin. And, until a late influx of money in the final weeks before the election, most of its cash came from two people: Dunleavy’s brother Francis and Bob Penney, the developer and recreational fishing advocate who has long donated to Republican candidates and causes.
The backgrounds and agendas of Penney and Francis Dunleavy have received relatively little attention, even as they’ve combined to spend more than $700,000 to get Mike Dunleavy elected. Dunleavy’s rivals say the external spending was instrumental in propelling Dunleavy to the GOP nomination.
That’s making some Alaskans nervous — particularly commercial fishermen, some of whom see Penney’s ideas as a threat to their livelihoods. Tyson Fick, a Juneau fisherman who catches crab and salmon from the 37-foot Heather Anne, said he’s worried that Penney’s financial support will translate into outsized influence over Dunleavy if the Republican is elected.
Fick is nervous that Dunleavy would, if elected, cut fisheries management budgets and other state programs that are important to the commercial fishing industry. He’s also worried that Dunleavy would take Penney’s recommendations when it comes to appointing a fish and game commissioner, and choosing people to serve on the boards and commissions that divide Alaska’s fish between different types of fishermen.
“The problem that I have is when there’s any amount of wildly out-of-scale donation to a particular candidate — it always makes me question: Who is that candidate going to be answering to at the end of the day?” Fick said. When wealthy individuals’ campaign spending “completely dwarfs everyone else’s opportunity,” Fick added, “you have to wonder who’s driving the bus.”
Protestors critical of Bob Penney and the Kenai River Sportfishing Association, gather on the Kenai River in front of his house in 2015. (Rashah McChesney/ Kenai Peninsula Clarion)
Dunleavy would not agree to be interviewed about “Dunleavy for Alaska,” the effort funded by Penney and Francis Dunleavy. In a prepared statement sent by a spokesman, Dunleavy said he doesn’t consult with any of his three brothers about state business.
Penney is a friend of Dunleavy’s, but he also won’t get special treatment if Dunleavy is elected, the statement said.
“When it comes to policy, Bob is going to be treated like any other constituent,” Dunleavy wrote. “Fisheries policy is complex, and the state has rules in place to balance the needs of different user groups, consistent with the ‘maximum benefit’ goal in the state constitution.”
He added: “As governor, I will be committed to appointing highly-qualified people to manage our fisheries based on sound science, not politics.”
Dunleavy for Alaska is an “independent expenditure group” — the state-level equivalent of the “super PACs” that can accept unlimited donations, as long as their efforts aren’t coordinated with candidates.
After the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision loosening campaign finance limits, state regulators stopped enforcing an Alaska law that bars individuals from donating more than $500 to groups like Dunleavy for Alaska.
Dunleavy for Alaska was formed in January, and through early October, the donations from Penney and Francis Dunleavy made up most of the group’s revenue.
That changed as the race narrowed from three major candidates to two earlier this month. In the past three weeks, Dunleavy for Alaska collected $850,000, including $200,000 from a construction company, $80,000 from a pair of executives at telecommunications company GCI, $50,000 from transportation company executive Jim Jansen and $25,000 from philanthropist Ed Rasmuson.
The gubernatorial campaign of former U.S. Senator Mark Begich has raised only slightly more money than two wealthy men have given to a group backing his Republican opponent, Mike Dunleavy. (Photo by Rashah McChesney/Alaska’s Energy Desk)
Still, Francis Dunleavy has donated $400,000 to the group, while Penney has given $325,000. Their combined total, $725,000, nearly matches the $760,000 raised by the campaign of the Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Mark Begich.
Francis Dunleavy, who lives in Houston, spent 25 years working at investment bank Bear Stearns before the company collapsed in the 2008 financial crisis. He then moved to Bear Stearns’ buyer, J.P. Morgan.
Francis Dunleavy wouldn’t agree to an interview. And there’s little publicly available information about his political views or background, with one exception: his role in an energy markets controversy that made national news.
A few months before his retirement in 2013, Francis Dunleavy was named in a $410 million settlement that J.P. Morgan agreed to pay after a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission investigation. The commission alleged that a unit led by Dunleavy had engaged in fraudulent practices in energy markets in California and the Midwest.
J.P. Morgan, in the settlement, agreed that Francis Dunleavy’s unit developed specific strategies to sell electricity from aging power plants that were often unprofitable at prevailing market rates. But it neither agreed nor denied the commission’s allegations that those strategies defrauded power markets and broke commission rules. Dunleavy was not personally penalized.
In an emailed response to questions, Francis Dunleavy said he broke no rules and “was never found to have done anything inappropriate by an independent adjudicator of facts.”
He also said he does not expect to have a role in state government if his brother is elected.
“I am not well-informed enough about Alaska policy issues to make any recommendations to my brother,” Francis Dunleavy said.
Penney, by contrast, has strong opinions on fisheries issues.
The developer moved to Alaska in the early 1950s and got his start in Anchorage selling and manufacturing mobile homes. He then helped develop a tract of land east of downtown that includes the Northway Mall.
For decades, Penney has also been a player in the state’s fish wars between commercial and recreational salmon fisherman, and he’s been a deep-pocketed political donor to politicians.
A number of fishing boats crowd near the mouth of the Kenai River in 2012. (Photo courtesy Brian Henderson)
His advocacy primarily targets commercial setnetters, who string nets along the shore near the mouths of rivers to catch sockeye salmon.
Penney argues setnetters catch too many king salmon mixed in with sockeyes and has pushed the state to crack down, to make more kings available for recreational fishermen on the Kenai River. He recently worked with a group that proposed a ballot initiative to ban commercial setnets in “urban areas,” though the Alaska Supreme Court ruled that was unconstitutional.
Penney wouldn’t agree to an interview. He said in an emailed statement that he’s “committed to helping the salmon resources of Cook Inlet,” which the Kenai River flows into.
“I have lived in Alaska for 67 years and am 86 now. I only have so many years left, so this is about the No. 1 issue in my life,” Penney said. “The Kenai kings are the largest salmon in the world, but state management treat them as just another salmon instead of managing them as a world-class trophy.”
While Penney is focused on the Kenai River, Fick, the Juneau fisherman, said he’s worried that Penney’s favored policies, if adopted by Mike Dunleavy, could hurt commercial fisherman in other parts of the state.
Dunleavy’s appointees to the Board of Fisheries, for example, will make decisions that affect fisherman statewide, from Southeast to Prince William Sound to Bristol Bay.
Then there’s Dunleavy’s own history as a state senator: He once proposed a 12.5 percent royalty on commercially caught Alaska seafood, which Fick said would be “crippling.” And on the campaign trail, Dunleavy skipped the debate on fisheries issues in Kodiak — typically a mainstay for statewide candidates.
But Dunleavy’s supporters say concerns like Fick’s are overstated.
“It’s not based on facts. It’s based on fearmongering,” said John Moller, a Juneau commercial fisherman who also co-chairs Dunleavy’s campaign.
Dunleavy’s tax proposal came in response to a fishing industry push for state spending on fisheries management, Moller said.
“It was about their own access to their own fishery, and how they actually can participate in helping fund their industry,” Moller said.
Dunleavy’s campaign also noted a recent $200,000 donation to Dunleavy for Alaska from a commercial fishing industry group, the Pacific Seafood Processors Association.
Moller said Dunleavy has been meeting with commercial fishing groups and will represent “all Alaskans and all stakeholders.”
“There is nothing in the record that really justifies that fear,” Moller said.
Workers sort crab at the UniSea processing plant in Unalaska. Company officials say they were hoping to employ four inmates during the winter fishing season. (Photo by Laura Kraegel/KUCB)
This winter, prison inmates won’t be allowed to finish their sentences while working at UniSea’s processing plant.
The Unalaska City Council narrowly rejected a resolution Tuesday that would have approved the community’s participation in a work release program run by the state Department of Corrections.
City Councilor Dave Gregory cast the only “no” vote on the proposal to let four select inmates live and work at UniSea under electronic monitoring. But with four of six councilors present, it was enough to sink the measure.
“We’re a small, isolated community,” said Gregory. “I’ve talked to probably 25 people who’ve come to me and said, ‘Why are we doing this? We don’t need the risk.’ And I feel the same way.”
Gregory and other critics said they might support the program in the future — if Unalaska bolsters its counseling and addiction services to help with rehabilitation.
Others opposed it outright, including resident Mary Lekanoff.
“Kids here are free,” she said. “They’re running around safe. And you guys want to bring these people here? What are you going to do when the first child gets abducted or raped? How are you guys going to feel?”
Still, many expressed support for the program, which aims to chip away at Alaska’s high recidivism rate by preparing inmates for life after prison.
Some Unalaskans argued the island already counts felons among its residents, while others pointed to failures of the corrections system.
“When people are exiting prison, they need resources, support, community connections, and tools,” said Alysha Richardson in a letter to the council. “It is not in the best interest of anyone to create or maintain barriers for these people. The people who will qualify for this program are getting out of prison anyway. I want them to have the best possible chance to succeed.”
Mayor Frank Kelty agreed. He said he’ll look into revisiting the issue with a full council.
“I think we’re a big enough and strong enough community to support a program like this,” he said. “We’re talking only four individuals. We have the support of our police department. People are going to be thoroughly checked out before they’re brought here. There’s not going to be any sex offenders. So I don’t think this [proposal] is done yet.”
The resolution would seem likely to pass if it goes to another vote. Councilors Shari Coleman, James Fitch, and Dennis Robinson all voted in favor, meaning it only needs one more supporter.
While they were absent Tuesday night, Councilors Roger Rowland and Alejandro “Bong” Tungul could tip the scale in that direction. Rowland previously said he was “cautiously optimistic” about the program.
Yuut Elitnaurviat is opening an aircraft mechanic training program with its first cohort beginning February 2019. (Photo by Anna Rose MacArthur/KYUK)
Airplanes connect rural Alaska to the world, and all those planes need mechanics to maintain and fix them. The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta has a severe shortage of aircraft mechanics, and it’s expected that a shortage will soon be felt across the world’s airline industry. A new Bethel training program wants to fill the gap with local workers.
Inside a bright white hanger at the airport sits a fleet of small, multi-colored airplanes.
“We have Cessnas. We have Pipers. We have a Bonanza, a Navajo Chieftain, we have a Cherokee 140,” Mike Hoffman, executive director at Yuut Elitnaurviat, said as he pointed around the hanger.
These are some of the most common planes flown in the region. Yuut Elitnaurviat is the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta’s adult workforce development program, and it’s opening an aircraft mechanic school in Bethel. Hoffman takes pride in that many of the program’s planes, and the resources to get them there, were donated.
“I went up to McGrath and took the wings off that blue one that’s in the back there with my brother Jeff, and threw it on a barge that my other brother was the captain of, and he brought it down for free,” Hoffman said. “It’s just people understanding this school and what it’s going to bring to the region.”
“Virtually every airline that I know of here is looking for mechanics,” said Keith Henthorn, business manager for regional airline Yute Commuter Service.
None of the airline’s mechanics are Bethel residents. Instead, they come from Fairbanks or Anchorage, or even out of state.
“You know, I just Tuesday offered a guy from Florida $42 an hour to come up here and be a mechanic for me,” Henthorn shared.
Henthorn would rather hire locals and keep that money in the region. He could hire five mechanics today. Local hires would both serve the community and boost the airline’s bottom line. Bringing in outside workers is expensive. It costs flights, housing, and — because of the shortage of employees — overtime. Having fewer mechanics creates less effective airlines. The deficit clogs up the system with grounded planes, delayed flights, backed up freight, and disgruntled passengers.
“Our goal is to have 10 aircraft available every day,” Henthorn explained. “Typically, we have eight. Now we still get most of the things flown that we need to get flown. Just makes it for a little bit longer business day than is practical in most environments.”
The population of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta is growing, and Yute Commuter Service wants to grow with it. To do that, they’ll need more mechanics, and so will the rest of the region’s airlines. Yuut Elitnaurviat’s aircraft mechanic program can nearly guarantee jobs for graduates. That’s what Programs Director Jeremy Osborne found when he surveyed the regional airlines.
“They said if we could turn out magically maybe 300 airplane mechanics, they would probably be able to employ all over the Y-K Delta,” Osborne said. “I mean Ravn [Alaska] and Grant [Aviation] are not just in the Y-K Delta. They have Nome, Unalakleet, all the villages up there.”
Graduates could work anywhere. Over the next two decades, Boeing predicts North America will need 189,000 more aircraft mechanics. Worldwide, Boeing forecasts the demand will reach 754,000. A national shortage of aircraft mechanics is expected to appear in four years as baby boomers retire, and the U.S. Senate has recognized the problem. This spring, the Senate passed a bill to provide half a million dollars to aircraft mechanic programs like Yuut Elitnaurviat’s.
It could be said that when it comes to job opportunity and security in this field, well, the sky’s the limit.
“You could go down to Anchorage. You could go down to Texas,” Osborne said. “You could go anywhere, and this credential follows you.”
The first cohort of mechanics begins February 2019 and runs a year and a half. If you’re interested in applying for Yuut Elitnaurviat’s aviation maintenance program, call 907-543-0999.
Many snow-starved parts of Alaska recently saw the ground finally turn to white. But as for this notion of a “White Halloween,” some places may not reach that benchmark, technically speaking.
As University of Alaska Fairbanks climatologist Brian Brettschneider told Alaska Public Media’s Casey Grove, technically there would need to be enough to round up to 1 inch. And at least at the official, lower-lying measuring sites in Anchorage and Fairbanks, it’s looking like Halloween will not have a total of more than half an inch, technically, and therefore, an un-white Halloween.
BRETTSCHNEIDER: That’s a little bit misleading because pretty much everyone has snow on the ground, but it’s the third year in a row for Fairbanks with less than an inch of snow on the ground. So even though they have an over 90 percent track record of having an inch plus of snow on the ground on Halloween, this is the third year in a row that they’re going to not live up to that expectation.
GROVE: Tell me more about the snowfall around the state. I guess Anchorage got its first real snow, Fairbanks, Bethel, since the last time we talked, elsewhere. How would you characterize this year’s kind of first real snowfall for a lot of the state?
BRETTSCHNEIDER: We are way behind for snow almost everywhere. I mean, Fairbanks had their least snowiest October on record. Anchorage has had some Octobers with no snow before. Bethel had their first snow of the season yesterday. That’s the second latest they’ve ever gone for their first snow and their first latest was back in 1937. And then Nome and Kotzebue, they’ve started to get a little bit of snow, but they’re way behind. King Salmon has had no snow. So most places, way behind on snow, and that’s actually a trend for the last 15 or so years.
October used to be much snowier, especially in the Interior, October used to be the snowiest month of the year. That has drastically changed with much reduced snowfall in the month of October.
GROVE: And colder if I remember correctly. There was a Halloween, in my past when I was younger, it was very cold and I refuse to wear a warm coat because it would ruin my costume. And I got pneumonia that winter, unfortunately.
But I wonder if you could take us back to some bygone years where it was a little colder, and what sort of records are we looking at?
BRETTSCHNEIDER: So some of the Halloweens in the early 1970s, very very cold. So 1975 is kind of the benchmark. There were some places in the Interior that dropped below 40 below zero. Like North Pole, for example, was 41 below zero and even for the high temperature for Fairbanks that year had a high of minus 20. And then if you go back to say the early 1990s, 1992 in particular, very very cold temperatures in the – 20s, minus 30s around the central Interior high temperatures below zero, quite a bit colder.
GROVE: So am I allowed to say, you know, “Back in my day, it was colder and snowier. We had to walk uphill both ways.” Do I have a legit right to that?
BRETTSCHNEIDER: In this case, yes. You know, my experience is people’s weather memories are are very often quite flawed. People, say it was colder then or it was warmer then, and I pull up the record books, and in many cases people’s memories are really sketchy.
In this case though, those weather memories are probably correct.
You ,know, we’ve be talking about a “white Halloween,” but a couple places have had really wet Halloweens in the past, places like Cordova, Kodiak, some areas in the Juneau area: 6, 7, even as much as 9 inches of rain on Halloweens past.
The record is 1935: 9 and a half inches of rain at the Perseverance Mine near Juneau. But even in recent years, like Little Port Walter, on Baranof Island: 8 and a half inches of rain in 2003, and 5 and a half inches of rain just four years ago. So there’s areas in Southeast, this is the heart of their rainy season.
Those big Gulf of Alaska storms can dump a lot of rain on Halloween.
GROVE: So if you’re a kid down there trying to go out trick-or-treating you should be dressed as like Aquaman or The Little Mermaid or something, I guess.
BRETTSCHNEIDER: Definitely, you know, in the mainland part of the state dressing up for Halloween conundrum is always wearing a big parka or jacket over your Halloween outfit. In Southeast, it’s going to be wearing a rain jacket.
GROVE: Yes the parka lesson I learned the hard way.
A collage that was presented at the celebration of Bettye Davis. (Facebook photo courtesy of Celeste Hodge Growden)
Former Alaska lawmaker Bettye Davis retired from the Anchorage School Board at the end of September after more than 35 years in public service. In her tenure on the board and in the Alaska Legislature, Davis fought for education reform and helped break barriers for Black Alaskans and women in government.
The school board invited the community to a celebration commemorating her career, and while school board meetings are generally filled with educators and parents waiting to testify before the board about a myriad of issues, the room was filled with the sound of drumming as the Clark Middle School drumline kicked off a tribute to Davis.
After the performance, the Clark Informers, a school group dedicated to sharing history, told Davis’ story to the crowd.
Davis was elected to the Anchorage School Board in 1982. She already had a career as a social worker, before she retired in 1986. She then moved on to a second career in politics. Celeste Hodge Growden helped organize the tribute.
“We are really fortunate to have someone like Senator Davis, who actually has done more than a lot of individuals put together,” Hodge Growden said.
Davis served three different terms on the board. During her first nine-year term on the board, Davis served as treasurer, vice president and president. She advocated for pre-K funding, reducing dropout rates, and equity for Anchorage students. During the tribute, current board president Starr Marsett credited Davis with helping get her elected.
“When we were both running at the same time, we put out a flyer that we put both our faces on,” Marsett said. “And I know that they probably voted because I was next to Bettye Davis. And so I always just appreciate her support and all the wisdom that she’s given me over the years.”
(Photo courtesy of the 2013 Bettye Davis campaign)
When Davis was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 1990, she became the first elected Black woman to serve in the Legislature. Blanche McSmith served as the first Black Alaskan in the Legislature, but she was appointed by Gov. Bill Egan, and wasn’t actually elected.
Davis would end up going on to become the first Black Alaskan to serve in the Alaska Senate when she was elected in 2000. Since her election, only one other Black Alaskan, David Wilson of Wasilla, has served in the state senate.
While in the Legislature, Davis’s passion for education remained at the forefront. She was given the nickname “Conscience of the Legislature” and championed legislation for education, social issues and economic development. Davis was also instrumental in reestablishing the Alaska Commission on the Status of Women, which focused on dealing with issues facing Alaska women and their families.
Stephanie Berglund is the CEO of thread, a nonprofit that focuses on providing affordable early child care to Alaska families.
“Bettye Davis was very instrumental in supporting increases to education funding,” Berglund said. “Of course, an advocate to ensure that funding wasn’t cut, and championed an effort specifically around funding for early childhood teachers and strengthening the early childhood workforce.”
Bettye Davis after winning her election to her third tenure on the Anchorage School Board. (Photo by Daysha Eaton, KSKA – Anchorage)
After losing reelection in 2013, Davis returned to the school board for her third term. She served until mid-September when she resigned for medical reasons. She was too sick to attend the celebration.
The board appointed a white man – Mark Foster – to fill Davis’s seat.
Celeste Hodge Growden criticized the board directly for not choosing a diverse replacement for Davis, despite many applicants of color, calling the decision “a missed opportunity.” Hodge Growden pointed out that every member currently on the Anchorage School Board is white.
Hodge Growden feels it is important “to have some diversity on the board so that our students, which is largely minority now within the Anchorage School District, could actually identify with somebody that looks like them.”
Davis’s son Tony Davis was at the celebration on his mother’s behalf, and echoed that sentiment. He says his mother was a role model for many students in the district.
He wouldn’t go into the specifics of his mother’s illness, but he says that his mother was aware of the trails she blazed while serving in office.
“She hopes that somebody will step up after she’s done… and continue the fight,” Tony Davis said.
At the end of the celebration, the Anchorage School Board adopted a resolution, formally commemorating Davis’s public service legacy in Alaska.
The Alaska Capitol Building in Juneau on June 6, 2017. (Photo by Jeremy Hsieh/KTOO)
The state Senate race in Fairbanks between Republican Sen. Pete Kelly and Democratic Rep. Scott Kawasaki has seen the most spending of any legislative race, by a wide margin.
That’s according to reports on campaign spending filed Tuesday. The following is a condensed version of an interview between Alaska Public Media’s Casey Grove and Alaska Public Media and KTOO’s Andrew Kitchenman.
CASEY GROVE: Which races are drawing the most campaign spending?
ANDREW KITCHENMAN: A lot of the money is coming from independent expenditure groups that are targeting specific races. That’s particularly true for Republican-affiliated groups, which are seeking to defeat members of the current House majority coalition.
The targeted incumbents include nonpartisan candidates Jason Grenn and Paul Seaton, Republican Gabrielle LeDoux and Democrats Adam Wool and Matt Claman.
GROVE: Why are these candidates targets for Republicans?
KITCHENMAN: They all represent districts where registered Republicans outnumber Democrats. But that’s typical for the state – only eight of the 40 House districts have more registered Democrats than Republicans, in downtown Anchorage, Juneau and northern and western Alaska.
GROVE: What about groups on the other side?
KITCHENMAN: Groups funded by labor unions are aiming to defeat Kelly and Republican Rep. Jennifer Johnston. Other House seats held by Republicans that face tough challenges include Rep. Lance Pruitt in Anchorage, who is facing Democrat Liz Snyder, and Josh Revak, who defeated Republican minority leader Charisse Millett in the primary and faces Democrat Pat Higgins in the general election.
GROVE: Which House races have seen the most spending?
KITCHENMAN: First and foremost, a seat in Fairbanks, where Democrat Kathryn Dodge and Republican Bart LeBon are competing to succeed Kawasaki. And in Juneau, where Democrat Andi Story and Republican Jerry Nankervis are running to succeed Democrat Justin Parish.
GROVE: Which party is best positioned to organize a House majority after the election?
KITCHENMAN: That remains to be seen. The current Republican minority would have to pick up three seats to take the majority. That may prove to be a tall order. I can say there will be at least 10 new members.
GROVE: Do any other House races stand out?
KITCHENMAN: The best-funded write-in candidate is Republican Jake Sloan, who’s aiming to defeat LeDoux. LeDoux caucused with the mostly Democratic House majority the past two years.
GROVE: is there anything more to say about the state Senate?
KITCHENMAN: Outside of the Kelly-Kawasaki race, it could be a quiet election for the Senate. The next-most competitive Senate race may be in Juneau, Gustavus, Haines and Skagway, where Democrat Jesse Kiehl faces nonpartisan Don Etheridge. But other than Kawasaki, no challengers raised even half as much as the candidates from the parties that currently hold the Senate seats.
The man charged with killing 11 in a shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue over the weekend appeared in court Monday, while people still reeled from the news.
There was shock and confusion in Alaska as well. Rabbi Michael Oblath of Congregation Beth Sholom said he asked police to send a patrol car to sit outside Saturday services for his congregation, which is the largest and oldest Jewish congregation in the state.
In a phone interview with Alaska Public Media’s Casey Grove on Monday, Oblath recounted how he heard the news, and what the congregation was talking about in its wake.
OBLATH: And then I saw mentioning of shots near a synagogue is what it said, and then I sat down I spent three hours in front of the TV, upset and, you know, mentally connecting to the people I know that are from Pittsburgh, and there are, some members of our congregation that are, and they were affected by it.
And so, you know, my thoughts would turn out to them. But at the same time, you know, not really knowing what was going on. Other than that there was a shooter it’s very, very disconcerting to hear the term active shooter involved with the congregation, and frustrated and not quite knowing what to do. And I’m not sure I still know what to do it.
You know, it’s just a matter of recognizing that we have to be available to reach out to those in our communities that are hurting as a result of this and to be able to try to heal as much as we can and to try to figure out how to not get there again.
GROVE: What’s the conversation been among your congregation about this?
OBLATH: The mood in the country is a mood where this kind of violence and this kind of threat is sitting there, not just right under the surface, but right on top. As this past week has shown, several incidents during the week, have indicated that, and even that over the past several years have shown a marked increase in this kind of violence and this type of openness in the society for people who normally wouldn’t be doing this, because they’d be hiding under their rocks.
But at the same time this moment in our society when, society is so split, it’s so polarized, that you have people on both sides hating each other and not willing to talk to each other and being willing to express emotions of and attitudes of violence.
GROVE: And why do you think that is? I mean you’re saying that there’s hatred on both sides of the political spectrum, but do you think that there’s a reason why this is more a part of our lives now?
OBLATH: People in power who have the ability to change it, or have the ability to stop it or to put controls on our society that should be there, are not acting because they have too many strong self-interests that keep them from seeing the greater picture of what our country is about. And I’ve seen that on both sides of the aisle. I don’t like it. This is how we behave when we’re in positions of power, we have the power to exert it over others, we do, and we often times do it abusively and violently. And you can look at history and see that it’s true.
GROVE: Today the Anchorage Police Department said they were going to step up patrols near houses of worship. And I guess I have to ask, I mean, do you feel safe in your place of worship after this?
OBLATH: I feel safe as safe in the synagogue as I feel anywhere else. I mean, this is something that Jewish communities experienced stuff like this for centuries, and it’s still something that when it happens you you become fearful. And at the same time we understand that it happens and we try to really stay ahead of the fear in a sense or work through it to be able to try to change our society, as much as we can have any influence to do it, or to educate people or to hopefully bring people together in a way of being able to talk to each other and bridging that gap is what needs to be done.
And talk is people who are citizens of a country that should and has for the last 200-plus years been able to work these things out and be a country and not be these two magnet poles that are pulling people in different directions that just rip us to shreds.
GROVE: Rabbi Michael Oblast of Congregation Beth Sholom, Rabbi Oblast, thanks for being here.
The Viking Lumber Mill on Prince of Wales Island is one of the last operating big sawmills in Southeast Alaska. (Photo by Ed Schoenfeld/CoastAlaska)
One of the largest old growth timber harvests in years has been proposed on Prince of Wales Island. The U.S. Forest Service says old growth logging would help fuel the local economy.
The latest Prince of Wales Island proposal envisions as much as 225 million board feet of old growth timber harvested.
At first blush, the Prince of Wales Island project looks big, said the Forest Service’s project manager Delilah Brigham in Thorne Bay. But it’s designed to be a gradual process.
“We’re looking at metering out timber harvest over 15 years,” Brigham said Tuesday. “So yes, the project does offer a larger amount of old growth but it’s not going to be harvested all right now within one year.”
The project would still dwarf the recent Big Thorne Project which was touted as offering nearly 150 million board feet of timber. Also unlike Big Thorne, this proposal doesn’t immediately identity specific areas to be logged. Rather, it covers a patchwork of Tongass National Forest lands on Prince of Wales and surrounding islands.
But Brigham said the purpose remains the same: feed demand of the local industry.
“We had a variety of comments from different sized mills across the project area saying that their businesses rely on a steady supply of timber,” Brigham said.
That’s been met with skepticism by critics.
“There’s no evidence that anything would be milled locally,” said Pat Lavin, an Anchorage-based representative of Defenders of Wildlife, a national environmental group, opposing the plan. “At least that hasn’t been the trend, and isn’t what one would expect out of this sale, either. Most of the product is exported, unfortunately, and that would probably continue.”
The Forest Service has received push back over concerns about commercial logging’s effects on fish and wildlife habitat.
“Prince of Wales Island has been the site of some of the most intense logging over the past several decades,” said Austin Williams, of Trout Unlimited’s Alaska chapter. “The thrust of our comments were to encourage the Forest Service to really be mindful of impacts to fish and wildlife and to really find a way to move the timber program more towards young growth and away from this old growth logging.”
The Forest Service had considered other alternatives including cutting younger forests. Tongass Forest Supervisor Earl Stewart is the official who signed off on the environmental review and recommended the most aggressive logging plan. He’s unfazed by criticism, saying controversy is part of the process.
“You know, managing of competing interests from all the different programs and elements is always a challenge and is always difficult,” Stewart said.
The Forest Service will officially publish its draft decision on Saturday. That triggers a 45-day window for people to raise objections until mid-December. The agency then reviews those comments before forwarding a final decision to the regional forester’s office.
Four tribes are asking the Bristol Bay Area Health Corporation to hold a full board meeting to address serious deficiencies at the pharmacy of the Kanakanak Hospital as laid out in a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services survey.
The Curyung Tribal Council received a copy of the survey earlier this week, which CMS conducted in September. According to CMS, chronic errors in the Kanakanak Hospital pharmacy are placing patients at immediate risk of harm.
Curyung’s concerns about the hospital, however, reach far beyond the pharmacy.
“Although this report is directed at pharmaceutical concerns in addressing mismanagement happening within pharmacy practices at the health corporation, it also outlines concerns regarding the governance structure and lack of response from the administration as well as what appear to be significant human resource-related issues regarding a fear of retaliation for employees reporting safety concerns,” Curyung tribal administrator Courtenay Carty said.
The tribe is calling for changes in hospital leadership, although they have not said specifically what adjustments they hope to see.
“I think it’s pretty clear to our council that some significant changes need to happen in the administration as well as the executive committee and governance structure of the health corp. organization,” Carty said.
Curyung said Bristol Bay tribes are not the only ones who want to see change. It said it received a memo from Kanakanak Hospital medical staff that addressed the CMS survey and called for changes in the top level of hospital administration. The memo was sent to the full BBAHC board,
In addition to requesting a full BBAHC board meeting, the Curyung Tribal Council is exploring other options for health care.
The Kanakanak Hospital in Dillingham. (Photo by Isabelle Ross/KDLG)
“Because we authorize this tribal health organization to provide services on our behalf, at any time we’re able to explore our options to rescind that authorization and that is something the tribal council is discussing and trying to work toward a solution on at this time,” Carty explained.
Portage Creek Village Council, the Traditional Council of Togiak and the New Stuyahok Traditional Council are also asking BBAHC to hold a full board meeting in response to the CMS survey.
The Togiak Traditional Council declined to comment on the survey findings. However, it said it fully supports the medical staff’s memo, asking for change in hospital leadership.
Wassillie Gust, president of the New Stuyahok Traditional Council, said the council is in support of a full board meeting, which he believes is vital for resolving problems in the pharmacy. He said he also has concerns about BBAHC and hospital leadership.
“I believe that the executive committee and the CEO need a re-evaluation or an evaluation. Been sitting stagnate too long,” Gust said. “Not that I have anything against the CEO. Just that they need to look down and refocus on where health issues need to go.”
Gust added that, as a patient of the hospital, he requested a refill over a month ago of medication he takes daily. He said he has been out of medication for weeks and that the pharmacy is not responding to his calls.
“I’m out of meds until someone delivers them,” Gust said. “I’m beginning to think everybody’s gone to the dog team there.”
Kanakanak Hospital must provide CMS with a corrective action plan for the deficiencies found in the survey by Nov. 7. The hospital declined KDLG’s request for comment.
Wrangell Medical Center is being transferred to the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium this week. As of today, the hospital will be run by SEARHC.
That’s following Wrangell voters overwhelmingly approving the transfer of the city-run complex to the tribal health organization in the October election. The deal was recently inked by the Wrangell Assembly and SEARHC’s board of directors.
SEARHC spokeswoman Stacy Smith says hospital staff have been gearing up for this transition. The community shouldn’t expect change overnight. It’s still the same place with the same people.
“So they’re not going to feel like it’s foreign, and they don’t know anyone and the procedures are different,” Smith said. “Everything’s going to feel familiar as it was the day before.”
That’s largely because staff will be retained as SEARHC employees.
The health consortium said there will be eventual changes. But only as needed.
SEARHC is working to build a new critical-access hospital with long-term care. It’s scheduled to be complete by 2021. It’s unclear what will happen to the original hospital once the new complex is up and running.
Sockeye salmon migrate up a small stream in Southcentral Alaska. (Photo: Katrina Liebich/USFWS)
Alaskans will soon vote on Ballot Measure 1, the controversial initiative aimed at protecting Alaska’s salmon habitat. Companies behind big proposed mines and oil developments have helped raise millions of dollars to campaign against it.
But beyond big resource development projects, opponents say Ballot Measure 1 could hinder projects like road improvements. Supporters counter that it was specifically written to allow vital infrastructure projects to go forward.
So how will the ballot measure affect mid-sized projects used by everyday Alaskans? The answer isn’t clear-cut.
Part of the uncertainty on how the salmon habitat initiative could affect things like small-scale hydro projects or mom-and-pop placer mines hinges on a single phrase in the ballot measure: “significant adverse effects.”
That’s because if it passes, projects that could cause “significant adverse effects” to salmon habitat will go through a much tougher and more public vetting process to get what’s called a major permit. Projects that impact salmon habitat in less significant ways could get a minor or a general permit, and that process would be less rigorous and time-intensive.
So what counts as a “significant adverse effect” on salmon habitat? Where’s the line between a major and a minor permit?
“We have not made an actual determination about that yet,” said Ron Benkert, a regional supervisor with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the agency that would carry out the ballot measure if it passes.
Benkert said the measure does lay out criteria on what counts as “significant adverse effects.” For example, if a project blocks fish from passing through, that’s “significant.” Other criteria on what counts as “significant” are less clear, he said.
“Some of them are kind of difficult to define and it would probably require us to develop some additional regulations to further clarify that,” Benkert said.
So if the measure passes, that’s not the end of the story. Although it will go into effect 90 days after the election results are final, the state will likely write regulations that would try to nail down the distinction between projects in salmon habitat that have to clear a higher bar and projects that won’t. Benkert said that could take several months, if not longer, and would require significant input from the state’s Department of Law.
An attorney who represents companies opposed to the ballot measure said if it passes, Fish and Game will suddenly be under intense scrutiny as it figures out what counts as “significant adverse effects.”
“I’ve been involved in a lot of rulemakings over the years; this one is going to be as hard as anything I have ever seen, just because there’s so much interest in it,” said Eric Fjelstad, an attorney with Perkins Coie, a firm that also has worked for the Stand for Alaska campaign.
The state can likely put little projects like boat ramps under the “minor” category. And a big proposed mine that will displace salmon streams? That will go through the tougher permitting process.
“The clients I represent — everyone just assumes they will be major,” Fjelstad said.
But Fjelstad said the gray area in the middle will be tricky for the state to navigate.
“You have, say, a road that’s 75 yards long with a gravel pad where you want to build a cabin, and it’s through a swampy area that is deemed to be anadromous fish habitat — is that going to be under the minor scheme?” Fjelstad said. “I think those are the questions that are harder, that are right on the line.”
Emily Anderson, an attorney with the Wild Salmon Center who helped write the initiative, pushed back on opponents who have said needed infrastructure projects will be hindered by the ballot measure.
“I think Fish and Game will write regulations that reflect the intent of the law, which is not to overly burden everyday Alaskans or to stop vital infrastructure projects or anything like that,” Anderson said, stressing that the projects would only need permits if they “use, divert, obstruct, pollute, disturb or otherwise alter” habitat for salmon and other, similar fish species.
“It’s really, really premature to say, ‘you’ll never be able to do this,’ or expand your airport in X, Y and Z community,” Anderson added. “That’s ridiculous to say at this point.”
Anderson acknowledged it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what projects will get a minor permit, and what projects will go through the tougher vetting process, because Fish and Game will have discretion on that. She added the measure isn’t focused on how big or small a project is, or what kind of project it is. Instead, the bar is to what extent it could harm salmon habitat.
“You can have a very large project that has very little impact to fish habitat, and therefore could be processed as a minor permit,” Anderson said. “You can have a very small project that the way it’s being proposed can have very high impacts to fish habitat, and that may be proposed as a major project.”
So a project’s size may not be the best indicator of how much it could be impacted by Ballot Measure 1. And even then, when it comes to how the initiative could impact some projects used by everyday Alaskans, a lot rides on how the state writes regulations to implement it.
But before all that, Alaskans will vote to decide whether the ballot measure should go forward at all.
In last days of race for Congress, activists from both camps canvas through Anchorage
Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media – Washington D.C.
Pollster Ivan Moore released survey results today showing Congressman Don Young is running slightly behind first-time candidate Alyse Galvin.
On education, candidates for governor have different priorities and styles
Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau
Democrat Mark Begich and Republican Mike Dunleavy come from different backgrounds. Begich has been outside the education system, Dunleavy within it.
To carry out salmon habitat measure, Alaska must decide what ‘significant’ means
Elizabeth Harball, Alaska’s Energy Desk – Anchorage
Part of the uncertainty on how the salmon habitat initiative could affect things like small-scale hydro projects or mom-and-pop placer mines hinges on a single phrase in the ballot measure: “significant adverse effects.”
Alaska experienced drops in births, marriages in 2017
Associated Press
An Alaska report shows fewer babies were born and fewer people got married in the state last year.
Flights between Russia and Alaska suspended
Jacob Resneck, CoastAlaska – Juneau
The only regular flight between Alaska and Russia has been suspended after Russian authorities revoked the airline’s license to fly abroad.
Anchorage community gathers to celebrate Bettye Davis’s political legacy
Wesley Early, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
Former lawmaker Bettye Davis retired from the Anchorage School Board at the end of September after more than 35 years in public service. In her tenure on the board and in the state legislature, Davis fought for education reform and helped break barriers for Black Alaskans and women in government.
Bristol Bay tribes call for significant changes in Dillingham hospital leadership
Avery Lill, KDLG – Dillingham
A survey conducted in September found that practices at the Kanakanak Hospital’s pharmacy put patients at risk for adverse health effects.
Feds propose Tongass old growth timber sale
Jacob Resneck, CoastAlaska – Juneau
This latest proposed Tongass timber sale on Prince of Wales Island would dwarf anything seen in decades. The public has until mid-December to lodge objections with the U.S. Forest Service.
Republican Mike Dunleavy, left, and Democrat Mark Begich are the two main candidates for governor. (Photos by Rashah McChesney/Alaska’s Energy Desk)
One of the major issues separating the leading candidates to become governor is education. How they approach the issue may also reflect their leadership styles.
Democrat Mark Begich and Republican Mike Dunleavy come from different backgrounds. Begich has been outside the education system, relying on experts to shape his approach to the issue.
Begich’s central educational proposal is a plan to put half of the state draw from Permanent Fund earnings into schools – the other half would pay out Permanent Fund Dividends. He said at a recent debate this would prevent school funding from being on the chopping block every year.
“We need to protect it,” Begich said. “It’s the greatest equalizer for everyone in this state, if we make sure it’s funded properly and protected for generations to come.”
Dunleavy’s perspective comes from working within the system, as a teacher, school administrator and school board member. Along the way, he’s built up strong views on how education should be delivered.
Dunleavy also laid out his plans during recent debates. He wants to require that all third-graders read at grade level, all ninth-graders learn algebra, and all career and technical students reach higher standards.
“We have to reallocate resources to make sure we’re focused on those three core areas,” Dunleavy said. “If we do that, you’re going to see our scores go up, and you’re going to see kids have more of an opportunity.”
Dunleavy supports allowing more rural students to attend regional high schools. He said he wants to expand students’ options, and doesn’t want to close schools in villages.
“It’s to enhance, not to take away,” Dunleavy said.
It’s not clear how he would pay for his proposals while also cutting the state budget overall. When he chaired the Senate subcommittee that proposes education funding, Dunleavy proposed eliminating all state funding for pre-K. He also backed cuts to other state funding for programs that prepare young children for school, such as Head Start.
In an emailed response to questions about these proposals, Dunleavy said of his approach to cuts: “Government needs to be managed better. As governor, I will find efficiencies and eliminate duplication and waste, focusing on results, not inputs.”
In contrast, Begich wants to provide universal pre-K.
“There’s no question early education is the best investment we can make,” he said.
Dunleavy has supported a constitutional amendment to allow public money to go to private or religious education, though he said in August he wasn’t planning to push the amendment now.
When he was on the Matanuska-Susitna School Board, Dunleavy supported expanding support for home schooling. He hasn’t focused on that in his campaign for governor.
Begich opposes vouchers, saying that public education is a foundation for communities and the economy.
Kenny Gallahorn has known Dunleavy for more than 20 years, since Dunleavy started teaching in Kotzebue schools. Gallahorn’s a former member of both the Kotzebue and state school boards. He is a big supporter of regional schools.
Gallahorn said he trusts Dunleavy more than Begich on handling rural education issues.
“As a state, we pump a lot of money into education and we’re not getting very much bang for our buck, honestly,” he said. “The results shown by our test results and many other indicators, actually, are not well.”
Others who’ve worked with Dunleavy have a different impression.
Susan Crane was the local teachers union president when Dunleavy was superintendent for the Northwest Arctic School District. She said he had a top-down leadership style and predicts that will cause problems when dealing with the Legislature.
“If he’s anything like he was as a principal, or even when he was working over in the district office and working with teachers, he’s not going to listen to the people, he’s going to have his own way of doing things and he’s going to try to control us, control decisions based on what he wants, rather than what the people want,” she said.
Bethany Marcum disagreed with Crane’s assessment of Dunleavy. She worked for him on education issues as a legislative aide, and she said he treated his staff with respect.
“We had a team structure, whereby we all had open access to him,” she said. “We were able to engage with him at any given time of day.”
Begich’s career hasn’t had the same focus on education as Dunleavy’s. But he’s still impressed some who’ve worked with him.
Carol Comeau worked with Begich as superintendent of Anchorage schools when Begich was the municipality’s mayor. She said Begich was a leader on education issues even when it wasn’t a central responsibility for him as mayor.
“When he’d go to Juneau to lobby for the city of Anchorage, he also was very much willing to support our requests and our needs,” Comeau said.
There’s a third candidate running for governor: Libertarian Billy Toien. He said the government shouldn’t play a role in education. And he doesn’t think students should be required to go to school.
