State geologist Mark Myers hopes that hydrogen deposits in Alaska’s metamorphic rock could be enough to fuel the state’s energy industry. The idea comes from a well in Mali that has fueled one village since 2012.
Sami Graham, a former chief of staff to Mayor Dave Bronson, and Daniel Smith denied allegations that they coordinated with Mark Dahl on false city policy to challenge the November election results.
The city’s Health Department has ended its longtime sleep-off center contract with private security firm Securitas after safety and reliability concerns. But the costly replacement is just temporary, leaving the medical service’s future uncertain.
Just a few months after the Starlink terminals began delivering connectivity, thousands of residents have signed up for the satellite-transferred service. While the connectivity isn’t perfect, the increased speed is life changing for many.
A 7.2 magnitude earthquake off of the coast triggered a tsunami warning that created confusion, traffic jams and evacuations despite the alert later being canceled. Some worry the inefficient system could erode public trust.
An outdoor death is defined as a person found dead outside with no fixed address. The deaths occurred in April and are the highest number of outdoor deaths in Anchorage for any single month since the beginning of 2017.
The state Senate passed a bill that would allocate millions more for public school funding annually, sending the legislation to the House for review with less than one week before the end of session.
The state’s Office of Public Advocacy is required to provide guardianship services for vulnerable adults, but recent turnover has increased workloads to approximately 1,600 cases per staff member. The agency wants it down to 60 each.
Advocates of the bill say that it would empower parents to take charge in their kids’ education and limit the exposure to objectionable content, while critics say it would allow discrimination against kids.
The Alaska budget attempts to address some of the state’s crises, such as the public defender shortage and a backlog of Medicaid and SNAP benefits applications, but the $400 million deficit is millions more than estimated.
The Alaska governor introduced two bills that would create a regulatory framework for geologic storage of carbon dioxide and for selling carbon offset credits, and could earn billions for the state. Many details are still unclear.
The bills and five proposed constitutional amendments cover a range of topics, including establishing Filipino American History Month, blocking low-level marijuana conviction records from public view and repealing ranked-choice voting.
A report from the University of Alaska Center for Economic Development found that, for the last seven years, the state has performed “at or near the bottom” in employment growth, unemployment, net migration and GDP.
“Final four voting” ensures that party primary voters aren’t the bosses anymore, changing incentives for campaigning and governing and knocking down barriers to compromise and cooperation.
Observers flagged several problems at rural polling places regarding adequate accommodations for Native language speakers that could disenfranchise minority voters and might violate the Voting Rights Act.
The state alleges both the Republican Governors Association and A Stronger Alaska, an independent expenditure group funded by the RGA, are illegally spending money to support Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s re-election.
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