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Alaska got the lowest August federal transportation allocation among states at $19 million from error-filled submission

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Alaska got the lowest August federal transportation allocation among states at  million from error-filled submission


The state of Alaska was awarded $19 million by federal highway administrators in August, the lowest amount given to a state this year from an annual reallocation of unused federal transportation funding.

Alaska transportation officials had requested $71.4 million from the August redistribution. But $52 million in projects was rejected due partly to errors made in the state’s submission. Alaska contractors are disappointed and concerned what that will mean for next summer’s road construction season and beyond.

At the end of each August, the Federal Highway Administration redistributes transportation funds among states that cannot be obligated by the end of the federal fiscal year on Sept. 30.

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The Federal Highway Administration announced on Aug. 30 that a record $8.7 billion would be redistributed to state transportation departments across the nation. Texas got the largest allocation at $1.17 billion. California got the second largest share with $622 million. Alaska received $19 million in spending authority — the lowest figure among 50 states and Washington D.C.

State transportation officials say this year’s reduced redistribution was due to several factors: Fewer big pots of money available to fund projects, changing federal requirements and added scrutiny on Alaska’s transportation spending.

“We are actually pleased to have captured this $19 million,” said Shannon McCarthy, a spokeswoman for the Alaska Department of Transportation, in an interview last week.

State transportation officials acknowledged that the state’s delayed and error-filled four-year, $5.6 billion transportation plan was a contributing factor to the Federal Highway Administration’s rejection of $16 million in projects from Alaska’s August redistribution request.

According to a transportation planning document obtained by the Daily News as part of a records request, much of the state’s ask for unused federal transportation funds was denied because of significant errors made in the submission.

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Basic and significant errors

The State Transportation Improvement Plan, or STIP, is a separate and comprehensive plan for highways, roads, ferries, and even bicycle lanes to be implemented in Alaska through 2027. States typically had their four-year transportation plans approved by last October, the start of the federal fiscal year.

Alaska’s first transportation plan was rejected by federal highway administrators four months late in February due to significant errors with dozens of proposed projects. After scrambling to correct mistakes and to remove ineligible projects, Alaska’s transportation plan was only partially approved in March.

Additionally, state officials were required to submit an amended transportation plan in late August that made corrective actions to numerous projects.

“There are a pretty significant number of them, and they are detailed and take a lot of work to address,” said Aaron Jongenelen, executive director of AMATS, Anchorage’s local transportation planning organization.

Some of the same problems associated with the state’s first four-year transportation plan have persisted through the process to correct those errors.

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Last year, AMATS and Fairbanks’ transportation planning organization, FAST Planning, said they were excluded from drafting the state’s plan as required by federal regulations. Projects were added to the state’s that were not also supported by the local planning organizations, such as bridge improvements to serve a contentious ore-haul project near Fairbanks operated by Kinross.

In late July, FAST Planning said they “were again excluded during development” of the state’s draft amended plan. Many of the concerns from local planning organizations were subsequently addressed by state transportation officials, but others remained.

The Alaska Department of Transportation has wanted to improve a stretch of the Seward Highway between Potter Marsh and Bird Flats, but the costly project has not been fully included in AMATS’ own transportation plan, which is required by federal regulations. The project was added to the state’s amended transportation plan despite a warning by AMATS that it would again be declared ineligible for federal funding.

A group of 12 Democratic and independent state legislators wrote to Transportation Commissioner Ryan Anderson in early August with concerns that the state’s amended transportation plan made allocation decisions that risked it posed to projects in next summer’s construction season.

Anchorage Democratic Rep. Zack Fields, a member of the House Transportation Committee, was scathing at the blatant errors that continued to be made by the department on critical state transportation funding requests. He said in an interview that Alaskans would broadly feel the impact of delayed or denied road construction projects.

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“Anyone who works in the construction industry, anyone who doesn’t want to drive through a two-foot deep pothole, anyone in the resource development industry who relies on a functioning surface transportation system. Literally, everyone is screwed by their incompetence,” he said.

Alaska’s amended four-year transportation plan was submitted on Aug. 28. That triggered a 30-day window for the Federal Highway Administration to review and potentially approve the new plan.

That uncertainty helped reduce Alaska’s August redistribution. Federal highway administrators rejected over $16 million of proposed projects because they were contingent on the state’s amended transportation plan already being approved.

According to the transportation planning document obtained by the Daily News, another $35.7 million in projects were rejected because they “were not ready to move forward.”

Some proposed projects were denied because of errors made in the state’s request, including by again adding projects that were not also in local transportation plans. Other projects could not be obligated by the end of September — a federal deadline.

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Emails obtained by the Daily News showed state transportation officials were warned ahead of time by the Federal Highway Administration that certain projects would be rejected because of errors. They were submitted anyway.

As part of Alaska’s August redistribution request, the state asked for $462,780 for rockfall mitigation at mile 113.2 of the Seward Highway. State transportation officials were told the project would be ineligible for funding. The project was submitted and was duly denied.

A federal highway official wrote in comments attached to that request: “Resubmission – why are design funds being added 4 years after construction ATP??”

Fields was not convinced by state transportation officials’ explanations about the reduced August redistribution being caused by changing federal regulations or added scrutiny.

“Every other state is administering these programs and getting way more money,” he said. “So how are we the only ones who are getting less money?”

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‘Surprised and disappointed’

The $19 million in federal transportation funds obligated to Alaska in August stands in stark contrast to the recent past. Last year, Alaska got a record $108 million. The year before, the state received a then-record $87 million in authority to be used for seven projects.

“Alaska is geared up to build projects that address safety and fix our existing infrastructure,” Transportation Commissioner Ryan Anderson said in a news release two years ago.

The Associated General Contractors of Alaska, which represents over 600 local contractors, was concerned by this year’s reduced funding and what it could mean for future construction seasons.

“AGC members were surprised and disappointed to see Alaska receive the lowest August redistribution funds of any state in the nation,” said Alicia Amberg, executive director of AGC, in a prepared statement.

Amberg noted that Alaska’s 2024 redistribution was down 82% compared to last August. That was despite a nearly 10% increase in transportation funds available nationwide for redistribution, she said.

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“We don’t know how and if this will impact the construction program in the coming months, but less money going toward safe and reliable infrastructure in Alaska is always a concern,” Amberg said.

She added that AGC was working with state transportation officials “to understand the bigger picture funding strategy in place that will ensure ample opportunity and predictability for the construction industry moving forward.”

McCarthy, a spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Transportation, emphasized that Alaska is set to receive $590 million in federal transportation funding this fiscal year before accounting for the August redistribution. But not all of that funding has been made available.

FAST Planning in Fairbanks said by Aug. 21 that it had been obligated $13.3 million, which represented 43% of the nearly $31 million in funding it has anticipated receiving this federal fiscal year.

By the end of June, AMATS in Anchorage had obligated just $14 million of $50 million, which was just 28% of the funding it had anticipated receiving this year. More funding could be made available before the end of the federal fiscal year, which is typical. But Jongenelen said the gap this year was substantial.

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“The big difference this go around is the estimates are much higher of how much we don’t anticipate obligating,” he said.

Jongenelen, executive director of AMATS, said the delayed federal transportation funding available for Anchorage was directly connected to the delays in getting federal approval for the state’s amended four-year transportation plan.

He said that can have real consequences. A project to rehabilitate a stretch of Spenard Road to improve safety for drivers and pedestrians would likely be delayed, but he didn’t know by how long. He said that can have “a butterfly effect.”

“So one project is delayed a year. That could delay two other projects. Those could delay three other projects,” he said. “It’s kind of this effect that you don’t really know — it looks small at the beginning, but it can grow into being a larger thing as time goes on.”





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Alaska

North Pole flag football players will represent Alaska in televised showcase associated with NFL’s Pro Bowl Games

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North Pole flag football players will represent Alaska in televised showcase associated with NFL’s Pro Bowl Games


Alaska held its first sanctioned flag football state championship in October, making it one of about a dozen states to claim the designation.

Already, the brighter spotlight is having a ripple effect on the student-athletes who compete in the sport.

A pair of players from the state champion North Pole team have been invited to compete in a high school flag football showcase associated with the NFL’s Pro Bowl Games.

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Tiahna Guzman and Camryn Williams are in Orlando this weekend to compete against and alongside players from seven states including Florida, California and New York. The game is scheduled for 9 p.m. AKST on Sunday, and will be broadcast on ESPN during Postseason NFL Countdown.

For Guzman, the all-star game is yet another door that was opened to her from participating in flag football. A senior, she plans to play flag football at Bryant & Stratton College and attend the school’s campus in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.

“I think it was very important,” she said of the sanctioning. “That’s how my college reached out to me and that’s how they reached out to us for (this game), because we won state.”

Being the state champion in a sanctioned league landed North Pole (15-1) in eighth place in USA Today’s Top 25 rankings. That got them on radar of NFL Flag, the league’s official flag program. The 30 players in the game all hail from teams in the final Top 25.

“The sanctioning of it, really, it opens up a lot more opportunities like this,” North Pole coach Jamie Darby said.

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Both players are excited and a bit nervous to compete with players from other states. As Guzman noted, “they’re most definitely getting more reps than us. They have more time in the summer too, and they’re probably getting a lot more games than we did.”

“I’m super excited to see all the talent these girls have,” Williams said. “I always see them playing on clips on Instagram and stuff like that. They’re super cool. Yeah, I can’t wait.”

While Williams isn’t planning to play collegiately, she is hoping to go into sports management, and part of the itinerary includes a presentation of women in sports.

“I’m super excited to network and make all those connections,” Williams said. “I also can’t wait to meet all those other girls as well as just being a part of the whole NFL-sponsored event.”

Darby said these types of opportunities will only multiply as the game continues to increase in popularity nationwide.

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“I think we’ve perfectly scheduled our sanctioning with this blow-up across the nation to show that Alaska is involved,” she said. “It’s going to be a great opportunity for more girls to be able to go … to the next level, go to college. This year really put a good spotlight on Alaska.”

The itinerary also includes trips to Epcot and Topgolf although Guzman said she was uncertain of whether meeting NFL Pro Bowl athletes would be included.

The game at Camping World Stadium will be followed on Sunday by Pro Bowl Games festivities, including a tug-of-war, a relay race and a 7-on-7 flag football game.

Playing in a game that’s televised will bring an added level of pressure, but neither Alaska player seemed too worried.

“I think there’s gonna be a North Pole watch party for our team for any family and friends that want to join,” Williams said.

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The game is part of a whirlwind last year for Guzman, who wouldn’t have dreamed that flag football would be such a big part of her future plans.

“I did not think I was going to college (to play) flag football,” she said. “This was all just in this last year. So random, but I’m super excited.”





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Limited state revenue foreshadows fiscal tug-of-war in Alaska Legislature • Alaska Beacon

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Limited state revenue foreshadows fiscal tug-of-war in Alaska Legislature • Alaska Beacon


In a series of hearings this week within the Alaska State Capitol, public-school advocates from across the state presented hours of impassioned and often emotional testimony in favor of a bill that will sharply increase Alaska’s funding for public schools.

But a pair of cold-blooded financial hearings also showed that the request may have to compete with the Permanent Fund dividend and aid for aging state buildings.

In December, Gov. Mike Dunleavy proposed a $7.7 billion state budget for the fiscal year that starts June 1. 

That spending would require the state to spend $1.5 billion from savings, and it isn’t too dissimilar from what the governor has proposed in each of the past two years.

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In each of those years, the Legislature took the governor’s plan and slashed his proposed Permanent Fund dividend in order to avoid spending from savings.

The Legislature’s preferred dividend formula is called the 75-25, for the way it takes the annual transfer from the Alaska Permanent Fund to the state treasury, then divides it, 75% for services, and 25% for dividends.

“The last two years, the Legislature has put forward the 75-25 dividend and been able to have a balanced budget. This year, that is probably not enough,” Alexei Painter, director of the Legislative Finance Division, the Legislature’s budget analysis wing, told the Senate Finance Committee this week.

The problem is twofold: Lawmakers are preparing to spend more, and oil isn’t giving the state as much revenue as it used to.

When it comes to oil, the problem is one caused by success. State tax law allows oil companies to lower the amount they pay in production taxes through a deduction based on their operating expenses. 

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ConocoPhillips is spending hundreds of millions of dollars to develop the Willow project on federal land, and it can deduct its expenses from taxes it would otherwise pay this year. That makes it a money-loser for the state treasury in the next few years.

The nearby Pikka project is being developed by another company, which doesn’t currently produce oil. That company, Australia-based Santos, will be able to apply its deductions to future oil production, so even though the North Slope will be producing more oil, the state won’t be earning more money.

In the state Capitol, House Bill 69, an education-funding increase proposed by members of the state House, is expected to cost at least $300 million above what the governor has proposed spending on education. An official estimate isn’t yet available.

Add the cost of that legislation to already-expected cost increases, and there’s not enough money to go around, Painter told the Senate Finance Committee, then reiterated his comments to the House Finance Committee on Thursday.

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“Simply switching the dividend to 75-25 is not going to be enough to balance the budget this year. You’re going to have to either find other budget reductions, reduce the dividend further or explore other revenue options. You can’t just do that one thing and it’s solved, which has worked the last two years,” he said.

To date, no legislators have introduced any legislation proposing to significantly change state taxes. During the first six years of his administration, Dunleavy has vetoed every tax bill to reach his desk, and legislators have never overridden any of his vetoes.

Painter also warned both committees that the governor’s proposed budget doesn’t include enough to keep up with maintenance at state facilities.

Alaska has a maintenance backlog of more than $2 billion, and many state buildings were built during the oil boom of the 1970s and 1980s. That leaves many of them overdue for replacement or repair.

The problem may be worse than official reports indicate, Painter said, offering the Fairbanks Pioneer Home as an example.

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That building has a deferred maintenance list of a few million dollars, but it also needs a new roof and doesn’t meet federal standards for accessibility by handicapped people.

Replacing the building would cost $115 million, he said.

In the House Finance Committee on Thursday, Rep. Will Stapp, R-Fairbanks, asked Painter what would happen if average oil prices finished $10 below what the state is expecting in the coming years.

That would widen the expected deficit by $350 million to $400 million, Painter replied.

“Have you done any modeling on the 99-1 yet?” Stapp asked, jokingly referring to a dividend formula that would leave just 1% of the annual Permanent Fund transfer for dividends.

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“I don’t even think that would cover the costs of running the PFD program,” Painter said.

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Help with paying utility bills listed among top requests from Alaska 211

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Help with paying utility bills listed among top requests from Alaska 211


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Workers at United Way’s statewide 211 line said Thursday that Alaskans asking for help to pay their utility bills is one of the top requests.

According to United Way data from 2023, utility assistance continues to be one of the top four unmet needs in Alaska, with that list rounded out by requests for help with housing, transportation, and food.

In the case of utility bills, United Way’s Chief Operating Officer Sue Brogan said the agency has a database with as many as 70 partners around the state that can provide some sort of energy assistance. That database features nonprofits, city and state programs, and tribal and non-tribal entities.

Brogan said trained navigators can help people find programs for which they might be eligible. The database also keeps track of which programs are currently accepting clients and have funding available and which ones don’t. The State of Alaska, for example, reports a backlog on processing applications for heating assistance programs.

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Some of the money available includes a recent $50,000 donation from Enstar, which Brogan said is designed to help Southcentral Alaskans who are struggling to pay their heating bills.

“All of that information is in the database,” Brogan said, “and so, when somebody calls in for help, the resource call specialist can take that person through all of those qualifications to make sure we are making a good referral.”

In addition to calling, Brogan said people can go directly to the Alaska 211 website to research various programs themselves, though she said calling or emailing the call center has the advantage of getting personalized help.

“Where do you start, what’s the eligibility, what do I have to bring to my appointment?” Brogan said. “We can help you with that; we can help you navigate that. And that is one of the greatest things about 211, is that we have staff that are here that can help you with that step.”

Alaskans can call 211 or (800) 478-2221, visit the website at Alaska211.org, or email Alaska211@ak.org.

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The call center is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Callers can leave messages after hours.

See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com



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