Alaska

Alaska House majority forms to the right of the Senate’s

Published

2 years ago

January 21, 2023

Alaska House majority forms to the right of the Senate’s

The Alaska State Capitol on April 22, 2022, in Juneau, Alaska. (Picture by Rashah McChesney)

The Alaska Legislature wrapped up its first week of the session Friday. Regardless of uncertainty entering into, each chambers have elected leaders and decided their committee assignments. Alaska Public Media statewide affairs reporter Kavitha George was in Juneau this week and spoke to host Casey Grove about what the previous few days have been like within the Capitol.

Casey Grove: Issues within the Legislature have been considerably unpredictable this week, however now we are able to say the Home is organized, proper?

Kavitha George: That’s proper. We positively went into the beginning of session pondering we might completely see a repeat of the previous few cycles, when stalemates within the Home dragged on for weeks whereas representatives tried to type a coalition. Mainly no different legislative enterprise might occur throughout that point.

And I ought to point out, a coalition is a majority group of lawmakers – so that you want greater than 20 – who band collectively, often on ideology or shared positions on particular points, to type the bulk caucus, after which they’re capable of elect a speaker and determine different management roles.

Going into the primary day on Tuesday, there was no established coalition and the Home adjourned with no speaker. After which considerably surprisingly on Wednesday, Wasilla Republican Cathy Tilton was elected Home speaker and she or he introduced that Republicans had shaped a coalition.

CG: So how did that every one come collectively? What occurred within the meantime?

KG: It appears like 19 Republicans – that’s all of the Republicans besides Kodiak Rep. Louise Stutes and Wasilla Rep. David Eastman – joined forces with the Bush Caucus to type a majority led by Tilton.

The Bush Caucus is made up of 4 rural Democrats and independents – Bryce Edgmon from Dillingham, CJ McCormick from Bethel, Neal Foster from Nome and Josiah Patkotak from Utqiagvik.

Forming a coalition was at all times going to return all the way down to the oldsters within the center. And Rep. Foster famous yesterday that the Bush Caucus has traditionally labored throughout the aisle with each left-leaning and right-leaning majorities. He mentioned they’re actually simply centered on rural points like energy value equalization and infrastructure.

CG: That is type of a shift from the previous few years when Democrats have principally led within the Home majority, proper? Is that going to sign a change so far as what actions the Home takes this 12 months?

KG: It does. You recognize, Tilton mentioned that it is a coalition that’s certain by shared coverage objectives. She’s type of repeated the phrase “fiscal stability” as one purpose, but it surely’s unclear what that basically means. She did point out it might probably contain a state spending cap.

She mentioned additionally they need to try election points. Some members of the bulk have been a part of a Republican push to repeal ranked alternative voting, for instance.

I’ll additionally observe that almost all because it stands now could be politically, very combined. I feel one factor to observe the place this might trigger roadblocks is the PFD, as a result of you may have Republicans like Tilton, for instance, who assist a full statutory PFD, after which others like Edgmon who don’t wish to overdraw the Everlasting Fund.

Home infighting has actually been a theme the previous few years and I feel representatives are fairly cognizant of that popularity. So everybody from Tilton to Bush Caucus Democrats are saying that they’re actually dedicated to working collectively this session.

CG: And for now, we are able to fake it’s a pleasant huge completely happy household. Okay, in order that’s the Home. What’s happening over within the Senate?

KG: Issues are quite a bit smoother within the Senate. The Senate organized approach again in November, in order that they’ve hit the bottom operating this week. The bulk – really it’s a supermajority – is led by Kodiak Republican Gary Stevens, and it’s a broad, 17-member bipartisan caucus, virtually evenly break up between Republicans and Democrats. Their priorities this 12 months are upping funding for schooling, trainer workforce growth, and restoring an outlined profit pension plan for state staff.

There are three senators who usually are not within the majority. They’re North Pole space Sen. Robert Myers, and Mat-Su Sens. Mike Bathe and Shelley Hughes. They had been principally neglected of committee assignments, and that’s as a result of Bathe and Hughes specifically have ruffled feathers and probably not gotten together with different members. Stevens mentioned this week they might revisit committee assignments later within the session if Bathe and Hughes show themselves simpler to work with.

CG: So, technically bipartisan majorities in each chambers, however sounds just like the Home leans additional proper. How are we anticipating the Senate and Home will work collectively?

KG: The Home and Senate work in tandem on laws and on the price range. So despite the fact that work on these points may begin independently, sooner or later the opposite chamber goes to need to log out.

Each side are going to need to make some judgments on what they’ll get previous the opposite. For instance, the Senate has already indicated that they aren’t all in favour of repealing ranked alternative voting, which doesn’t bode nicely for these efforts within the Home.

The PFD is probably going going to have plenty of forwards and backwards as nicely. Sen. Stevens mentioned this week he doesn’t assume the state can afford the $3,800 dividend Gov. Dunleavy proposed final month. And we already talked about a number of the conflicting pursuits within the Home there. So I’d say strap in for some sturdy discussions.

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Alaska

Western Alaska storm and southerly flow drives warmth back into the state

Published

7 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Western Alaska storm and southerly flow drives warmth back into the state

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Gusty winds and heavy snow has begun to spread into Western and Southwest Alaska, with a surge of warmer air. Temperatures in Southwest Alaska is already 10 to 35 degrees warmer than yesterday morning. This warmth will spread across the rest of the state through the weekend, with some of the most pronounced warmth along the Slope. We’ll see many areas this weekend into next week remaining well-above average.

SOUTHCENTRAL:

Temperatures are slowly warming across Southcentral, with many areas seeing cloud coverage increasing. While we could see some peeks of sunshine today, most locations will see mostly cloudy conditions. While we can’t rule out light flurries for inland locations, most of the precipitation today will occur near the coast. Snow looks to be the primary precipitation type, although later this evening a transition to rain or wintry mix will occur. This comes as temperatures quickly warm across Southcentral.

We’ll see highs today in the upper 20s and lower 30s for inland areas, while coastal regions warm into the 30s and 40s. The southerly flow aloft will remain with us for several days, pumping in the warmth and moisture. As a result, Kodiak could see over an inch of rain today, with gusty winds.

While most of the precipitation this weekend remains near the coast, inland areas will see the best chance for wintry mix Sunday into Monday. Little to no accumulation is expected.

The key takeaways for this weekend, is snow transitioning to rain, with some gusty winds likely for parts of Southcentral this weekend.

SOUTHEAST:

Another fairly quiet day is expected across Southeast today, outside of some light snow near Yakutat. We’ll see a mix of sun and clouds with temperatures remaining on the cooler side. Parts of the Northern Panhandle may stay in the upper 20s today. The stretch of quiet weather will stay with us through the first half of Saturday, followed by an increase in precipitation and winds. This upcoming system may bring some heavy snowfall to Southeast, so be prepared for that potential this weekend. Temperatures warm into next week, back into the upper 30s and lower 40s for many areas.

INTERIOR:

While temperatures this morning have bottomed out as low as -30 near Fort Yukon, temperatures will warm into the weekend. A wind advisory for the Alaska Range goes into effect at 9 Friday morning, where winds up to 60 mph will warm the Interior. Temperatures today for many locations will warm into the single digits, with some of the greatest warming arriving Saturday through next week. It’s likely we’ll spend most of next week with temperatures in the 20s and 30s, with the warmest locations near the Alaska Range. While we will largely stay dry, there is a chance for some light snow arriving Sunday night into Monday.

SLOPE/WESTERN ALASKA:

Temperatures will remain slightly above average for parts of the Slope today, with warming winds to build into the Slope this weekend. This comes as our area of low pressure in the Bering Sea continues to move farther north. Be prepared for gusty easterly winds along the Slope, leading to blowing snow and reduced visibility. We’ll see temperatures quickly warm well above average, with highs climbing into the 20s and 30s along the Slope into next week. While some snow is possible through the weekend, the heaviest activity will occur for the Brooks Range. We’ll see the potential for 4 to 12 inches of snowfall, with the highest amounts occurring along the southern slopes of the Brooks Range near Kobuk Valley. Winds could gusts as high as 45 mph, leading to greatly reduced visibility.

Heavy snow is impacting Western and Southwest Alaska this morning, with winds gusting up to 50 mph. Numerous winter weather alerts, as well as a coastal flood advisory is in effect. The heaviest snow will fall for the Seward Peninsula and east of Norton Sound, where up to a foot or more of snow is to be expected. The heaviest amounts will fall today, with the activity set to lighten up through Sunday. In addition to the snow, gusty winds will lead to areas of blowing snow. Visibility could be reduced down to less than half a mile at times. As southerly flow continues to pump in warmth, we’ll see a transition from snow to rain later today into Saturday for parts of Southwest Alaska.

ALEUTIANS:

Gusty winds and heavy rain will fall through the Aleutians today, where up to .75″ of rain is possible. As the area of low pressure moves north, we’ll see a new low form just south of the Eastern Aleutians. This will lead to additional rain and winds into the weekend. Winds could gusts upwards of 50 mph through the Eastern Aleutians and through the Alaska Peninsula. With ridging to our east, more rain and winds remain with us into early next week. There is the potential that the Pribilof Islands see a return to snow Sunday, as colder air moves into the Bering Sea.

OUTLOOK AHEAD:

Well above average warmth will stay with us as we close out January. While one more short-lived cold snap is possible, we may have to wait until February before we tap into warmer conditions. Temperatures through the close of January will keep average monthly temperatures 5 to 12 degrees above average for much of the state. The overall trend still favors a wetter pattern, although with warmer weather the southern parts of the state will favor more rain or a mixed bag of precipitation.

Have a wonderful and safe holiday weekend.

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Alaska

Alaska governor, ally of Trump, will keep flags at full-staff for Inauguration Day • Alaska Beacon

Published

15 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Alaska governor, ally of Trump, will keep flags at full-staff for Inauguration Day • Alaska Beacon

Alaska will join several other Republican-led states by keeping flags at full-staff on Inauguration Day despite the national period of mourning following President Jimmy Carter’s death last month.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced his decision, which breaks prior precedent, in a statement on Thursday. It applies only to flags on state property. Flags on federal property are expected to remain at half-staff.

Flags on state property will be returned to half-staff after Inauguration Day for the remainder of the mourning period.

The governors of Indiana, Idaho, Iowa, Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Nebraska, Montana and Alabama, among others, have announced similar moves.

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, said on Tuesday that flags at the U.S. Capitol would remain at full-staff on Inauguration Day.

Their actions follow a statement from President-elect Donald Trump, who said in a Jan. 3 social media post that Democrats would be “giddy” to have flags lowered during his inauguration, adding, “Nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it. Let’s see how it plays out.”

Dunleavy is seen as a friend of the incoming president and has met with him multiple times over the past year. Dunleavy and 21 other Republican governors visited Trump last week in Florida at an event that Trump described as “a love fest.”

Since 1954, flags have been lowered to half-staff during a federally prescribed 30-day mourning period following presidential deaths. In 1973, the second inauguration of President Richard Nixon took place during the mourning period that followed the death of President Harry Truman.

Then-Gov. Bill Egan made no exceptions for Alaska, contemporary news accounts show, and no exception was made for Nixon’s inauguration in Washington, D.C., either.

A spokesperson for Dunleavy’s office said the new precedent is designed to be a balance between honoring the ongoing mourning period for former President Jimmy Carter and recognizing the importance of the peaceful transition of power during the presidential inauguration.

“Temporarily raising the flags to full-staff for the inauguration underscores the significance of this democratic tradition, while returning them to half-staff afterward ensures continued respect for President Carter’s legacy,” the spokesperson said.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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Alaska

Federal disaster declaration approved for Northwest Alaska flooding

Published

23 hours ago

January 16, 2025

Press Room

Federal disaster declaration approved for Northwest Alaska flooding

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – President Joe Biden announced the approval of federal disaster assistance on Thursday for recovery efforts in areas that sustained damage from flooding and storms in October 2024.

Those areas include the Bering Strait Regional Educational Attendance Area (REAA) and the Northwest Arctic Borough area where many structures were damaged by a severe storm from Oct. 20-23, 2024.

Jerry Jones and his two children were rescued Wednesday after being stranded overnight on the roof of their flooded cabin about 15 miles north of Kotzebue during a large storm impacting Western Alaska.(Courtesy of Jerry Jones)

In a press release, FEMA announced that federal funding is available on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work to the state of Alaska, tribal and eligible local governments, and certain private nonprofit organizations.

The announcement comes just a few days after Biden released the major disaster declaration approval for the August Kwigillingok flooding.

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