LIVE: Governor talks impact of Trump’s executive orders on Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Gov. Mike Dunleavy is highlighting the impacts that some of President Donald Trump’s executive orders will have on Alaska.

Dunleavy is holding a press conference Wednesday at 1 p.m. to discuss how many of Trump’s orders will have a ripple effect on Alaska’s economy, particularly on energy and natural resource production.

Trump immediately got to work Monday after the inauguration ceremony signing off on executive orders targeting many of his key talking points during the election, including immigration, transgender rights, federal bureaucracy, climate action, and the ban on the social media app TikTok.

Some have a direct impact on Alaska. One executive order largely undoes many of the protections put in place by the Biden administration and orders agency heads to rescind, revoke or revise policies or regulations that hinder development and production of fossil fuels located on both federal and state lands in Alaska.

The order includes the prioritization of the development of a liquid natural gas pipeline and the removal of Biden-era bans on oil and gas exploration on the coastal plain of ANWR, as well as millions of acres of federal land.

The order rescinds the rejection of a right-of-way permit to build a road through wilderness area in the Ambler mining district and looks to repeal the Roadless Rule that limits logging in the Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska.

Trump’s move to unlock energy resources in the state is getting praise from all three members of Alaska’s congressional delegation and scorn from many conservation groups who are vowing to fight it.

In addition to orders dictating energy policy, Trump issued an order to change the name of Alaska’s tallest peak, Denali, to the name it previously had for over a century — Mt. McKinley — in honor of America’s 25th president.

Editor’s note: This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.

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

Copyright 2025 KTUU. All rights reserved.