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Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-Alaska) speaks to reporters about his decision to veto an education funding bill at the Alaska State Capitol on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)

Dunleavy threatens unprecedented veto of education funds in budget unless his policy goals are met

Line-item veto could leave districts with less money for months; legality of such action is questioned

Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-Alaska) speaks to reporters about his decision to veto an education funding bill at the Alaska State Capitol on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
The front page of the Juneau Empire on May 12, 1995. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
The front page of the Juneau Empire on May 12, 1995. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
A scene from the PBS children’s series “Molly of Denali.” (WGBH Educational Foundation photo)

‘Molly of Denali’ and other PBS children’s programs on hold as Trump cancels funds

Emmy-winning Juneau writer of “Molly” says PBS told creators the series isn’t being renewed.

A scene from the PBS children’s series “Molly of Denali.” (WGBH Educational Foundation photo)
Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé senior Kai Ciambor (14) has his shot blocked by Soldotna junior keeper Luke Hillyer during the Crimson Bears’ 3-0 win over the Stars on Thursday at Adair Kennedy Memorial Park. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

JDHS Crimson Bears boys outshine Soldotna Stars in 3-0 home win

Two keepers, one new and one old, one wins and one loses, both highlight.

Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé senior Kai Ciambor (14) has his shot blocked by Soldotna junior keeper Luke Hillyer during the Crimson Bears’ 3-0 win over the Stars on Thursday at Adair Kennedy Memorial Park. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)
Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé junior Peyton Wheeler (5) has a shot stopped by Soldotna sophomore keeper Ryan Queen (55) as Stars senior Kendra Rose trails the play during the Crimson Bears’ 2-1 loss to the Stars on Thursday at Adair Kennedy Memorial Park. (Klas Stolpe/ Juneau Empire)

JDHS soccer girls fall 2-1 to Soldotna

Crimson Bears dampened by Stars in home loss.

Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé junior Peyton Wheeler (5) has a shot stopped by Soldotna sophomore keeper Ryan Queen (55) as Stars senior Kendra Rose trails the play during the Crimson Bears’ 2-1 loss to the Stars on Thursday at Adair Kennedy Memorial Park. (Klas Stolpe/ Juneau Empire)
Staff at the Juneau Public Library’s downtown branch sort materials on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Assembly moves to keep Juneau libraries open daily by providing funds after federal cuts

Money would prevent branches from closing one day a week, but won’t restore statewide loan program

Staff at the Juneau Public Library’s downtown branch sort materials on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Cruise ships dock in downtown Juneau on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Outlook among Alaska businesses this year plummets in statewide, Southeast surveys

SE mood last year second-highest since 2010, is second-lowest now; statewide drop biggest in eight years

Cruise ships dock in downtown Juneau on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
The Juneau Arts and Culture Center on Thursday, May 8, 2025. The center, as well as the adjacent Centennial Hall, are operated by the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

JAHC gave up DEI under Trump’s threats, then lost its board chair and executive director. What’s ahead?

Arts nonprofit “trying to respond to other concerns in the community and learning from this,” interim chair says.

The Juneau Arts and Culture Center on Thursday, May 8, 2025. The center, as well as the adjacent Centennial Hall, are operated by the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Republican U.S. House candidate Nick Begich and his supporters wave campaign signs at the corner of the Seward Highway and Northern Lights Boulevard on Nov. 4, 2024, the day before Election Day. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Trump backs Begich for reelection to Alaska’s U.S. House seat in 2026

President Donald Trump has endorsed incumbent Rep. Nick Begich III, R-Alaska, for reelection. In a social media post Thursday afternoon, Trump said Begich “is doing… Continue reading

Republican U.S. House candidate Nick Begich and his supporters wave campaign signs at the corner of the Seward Highway and Northern Lights Boulevard on Nov. 4, 2024, the day before Election Day. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson, D-Anchorage, speaks in the Alaska State Capitol on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Dunleavy administration is blocking billion-dollar audit of oil tax disputes, legislators say

Legislature close to passing bill mandating disclosure of executive-branch reports legislators request.

Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson, D-Anchorage, speaks in the Alaska State Capitol on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé senior Pedrin Saceda-Hurt signed an NCAA Division III student-athlete form on Wednesday in the JDHS commons to attend Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, and play for the Norse basketball team. At left is mother Nickie Saceda-Hurt and at right is father Frank Hurt. (Klas Stolpe/Juneau Empire)

Saceda-Hurt signs to play basketball at Iowa’s Luther College

JDHS senior exchanging mountains for rolling hills and cornfields.

Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé senior Pedrin Saceda-Hurt signed an NCAA Division III student-athlete form on Wednesday in the JDHS commons to attend Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, and play for the Norse basketball team. At left is mother Nickie Saceda-Hurt and at right is father Frank Hurt. (Klas Stolpe/Juneau Empire)
Adak’s airport is on the right of this photo, which was taken in 1986, 11 years before the Naval Air Facility Adak closed. Adak is served by the Essential Air Service, targeted by President Donald Trump’s administration for cuts. (Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development; Division of Community and Regional Affairs’ Community Photo Library)

Trump-proposed cut to federal Essential Air Service would fall on rural Alaska

White House budget office cites the program’s rising costs in recent years.

Adak’s airport is on the right of this photo, which was taken in 1986, 11 years before the Naval Air Facility Adak closed. Adak is served by the Essential Air Service, targeted by President Donald Trump’s administration for cuts. (Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development; Division of Community and Regional Affairs’ Community Photo Library)
The Alaska State Capitol is seen in partial morning sun on May 10, 2024. (Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)
The Alaska State Capitol is seen in partial morning sun on May 10, 2024. (Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)
Members of the Alaska Senate watch the tally board for the vote on the state’s draft operating budget, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska Senate approves pared-down budget draft while warning of ‘coming storm’ in state finances

Proposal now goes to the House; if lawmakers reject it there, further negotiations are in store.

Members of the Alaska Senate watch the tally board for the vote on the state’s draft operating budget, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Wayne Price (center), carver of the healing totem pole Kaasei Satú at Twin Lakes, dances on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day on Monday, May 5, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Wayne Price (center), carver of the healing totem pole Kaasei Satú at Twin Lakes, dances on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day on Monday, May 5, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
A marker for the U.S.-Canadian border sits between Skagway, Alaska, and Stikine Region, British Columbia. (Philip Yabut/Getty Images)

Alaska Legislature rejects call for Canada as 51st state, opposes ‘restrictive trade measures’

The state’s House and Senate have approved a resolution supporting Canadian independence, a “slap” to Trump.

A marker for the U.S.-Canadian border sits between Skagway, Alaska, and Stikine Region, British Columbia. (Philip Yabut/Getty Images)
A few clouds disrupt the sunlight in downtown Juneau on an otherwise bright day. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)

Alaska ranks 49th, ahead of only Louisiana, in U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best States survey

State drops from 45th a year ago, led by large drops in opportunity and fiscal stability.

A few clouds disrupt the sunlight in downtown Juneau on an otherwise bright day. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Chalyee Éesh Richard Peterson, president of the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, delivers his State of the Tribe speech to delegates during the opening of the 89th annual Tribal Assembly on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

Tlingit and Haida rejoins Alaska Federation of Natives after two-year absence, citing current challenges

“In uncertain times, unity is our greatest strength,” Tlingit and Haida’s president says.

Chalyee Éesh Richard Peterson, president of the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, delivers his State of the Tribe speech to delegates during the opening of the 89th annual Tribal Assembly on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
(Michael Siluk / UCG / Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Trump’s first 100 days shredded millions in funding for Indigenous peoples

This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here. When Native Hawaiian combat veteran Joseph Guzman-Simpliciano got back home to… Continue reading

(Michael Siluk / UCG / Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
A walrus mother and calf rest on an ice floe in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea in 2010. Other resting walruses are in the background. Sea ice extent is tracked by the National Snow and Ice Data Center, a Colorado-based facility that uses data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (Sarah Sonsthagen/U.S. Geological Survey)

Trump administration stopping NOAA data service used to monitor sea ice off Alaska

Scientists worry as services for historic data on sea ice, glaciers, other Arctic conditions discontinued.

A walrus mother and calf rest on an ice floe in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea in 2010. Other resting walruses are in the background. Sea ice extent is tracked by the National Snow and Ice Data Center, a Colorado-based facility that uses data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (Sarah Sonsthagen/U.S. Geological Survey)