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This photo shows the Alaska State Capitol, where lawmakers are considering a proposed overhaul of Alaska’s public retirement system that would provide a new pension plan for state workers and is seen by supporters as a way to address concerns with recruiting and retaining employees. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

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State lawmakers propose pension plan for state workers

Half of the Senate’s 20 members have signed onto the bill.

Rep. Rebecca Himschoot, I-Sitka, offers an overview Wednesday of Southeast Alaska’s commercial troll fisheries while asking for support on a resolution opposing a lawsuit by a Washington-based group that would shut the fisheries down due to their alleged impacts on species in that state. The resolution passed by a 35-1 vote. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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Challenges spawning rapidly in salmon lawsuit

Juneau Assembly and Alaska House join opposition to Washington case that could halt SE fisheries

A map shows the salary for Alaska’s governor of $145,000 a year is midrange compared to other states. A proposal rejected by the state Senate that would raise the governor’s salary to about $176,000, which would rank 10th among states rather than the current ranking of 28th. (Sources: Book of the States, Ballotpedia)

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Pay hikes for governor, other executive branch leaders, nixed by Senate

Increase would make Dunleavy 10th highest paid in U.S. instead of 28th; House rejection also likely

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Tamara Kruse and Frank Rue, volunteers with Moms Demand Action, discuss their meetings about proposed gun safety legislation with state lawmakers at the Alaska State Capitol on Tuesday.

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Guns a low-caliber issue at Capitol this session

Few bills from majority and scant interest from minority as safety advocates visit legislators

State Sen. Scott Kawasaki, in a hallway in the Alaska State Capitol on Feb. 16 holds up the strip showing he has tested negative for COVID-19. Kawasaki said he opted to take a test that day. (Yereth Rosen / Alaska Beacon)

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COVID-19 creeps back into Alaska’s Capitol

Voluntary testing, other precautionary measures enacted due to multitude of cases

Jonson Kuhn / Juneau Empire Jamiann S’eiltin Hasselquist prepares to lead a group of protesters into the office of state Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, at midday Friday. The protest Hasselquist helped organize was in response to questions Eastman asked during a committee hearing Monday about possible economic benefits of dead absued children. A staff member declined to tell the protesters if Eastman was in his office.

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Protesters denounce Eastman’s child abuse questions

State representative, censured for asking if dead children save money, subject of demonstration.

Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire State Sen. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau, right, asks Ajay Desai, director of the Alaska Division of Retirement and Benefits, about the assumptions used to calculate pensions earned by state employees under a fixed-amount plan in effect until 2006 and a subsequent 401K-type plan during a Senate Finance Committee hearing Thursday at the Alaska State Capitol.

News

Report has some lawmakers ready to shed tiers

401k-style state pensions perform worse than expected in first in-depth study of 17-year-old system

Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, watches his fellow House members censure him by a 35-1 vote Wednesday. The censure, which came after he asked about potential economic benefits from the deaths of abused children, is the second for Eastman, the only House member ever reprimanded in such a manner. Eastman was the lone vote against the motion.(Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

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Eastman gets 2nd censure for questions about dead abused children

Controversial Wasilla legislator causes uproar by asking if deaths offer economic benefits

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski challenges the Alaska State Legislature to “right the ship” by taking necessary action to secure federal funds for ferries, infrastructure and other needs during her annual speech Wednesday at the Alaska State Capitol.

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Murkowski gives Legislature ‘tough love’ in speech

U.S. senator asks state lawmakers to make federal funds count in speech.

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Rep. Sara Hannan, D-Juneau addresses a crowd during a recent rally outside the Alaska State Capitol. Hannan is the sponsor of a bill that would ban licensed practitioners from performing “conversion therapy” in the state.

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Lawmaker says ban on conversion therapy can help address LGBTQ+ youth suicide

The bill, sponsored by Juneau Rep. Sara Hannan, awaits a House committee hearing.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor-elect Peter Micciche testifies before the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly during a meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

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Former Senate president now Kenai Peninsula Borough mayor

Peter Micciche is the Kenai Peninsula Borough’s new mayor.

A ConocoPhillips oil rig operating during winter on Alaska’s North Slope is featured on the cover of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s report recommending approval of the Willow oil project ConocoPhillips is seeking to develop. The Alaska State House on Monday approved a resolution asking the Biden administration to give final approval to a project allowing three drilling pads with the possibility of a fourth (compared to the five pads the oil company originally sought), as recommended by the BLM. (U.S. Bureau of Land Management)

News

Alaska House unanimously OKs Willow resolution

Supporters say North Slope oil project overwhelmingly favored by locals, addresses opponents’ worries.

U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola addresses a joint session of the Alaska State Legislature at the Alaska State Capitol on Friday. It was the first speech to the Legislature by Alaska’s lone U.S. House member since her predecessor Don Young did so in 1992, declaring in subsequent years it was an unproductive use of time until his death last year. Peltola, who served in the Legislature from 1999 to 2009, noted Young did make regular visits to the state capitol to meet individually and with groups of lawmakers, which she did as well during her visit this week. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

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A Mary Friday at the Alaska State Capitol

Kuspuks abound as Peltola invokes “Alaska model” of cooperation in congressional speech to Legislature

People rally in support of renewable energy policies, such as strengthening a renewable energy fund, across from the Alaska Capitol on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Juneau, Alaska. Some environmentalists are skeptical of legislation proposed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy that aims to capitalize on carbon storage and carbon markets. (AP Photo / Becky Bohrer)

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Alaska carbon plan: Boost state coffers without cutting oil

Hearings with state lawmakers are underway…

Gov. Mike Dunleavy, left, reads highlights from his revised state budget proposal for the 2024 fiscal year as Department of Transportation and Public Facilities Commissioner Ryan Anderson waits to present revisions within his department. Among the most significant revisions are required matching funds for federal allocations to the Alaska Marine Highway system. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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New spending plan calls for ‘toll’ funds to shore up ferries

It adds temporary food stamp workers, attempts novel way to secure federal funds for AMHS upgrades.

The Alaska State Senate unanimously passes its first bill of the current legislative session Wednesday, sponsored by state Sen. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau, lower left. The bill makes disabled military veterans residing in Alaska eligible for free trapping licenses in addition to hunting and fishing, and makes free service-related licenses for all three activities permanent instead of annual. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

Senate quickly falls for veterans’ traps

Juneau lawmaker’s bill giving disabled vets lifetime trapping licenses is first to pass floor vote.

Alaska House Speaker Cathy Tilton, R-Wasilla, accepts a Valentine’s Day card from a Montessori Borealis preschool student in the hallway outside the House chamber at the Alaska State Capitol on Monday. A couple dozen youths from the Juneau Montessori program visited with their parents and teachers during the morning, lobbying for an increase in education funding. Tilton said during a subsequent press briefing she is not ruling out an increase, but is interested in “outside the box” alternatives. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

What’s in the cards for education funding

Major players at Alaska’s Capitol are showing their hands, but lots of bids and buffs remain.

Supporters of a bill that would allow child care providers to participate in collective bargaining with the state’s Department of Health and establish a state fund to provide grants to childcare providers stand outside the Alaska State Capitol early Friday evening. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

News

Child care providers rally outside Capitol in support of increased funding

Supporters say new bill would provide necessary support and resources

Jen Winkelman, commissioner-designee for the Alaska Department of Corrections, discusses staffing and other challenges the prison system is facing with state Sen. Matt Claman, R-Anchorage, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday following her confirmation hearing. The committee voted to send her nomination to the full Senate for a confirmation vote. (Mark Sabbatini /Juneau Empire)

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DOC commissioner-designee has nomination advanced

She emphasized staffing improvement and inmate reentry goals.

The Columbia ferry, which was grounded in 2019 to save costs, is scheduled to return to Juneau next weekend as it resumes service between Alaska and Bellingham, Washington, due to a more-extensive-than-expected overhaul of the Matanuska. The ferry system is by far the biggest recipient to date of funds from the 2021 federal infrastructure bill in terms of Southeast Alaska impacts. (Carey Case / Alaska Marine Highway)

News

Trillion dollar maybes: Coordinated approach aims to untangle complicated federal funding web

State, tribal and local governments using “hub” plans to simplify and maximize Alaska’s share.