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- [00:00]
Casey Grove
Support for Alaska Public Media on demand comes from Siri, an Alaska Native corporation with operations and investments spanning five continents, 45 states and two US territories.
- [00:19]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
They lose data from dozens and dozens of sites all around the state.
- [00:24]
Casey Grove
The federal government is ending a contract for seismic data to inform tsunami warnings from Alaska Public Media. This is statewide news on Alaska News nightly for Friday, October 31st. Good evening. I'm Casey Grove. Also tonight, a look at an Alaska Native corporation's involvement with immigrant detention facilities.
- [00:42]
Polly Mossens
If you look at the annual report, you certainly wouldn't get the impression that this is a, you know, a detention center giant.
- [00:49]
Casey Grove
Those stories and more tonight on Alaska News Nightly. When earthquakes strike, seismic stations pick up signals and rapidly transmit them to a center that alerts at risk communities. But the national oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently canceled its contract with the entity that collects much of that data. As Avery Elfelt reports for the Alaska Dusk, the move could mean less timely and accurate tsunami warnings in Alaska and beyond.
- [01:21]
Mike West
The Alaska Earthquake center for decades has collected data from seismology stations across the state and directly fed the information to NOAA's National Tsunami Centers in Palmer and Hawaii. If the data indicates an earthquake could lead to a tsunami, the tsunami center sends out a warning message in minutes. But that's about to change, says Mike west, the state seismologist with the Alaska Earthquake Center. In late September, NOAA advised the center that it will no longer be funding that work.
- [01:49]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We are anticipating direct data feeds to stop in mid November.
- [01:54]
Mike West
The news comes amid the Trump administration's effort to dramatically slash federal spending, including by making major cuts to key weather and climate programs within noaa. The tsunami program cuts are a big deal, west says, given that NOAA's National Weather Service has historically been a primary supporter of seismic data collection in Alaska. But the federal agency doesn't actually collect much of that data itself. The earthquake center does so without the contract.
- [02:20]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
They lose data from dozens and dozens of sites all around the state, and specifically, or maybe more urgently, a handful of sites out on the Aleutians and the Bering that have been there for decades specifically for this purpose, that loss.
- [02:38]
Mike West
Could have a range of effects, including less precise information. It could also mean less timely information, a concerning outcome. Given that earthquakes can generate tsunamis in some parts of coastal Alaska in less than 10 minutes. The potential fallout isn't isolated to the state. Tsunamis that originate here can become Pacific wide events. West says the funding issues started before the government shutdown. He reached out to the agency in late September after funding did not arrive ahead of the contract's October 1 start date. A NOAA official later confirmed via email that the agency did not have the budget to support the contract. West says the earthquake center is grappling with the situation, but that its NOAA data feeds and tsunami specific work will wind down soon.
- [03:22]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We are not going to continue operating those stations in the Aleutians that are, you know, entirely NOAA support. We're not going to just like keep doing it or something.
- [03:33]
Mike West
Noaa did not respond to requests for comment, and NOAA's National Tsunami Warning center declined to comment for the story. Reporting in Haines, I'm Avery Elfeldt.
- [03:43]
Casey Grove
Northwest Alaska's NANA Regional Corporation is a major player in government contracts for immigration detention facilities. And as the Trump administration's immigration crackdown continues, allegations of human rights abuses have led to calls from some NANA shareholders to get out of the immigrant detention business. As an Alaska Native corporation, NANA is able to pursue the contracts as a small or disadvantaged business under what's known as the 8A program. Bloomberg Businessweek, working with Kotzebue radio station KOTZ, found that NANA held nearly 60% of ICE's eight contracts over the past decade, a period during which it raked in about $1.2 billion. As some Nana shareholders told Bloomberg reporter Polly Mossens and Kotz reporter Desiree Hagan that financial payoff is not worth the human toll. Here's Hagan.
- [04:33]
Desiree Hagan
Between the two of us, we interviewed nearly two dozen shareholders and one of the most common things that I heard was that this goes against our INUPAC values. Inupac Ilukuse, which is like 17 values that range from, you know, respect for others, cooperation, respect for elders. Another thing that we heard was, you know, that maybe NANA was not communicating this. A few shareholders said this was the first time we've heard about it, or we're just learning about this, which was kind of calling into question the corporate transparency.
- [05:16]
Polly Mossens
Yeah, I think that's an excellent point. I think there were a lot of people who sort of asked us, well, where can I find this in the shareholder report? Where has this been disclosed by the company? And pretty consistently, we would have to say that it's just not really been a matter of profound disclosure. If you look at the annual report, you certainly wouldn't get the impression that this is a detention center giant.
- [05:40]
Casey Grove
There's a chart in the story that shows that NANA has a huge proportion of these type of contracts compared to other Alaska Native corporations. Is there something about how eight Contracting works that lends itself to getting ICE.
- [05:56]
Polly Mossens
Contracts just to kind of Give a size and scope. The value of NANA's ICE contracts this year is approaching $300 million, which is an increase of about $100 million over last year. So that is substantial for any company. And one thing to keep in mind is that regardless of how big Nana gets, it still qualifies for these set aside contracts under 8A. And that is unique. You know, other small businesses, disadvantaged businesses, can kind of scale out of being 8A contractors. That is not the case with Alaska Native Corps. And that is unique. So even a multibillion dollar company like we're talking about here is still going to qualify for those set asides. And that is a. You know, that can be really lucrative. That can be a really serious advantage.
- [06:45]
Desiree Hagan
So it was like Nana is a medium sized fish in a smaller bowl as opposed to being in a bowl full of large fishes.
- [06:57]
Casey Grove
Well, I mean, for that money, then what are NANA shareholders getting out of it?
- [07:04]
Polly Mossens
Yeah, let's talk about the dividend a little bit. So the Nana dividend is paid twice a year. There was one that was about $8. There's one coming up. It's gonna be about doll dollars per share. And while NANA doesn't disclose the median quantity of shares that a shareholder might have, an average that we were able to deduce based on the quantity of shares outstanding, to the approximation of how many shareholders there are, would be about 117. So for this year, you're looking at about $3,300 a person. And one shareholder who we interviewed, David Leslie, basically made the argument that he feels like the company is complicit in a human rights violation and it's not quite enough money per dividend to pay his rent with it. So he was frustrated with the dividend on the fl. There's other shareholders who we spoke with who said, you know, the dividend is helpful to them and that they also wanted to take into account the other elements of support that Nano was providing, like, for example, fuel subsidies. That's something that came up a lot. So I think that the dividend can be, you know, controversial. Some people think that they are being paid, you know, a fair amount, and some people feel like, no, it isn't enough. So I don't think that there is agreement. And frankly, I think any 15,000 people who you poll on such a matter would probably have natural disagreements on whether they thought that the dividend was fair.
- [08:17]
Desiree Hagan
I would say that NANA does do a lot for the region. Just in the course of reporting, you know, I'm keeping track of, like, how much money is going to, let's say, you know, this renewable energy project, which is something that we just heard today, you know, oh, there's another 5 million that Nana is contributing. So there are contributions. But, you know, echoing what Paulie said, we heard a lot of different things about how people felt about their dividend and how Nana was contributing to the communities.
- [08:54]
Casey Grove
Well, I mean, speaking of some of the things that shareholders told you that they considered to be human rights abuses and stories that we've heard coming out of these detention facilities, what did Nana say in response to these either these allegations or questions from their own shareholders?
- [09:13]
Polly Mossens
While Nana did not respond to us in the course of reporting this story, they did send a letter earlier this summer specifically to a shareholder who had asked them about these contracts. And in that letter, they had denied some of the media reports and they felt that these contracts did uphold their community's values. They had also made a reference to site visits. We don't know what those site visits might have consisted of, where they might have gone or who went or what they were allowed to see, but that was what they had said sort of privately. And we have not heard from the company since the article was publicized.
- [09:55]
Casey Grove
Where does this go from here? The story leaves off sounding like, you know, Nana is not going to be shying away from these contracts in the future.
- [10:04]
Desiree Hagan
I have had some shareholders that have reached out to me personally since this article came out, and they are considering how to potentially change some of the bylaws so this type of work could be prohibited. There's boots on the ground. There's been quite a reaction to the article.
- [10:27]
Casey Grove
That was Kotz reporter Desiree Hagan and Bloomberg's Paulie Mossens. The two collaborated on an investigative story about Nano Regional Corporation's immigrant detention contracts, which you can find@alaskapublic.org still to come on Alaska News Nightly, a spooky tour of Wrangel's last passage haunts.
- [10:49]
Colette Czarnicki
It's pretty scary. The first time I almost fainted.
- [10:54]
Casey Grove
That's ahead. Stay with us. The nearly 70,000 Alaskans who depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP or food stamps, likely won't see their monthly benefits hit their accounts Saturday as scheduled. That's despite a pair of court rulings ordering the Trump administration to reverse a freeze on the federal dollars that fund the program. The Alaska Department of Health said in a statement that as of this afternoon it has not received funding for November's SNAP benefits. A spokesperson says the department is monitoring legal developments and will distribute payments to SNAP beneficiaries quote as quickly as possible once they are received. Meanwhile, Rachel Miller with the Food bank of Alaska says she expects more Alaskans to turn to local food pantries to fill the gap.
- [11:39]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
If you don't have access to that benefit, people are going to look for the next best resource, which usually if they have one, is their local food pantry. So you want to make sure you have some stacks of food on the shelf. You want to make sure you have, you know, whatever little cushion you can build for yourselves in this pretty uncertain time.
- [11:55]
Casey Grove
In a social media post Friday afternoon, President Trump said he would ask the courts for additional guidance before distributing SNAP funding to states and warned that delays were inevitable. Refilling electronic benefits cards often takes one to two weeks, according to the Associated Press. Miller says the government shutdown and the storms in western Alaska have already put pressure on the state's food banks. She says the food pantries her group supplies have reported significant increases in traffic, with federal workers missing paychecks. And she says the threat of a gap in SNAP benefits adds additional stress.
- [12:29]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Alaska feels pretty stretched thin right now in multiple crisis response.
- [12:34]
Casey Grove
A spokesperson for governor Mike Dunleavy told the Anchorage Daily News that state officials had searched unsuccessfully for money to donate to food banks. The top legislative budget analyst told the newspaper the state's options to fill the gap using existing funds were limited absent a special session. Savannah Lee in Anchorage is a single mother and a SNAP beneficiary. Her daughter turns two in a couple of weeks and she says she has spent the last several days stressing about having enough food through November. Lee says the news provides some relief, but overall she's skeptical.
- [13:05]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
I don't really believe anything until it actually happens, but that does mean that Thanksgiving could happen.
- [13:12]
Casey Grove
The Trump administration has not said whether it plans to appeal the rulings. A new poll shows the last Democrat elected to statewide office, former Alaska Congresswoman Mary Peltola, is about even in a head to head match with Republican U.S. senator Dan Sullivan. Peltola has not declared her intention to run in any race for 2026, but is considered a potential candidate for Senate or governor. The progressive firm Data for Progress conducted the poll at its own expense. Jason Katz Brown is an Anchorage based advisor at the firm. He says the results in the Senate race are largely holding steady from its last poll.
- [14:00]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Earlier this summer.
- [14:01]
Casey Grove
We had Peltola down by one, now.
- [14:02]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We have her up by one. But that's well within the margin of error.
- [14:05]
Casey Grove
I think we can't conclude anything about that race. It's just super super close if Peltola.
- [14:08]
Wesley Early
Weren'T to run for Senate.
- [14:09]
Casey Grove
The poll also had Peltola leading in a field of nine candidates for governor, the others being Republicans who actually are running for the office. It shows Anchorage businesswoman Bernadette Wilson in second place. But once lower ranking Republicans are removed, former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson comes in second. Katz Brown says a large factor is name recognition. Pollster Ivan Moore of Alaska Survey Research says the data for progress results mostly track his own findings that Poltola leads the field in the governor's race. But Moore points out the other candidates have not had a chance to campaign. The idea that this is going to be a cakewalk and she can just stroll into the governor's office is misguided. She's just streets ahead of everyone else because she's built this following. But it's not going to be the same in a year. The latest poll found Alaskans evenly split on whether they have a favorable opinion of President Trump. The poll had 823 respondents, and the pollsters used weighted averages to better reflect the Alaska electorate. The Anchorage school district is considering closing two elementary schools as it faces declining enrollment. As Alaska Public Media's Wesley early reports, community members shared concerns at town hall events the school district held this week.
- [15:25]
Wesley Early
In a cafeteria at Bette Davis East Anchorage High School. A couple dozen people filed in as district employees stood nearby. Anchorage School Superintendent Jarrett Bryant told attendees a decision to close Fire Lake and Lake Otis elementary schools has not been finalized.
- [15:40]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We want to make sure that you're fully informed as to what this proposal would mean or would not mean for your children. We take the education of your children very seriously.
- [15:49]
Wesley Early
District officials say Anchorage schools have seen a decline in enrollment for years, losing about 7,500 students since 2010. District Chief Administrative Officer Jim Anderson says that corresponds with a downward trend in Anchorage's population.
- [16:02]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
It's really just a result of lower numbers of Anchorage residents and people are having less children. Younger couples are having less children than when when I was bringing children into the world.
- [16:17]
Wesley Early
As a result, the district has closed five schools since 2016, including three in the last two years. Now, Fire Lake elementary in Eagle river and Lake Otis elementary and Midtown Anchorage are on the chopping block, with both schools sitting at less than 55% enrollment capacity. Matthew Lasley is a first grade teacher at Lake Otis, and as a Title 1 school, all students there qualify for free breakfast and lunch. But the schools they would move to operate differently.
- [16:44]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
They usually set up a certain number and there's kind of a first come first serve in a lot of those cases. So I'm not certain what that's going to look like as we move in with these Title 1 kids who automatically get a free breakfast and free lunch and they make sure they have enough for all these kids.
- [17:00]
Wesley Early
The closures wouldn't just impact programs at the two schools, and Chandra Binion is a behavior coach at Kasun Elementary School, where many Lake Otis students would move if it closes.
- [17:12]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We provide social, emotional learning. We teach them coping skills because they do have behaviors that pulled them out of their regular ed program.
- [17:24]
Wesley Early
Part of the district's right sizing plan would move Kasoon's school based behavior support program to a different school, and Bennion worries it could be a tough adjustment for her students.
- [17:34]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
If Lake Otis closes, we would have to move to Ocean View and several of our children have. They were at Lake Hood last year when they closed and this would be their third school transition in three years.
- [17:49]
Wesley Early
Not everyone thinks the closures are a bad idea. At a second town hall at Chugiak High School, Leah Parks wanted to learn about how the closures could affect staffing at her school. Parks is an English language learner teacher at Eagle river elementary, which stands to see a sharp increase in enrollment if Fire Lake closes. She says her school has both a neighborhood and an alternative optional program and there's sometimes only one teacher per grade level.
- [18:13]
Desiree Hagan
I have a third grade teacher that I work with. I have several students in her room. She doesn't have another third grade teacher to collaborate with and to be able.
- [18:21]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
To do things with.
- [18:22]
Wesley Early
Officials with the Anchorage Education association, the local teachers union, say no teachers should lose their jobs if a school is closed. Park says an influx of new teachers at her school would be beneficial.
- [18:33]
Desiree Hagan
Sometimes the classrooms are very large, but.
- [18:36]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We do have enough that I feel with 140 plus students coming from Fire.
- [18:40]
Desiree Hagan
Lake, we would definitely be able to.
- [18:41]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Have a second classroom in each of those grade levels.
- [18:44]
Wesley Early
District officials and the school board have a couple weeks to decide on whether or not to close Fire Lake and Lake Otis elementary schools. A final board decision is scheduled for November 18th with reporting from Anchorage and Chugiak. I'm Wesley Early.
- [18:57]
Casey Grove
The Anchorage school district is holding a final town hall on the potential school closures at its education center on Saturday. That's tomorrow from noon to 2pm.
- [19:07]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
State.
- [19:07]
Casey Grove
Officials say there are no longer evacuees from western Alaska staying at mass shelters in Anchorage after efforts to relocate them to longer term housing. Jeremy Zedek, a spokesperson for the state's emergency response, says nearly 400 people have moved to hotels around the city and Zedek says there will likely be more evacuees moving into hotel rooms or non congregate shelters as they're known.
- [19:30]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We anticipate that people who have been staying with friends and family will come forward and kind of identify themselves as needing shelter and we do have a process to get them to those non congregate shelters.
- [19:48]
Casey Grove
Zedek says the state did everything it could to house families together.
- [19:52]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
In western Alaska it's common to see multi generational households and where possible we've tried to house them together so they can maintain kind of that sense of community and still have those relationships with the people that they were in contact out in their villages.
- [20:12]
Casey Grove
Aaron Sampson, an 18 year old from Kipnuk, was staying at the Alaska Airlines center shelter until Tuesday when he and his family moved to a hotel. He says it's a relief there were too many people at the mass shelter.
- [20:24]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
We got sent to the Aspen hotel.
- [20:27]
Casey Grove
For until further notice. Feels so good to be like kind.
- [20:34]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Of like insulated from all the people.
- [20:38]
Casey Grove
Sampson's family got lucky. Their hotel has a kitchen, but they'll still have the option of getting meals, food boxes and traditional foods provided by organizations like the Salvation Army, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the Food bank of Alaska. The Red Cross was managing the mass shelters in Anchorage. Now that they're closed, many of the nearly 300 out of state Red Cross volunteers will be returning home. But according to a representative, the Red Cross will continue to work with the state and other organizations to provide ongoing logistical, medical and behavioral health support. Halloween season in Wrangell was already in full swing last weekend when two reporters from the radio station and the weekly newspaper walked over to the old gym to get spooked at last. Passage haunts KSTK's Colette Czarnicki felt the heebie jeebies a few times in the haunted dark wandering passages.
- [21:34]
Colette Czarnicki
The night was taken over on the Friday before Halloween. I'm heading over to the haunted old gym to meet the Rango Sentinels reporter Jonathan Dawn. We decided it would be a good idea to really immerse ourselves in the community, the living and the.
- [21:51]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
I'm normally scared in Wrangell on a Friday night anyway, so we're gonna see.
- [21:55]
Wesley Early
How this compares to other weeks.
- [21:59]
Colette Czarnicki
We step inside. A creepy blown up organist with a top hat and long gray hair greets us. Next to him, a skeleton Minnie Mouse with flashing lights. Then Count Rohrer, our guide, appears in his velvet overcoat. After we pay our donations, fog hangs Low in a graveyard with a towering skeleton. As we walk through the dark, I see someone familiar from my childhood. I think he's a shorter version of Jason from Friday the 13th, I think. So I ask, who are you?
- [22:41]
Desiree Hagan
What are you?
- [22:41]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Who are you? Huh?
- [22:43]
Colette Czarnicki
Are you dressed up as.
- [22:45]
Casey Grove
I don't know.
- [22:48]
Colette Czarnicki
I'm thinking this isn't so bad. My nerves are steady for now. But a woman with a flickering candle appears this way. She leads us through another room and there's this spooky kind of crow. Human actually. Very impressive. She's about my height, five' five and is flapping her long wings slowly around me. Okay. Although I love what I'm seeing, I don't like it when these creepy creatures are circling around me. We end up in a dark maze tangled with cobwebs. Then a clown honks from the shadows. As we move through, another creature walks by holding a platter, offering it to the passerbys. Her voice breaks the silence.
- [23:40]
Casey Grove
Hi.
- [23:41]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Hi.
- [23:42]
Desiree Hagan
What is this? A plate full of brains.
- [23:46]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Delicious.
- [23:51]
Colette Czarnicki
Once I realized my own brain was spared, we exit into the cool night air. Count Rohrer, or Daemon Rohrer is the organizer of last passage haunts.
- [24:02]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
I've been doing the large scale haunt for two years now.
- [24:06]
Mike West
But.
- [24:09]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
I got started doing home haunts.
- [24:12]
Wesley Early
I want to say about four years ago.
- [24:15]
Colette Czarnicki
He says around 30 volunteers made this happen and all people proceeds go to the Salvation army youth programs. Outside I see a crowd of excited kids. 10 year old Lily Edens will be dressing up as Iris, the goddess of color from the Percy Jackson books. She tells me how Halloween is festive for her. The fun and the scares and dressing.
- [24:37]
Casey Grove
Up and the candy.
- [24:39]
Colette Czarnicki
Nine year old Beau Ritchie says he'll be ketchup. His friend will be a french fry. But for him Halloween has a deeper meaning. It's kinda cool cause I guess you can kinda like remember the people that you lost when they were like. Like my grandma passed away. So when Halloween comes I can kinda remember. He says he's gone through the haunted house twice.
- [25:03]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
It's pretty scary.
- [25:05]
Colette Czarnicki
The first time I almost fainted, but I was alright.
- [25:10]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
And then the second time there were like some new things that came out.
- [25:13]
Colette Czarnicki
And I was really scared about those ones.
- [25:16]
Polly Mossens
But after that it was all right.
- [25:18]
Colette Czarnicki
As for my reporting friend Jonathan's favorite.
- [25:21]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Part, I think it was a girl in a black outfit with a plague mask.
- [25:24]
Colette Czarnicki
Did you survive?
- [25:26]
Reporter or Interviewee (various, possibly multiple people)
Just barely.
- [25:30]
Colette Czarnicki
Getting spooked and wrangled. I'm Colette Czarnicki.
- [25:43]
Casey Grove
And that's all for this special spooky edition of Alaska News Nightly. We had reports tonight from Avery Hellfelt and Haynes. Dizzy Desiree Hagan in Kotzebue. Polly where the Moss Ends in New York. Eric the Sorcerer's Stone in Juneau. Liz the Rusty Cleaver Ruskin in Washington, D.C. wizardly Wesley early and Hannah Left on the Killing room floor in Anchorage. And Collector of Souls Colette Zarnicki and Wrangle. Special thanks to our news director, Gory Laurie Townsend and editor Annie the Axe Veidt. Our audio engineer is Crystal Formaldehyde Mad Madeline Rose is our producer. And I'm Casey the Gravedigger Grove. Happy Halloween. This is statewide news on Alaska Public Media.