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Support for Alaska Public Media on demand comes from alyeska Pipeline Service Company maintaining and operating the 800 mile Trans Alaska Pipeline since 1977. Learn more at alyescapipeline.com. Generally speaking, first and foremost, investors are responsive to market conditions. The federal government's cook in the oil and gas lease sale fails to draw any bids from Alaska Public Media. This is statewide news on Alaska News nightly for Wednesday, March 4th. Good evening. I'm Casey Grove. Also tonight, the Alaska Supreme Court considers whether prisoners can be forcibly medicated with psychiatric drugs.
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Few things are more personal than someone's body, and arguably nothing is more personal than a person's mind.
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Those stories and more tonight on Alaska News Nightly.
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Hi, I'm Avery Elfeldt, a reporter with the Alaska Desk. That's a joint reporting effort from Alaska Public Media, KH&S, where I work in Hanes, and other public radio stations in Anchorage, Fairbanks and the Aleutians. It allows us to connect you with the issues happening in communities all across the state. You can hear our stories during the Morning news on Alaska News Nightly or online at Alaska Public. The Alaska Desk is only possible with the support of grants and listeners like you. Thank you.
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The U.S. senate today voted against a resolution that would have limited President Trump's power to continue the war on Iran. Nearly all Republicans voted against it, including Senator Lisa Murkowski. She said Trump should have sought authorization from Congress before launching such a major strike. But in a written statement after the vote, Murkowski said, now that troops are in combat, Congress has little choice but to continue the military operation to destroy Iran's nuclear capability. She says Congress must define the scope of the conflict, hold oversight hearings, and scrutinize war funding requests. The other members of Alaska's congressional delegation, Senator Dan Sullivan and Congressman Nick Begich, have said they fully support Trump's attack on Iran. The federal government received no bids today in what it called the Big Beautiful Cook Inlet Oil and Gas lease Sale. It was the first of six Cook Inlet lease sales that Congress mandated in President Trump's reconciliation bill last summer, called the One Big Beautiful Bill. They're part of his campaign to produce more energy from fossil fuels and establish energy dominance. The lack of bids did not surprise economist Brett Watson at the University of Alaska's Institute of Social and Economic Research. Watson says companies were able to produce cookinglet oil and gas for a long time at relatively low costs. But. But that era is over.
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As that basin has matured and production costs have risen pretty considerably and other opportunities have opened up in other places. In the world, that interest has really waned.
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Environmental advocates like Cooper Freeman, Alaska director of the center for Biological Diversity, are pleased with the outcome.
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What an embarrassment for Trump's Alaska fossil fuel fantasy.
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And what a relief for the inlet's waters and fish and wildlife. Cook Inlet wells produce natural gas for the South Central region, but it's so far all come from state waters nearer to shore. Senator Dan Sullivan's office sent a statement blaming the lack of bids on environmental activism, regulatory uncertainty and the Biden administration's hostility to resource development. Watson, though, doesn't think swings in federal policy are preventing investment in Cook Inlet because the same lack of enthusiasm is mirrored in state lease sales. Generally speaking, first and foremost, investors are
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responsive to market conditions.
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Hilcorp, the primary oil and gas leaseholder in Cook Inlet, did not respond to an interview request. The budget reconciliation bill calls for one lease sale nearly every year through 2032. A separate plan proposes to add five more lease sales for the inlet. Alaska lawmakers are considering another boost to per student funding for public schools. The co chairs of the House Education Committee introduced a bill today that would boost the so called base student allocation by $630 per student. The sponsors estimate that would cost the state $159 million. The new bill comes after lawmakers boosted school funding by a slightly larger amount last year. But with school districts across the state projecting another round of deep cuts ahead, Sitka Independent Representative Rebecca Himshute says it's clear last year's increase wasn't enough.
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Our goal with this bill is to not lose ground, so we made up
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some ground last year.
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We know that some districts stand to lose a lot this year in cuts. Other districts have made painful cuts. Can we restore some of what they've lost? Can we prevent some of the cuts that districts are facing?
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The Anchorage School District is planning to cut more than 300 teachers and close three schools to balance its budget this year. Students in the Matanuska Susitna Borough staged a walkout on Tuesday to protest deep cuts, including three school closures. But the bill faces a long road ahead. Last year's votes required a bipartisan supermajority to overcome two vetoes from governor Mike Dunleavy. Fairbanks Republican Representative Frank Tomashevsky says he'd like to learn more about the bill, but at least so far he hasn't heard minority caucus lawmakers clamoring to boost spending on schools. I haven't heard of a large appetite for increasing education funding this session, so I'm interested in to see, you know, what that bill is going to look like and who is going to be in support of it. For now, lawmakers are reckoning with a deficit, though an updated revenue forecast due in mid March could change the picture. Majority caucus leaders in the Senate said Tuesday they were hesitant to increase state spending as oil prices spike due to the Iran war. The Alaska Supreme Court heard arguments today on whether prisoners can be forcibly medicated with psychiatric drugs without a court hearing and the right to a lawyer. Alaska Public Media's Rachel Cassandra has more.
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The ACLU brought the case against the Department of Corrections on behalf of a prisoner, Mark Andrews. He says he's been unjustly drugged with powerful psychotropic medication for most of the last seven years without due process or access to legal counsel. The department policy currently allows prisoners to be drugged against their will if they are gravely disabled or are in imminent risk for harming themselves or others. Jerome Levine is a lawyer for the aclu. He argued at the hearing that the policy infringes on rights protected by the state constitution. Few things are more personal than someone's body, and arguably nothing is more personal than a person's mind. The mind is where we think, believe, feel emotions, hold memories. It's the locus of a person's identity, and it's the last refuge of freedom for people who are incarcerated. Under department policy, prisoners have the right to hearings every six months with department staff, and they have the right to appeal the decision to a department committee. The ACLU argues that Andrews didn't have sufficient access to hearings or an appeal. Here's Justice Jennifer Henderson questioning Kimber Rogers, the attorney representing the Department of Corrections. Justice Henderson says the facts seem to suggest that the prisoner was denied the rights promised in the department's policy. How do you respond to that? Your Honor, I agree that there were definitely some problems in Mr. Andrews's hearings, but I don't think that that supports there were more than some problems. There were long periods of time where there were no hearings, for example.
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Well, your Honor, I would dispute that.
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Actually, the ACLU lawyer argued that there should be a hearing in a courtroom because the Department of Corrections staff may be biased to protect the institution over the person. But Rogers says a hearing inside prison is the best approach. I think that the judgment that's being made here, whether a prisoner is dangerous to himself or others due to mental illness, it's primarily a medical and a correctional decision, not a legal one. And so this is a decision that I think doc medical professionals are best positioned to make. And she says the department's process already includes safeguards like requiring the opinion of an outside psychiatrist about whether medication is required to protect the prisoner's safety and facility security. She says the department is concerned about the burden of delays caused if the process requires court hearings. When the Supreme Court issues a ruling, the decision could apply to the approximately 22 Alaska prisoners who are being forcibly drugged. In Anchorage, I'm Rachel Cassandra.
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Still to come on Alaska News Nightly, the community of Bethel inspires the region's first ever Comic Con. We are going to think about what is great about Bethel, but also what's unappreciated. That's ahead. Stay with us.
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Hi, I'm Avery Elfeldt, a reporter with the Alaska Desk. That's a joint reporting effort from Alaska Public Media, K and S, where I work in Haines and other public radio stations in Anchorage, Fairbanks and the Aleutians. It allows us to connect you with the issues happening in communities all across the state. You can hear our stories during the morning news on Alaska News Nightly or online@alaskapublic.org the Alaska Desk is only possible with the support of grants and listeners like you. Thank you.
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The U.S. coast Guard is investigating the death of a crabber who fell overboard near Dutch harbor last week. The Coast Guard said in a statement that 25 year old Todd Meadows of Washington State died after falling overboard on the fishing vessel aleutian lady about 170 miles north of Unalaska. The crew recovered meadows about 10 minutes later and he was unresponsive. They attempted to resuscitate him but were unsuccessful. The Coast Guard received notice of the incident around 5pm Feb. 25. Meadows was transported back to Unalaska the next morning. Meadows death has gained a lot of media attention. He had recently joined the cast of the popular television series Deadliest Catch. Rick Shelford is the captain of the Aleutian lady and also featured on the TV show. He said in a recent Facebook post that the day they lost Meadows was the most tragic day in the history of the Aleutian lady on the Bering Sea. End quote. The Coast Guard's investigation is a routine part of its duties to look into marine casualties and to take appropriate steps in any corrective actions. Well, how many snow days is too many before the Juneau school year extends into the summer? The Juneau School District hasn't reached that point, according to its chief of staff, Kristen Bartlett. That's partially because the district was able to get some lost days waived by the state due to extraordinary weather. And while Juneau has seen a lot of snow the past few days the district hasn't taken a day off. Bartlett says the district has a process for deciding whether or not to close schools on Snowy days.
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At 4, 5 o' clock in the morning, the superintendent connects with the First Student Bus Co. And they have gone out to drive the route and look at the condition of the roads there.
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Then the superintendent speaks with the city manager, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and the National Weather Service in Juneau.
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Take all of that input into consideration and make a decision about whether or not they'll be school and then we get get the word out.
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Juneau schools closed for three days in early January due to extreme weather from heavy rain falling on the feet of snow already on the ground. The city issued avalanche evacuation advisories during the storm. The district submitted a request asking the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development to waive those days as emergency closures. The state approved the waiver earlier this week. During and after the weather emergency, some schools had to close to clear their roofs. Bartlett says students and teachers were set up for remote learning then. As for why remote learning is not always employed on bad weather days, Bartlett says sometimes the weather changes without warning and students don't have their equipment. Other times, staff are also impacted by the city wide weather emergencies.
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So they might not be able to do the remote instruction part like the students might be available to learn, but the teachers are dealing with the flood in their house or dealing, you know, maybe they've evacuated from an avalanche zone or they have to clear the snow off of their roof.
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And it's not just snow this year. The school year was delayed one day when schools closed Aug. 14 in response to the glacial outburst flooding emergency. The state waived that day as an emergency closure as well. The district didn't request an emergency waiver for one snow day in December. So while there have been five weather closures this school year, four of them were waived by the state. And Bartlett says the school year is four days longer than the state's minimum, which leaves some padding for those snow days. British Columbia is proposing to limit U S based tribes from government consultations related to environmental projects. Tribes in southeast Alaska and Washington say this exclusion can negatively affect their communities when considering mines and infrastructure near the border. KSTK's Colette Czarnicki has more.
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British Columbia sent a letter in late January to Alaska and Washington state tribes informing them that the province is proposing to amend Environmental Assessment act excluding U S Tribes from participating in its environmental assessment process. If the proposal passes through the legislative process, U. S Based tribes would essentially be locked into a lower tier of participation. Under Canada's constitution, Governments have a duty to consult Indigenous nations if their aboriginal rights could be affected by projects. But Alaska tribes and the Lummi Nation in Washington say they haven't been consulted about BC's mining projects, just notified. So they have taken British Columbia to court. The tribes argue that instead of letting the court decide on those cases, British Columbia is trying to change the law. And if the law changes, then the tribe's court cases would be irrelevant. Guy Archibald is the executive director of Southeast Indigenous Transboundary Commission, which advocates for 14 tribes. He says limiting input from US tribes puts a line on the map that cuts the transboundary watershed in half. In nature respects that line on a map. He says if a mine upstream leaks heavy metals, tailings or acid drainage, the pollution doesn't stop at the border. He says this could affect salmon populations that many southeast Alaska communities depend on. He says excluding downstream tribes violates a tribal duty to steward the land and preserve the environment that has sustained them for future generations.
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It kind of rips the heart, you know, out of.
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Out of cultural continuity. Gabriel Cantu represents the Lummi Nation located northeast of Bellingham, Washington. He says historical documents and archaeological sites confirm the Lummi has existed across the current Canadian border.
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Canada.
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The Crown BC's failure to meet that deep consultation duty is arguably not. How do I put this in Canadian terms? It does not meet the honor of the Crown. Honor is very important. Although mining isn't an issue for the nation, Cantu says they're fighting to be consulted about several infrastructure projects. One would replace an underwater tunnel. He says these projects could impact salmon in the nearby Fraser River. Although the tribe's been notified, they haven't been consulted by British Columbia. What we receive from PC is generally a notification that they have already begun to do things that infringe upon LEMI nations asserted rights within the Fraser Delta, both on land and water. Notification is as far as they've gotten. He says Canada has a legal duty to meet the highest level of consultation and recognition for aboriginal rights. And tribes that may cross boundaries like Lummi. He says amending the Environmental Assessment act is just another step in disqualifying US tribes from engaging in deep and meaningful consultations. This is, in effect, BC's disrespect for the rule of law, Canadian law, their own law. In an email to kstk, the province's environmental assessment office, said they take their obligations to consult with Indigenous tribes very seriously, and that includes in the US US if they have a credible assertion of aboriginal rights. From the Supreme Court's ruling, they said they are developing a consultation policy that will clarify how the province consults with US tribes that have asserted rights in BC. If BC's amendment to the province's Environmental Assessment act is improved, it could become law by late 2027. In Wrangell, I'm Colette Czarnicki.
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Spotty and sometimes non existent cell phone service is a familiar nuisance for anyone traveling between the Kenai Peninsula and Anchorage, but in some cases it's also a matter of public safety. That's why the Kenai Peninsula Borough has sought for years to expand cell phone coverage along parts of the Seward Highway. Now that project is on track to happen. That's after the borough assembly agreed last month to help pay to put up a communications tower at the top of Turnagan Pass. The federal government is footing the bill for most of the project, a little over $2 million. But the borough's on the hook for the remaining quarter, almost $700,000 to pay that the borough will use money it received through the federal American Rescue Plan act in 2022. Borough Mayor Peter Machicki says the hope is that the tower will be the first of multiple he says the goal is to boost travel safety along that section of the highway by making it possible to place calls from the road. Part of the effort is to identify areas where we can cover the most ground, or at least a closer place for someone to get to when there's
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been an accident on the highway and
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medical attention is required, as well as to assist emergency responders. He says efforts to bolster communication along that section of the highway have been years in the making. The project has topped the borough's project wish list in recent years, but absent state funding, Machicki says they turned to the federal government. Ben Hanson is the bureau's director of information technology. He says they're eyeing the rest stops at the top of Turnagan Pass as the first tower site. He says the location is strategic. That seems like our best opportunity to split distance as far as the dead zones that are still there. And we're pretty sure that the single installation can. Our hope is that a single installation can cover that full three or four mile stretch, at least get some signal along there. The next step is a feasibility study to determine the best project configuration. Focus areas will include road access to the tower site and the type of communication services to be provided, among other things, Machicki's office said Monday they don't yet know when the tower will be built. The Haynesboro Public Library was recognized with a national award last month for general excellence. The Alaska Desk's Avery Elfelt sat down with the library's director to learn more.
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The U.S. institute for Museum and Library Services each year vets applications from libraries and museums across the country and picks 10 total to receive an award. It's called the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. Haines has been in the running twice already, but the third time this past year was the charm. Reba Heaton has worked at the library for over three decades and is now the director. We were twice finalists, which is 15
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libraries and 15 museums, and then finally
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now we're the one of the winners, heaton says. Senator Lisa Murkowski nominated the library for the award, which comes with a $10,000 prize. Four other libraries were named as this year's winners, including in Texas, Pennsylvania, Louisiana and Wyoming. In a statement announcing the news, the federal agency highlighted the library's long standing partnership with the Chilkoot Indian association, plus youth programming more broadly. Heaton says she highlighted both in the application.
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Truth be told, I just thought, you know, I'm just gonna. I'm not gonna pretty it up, not
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going to use grant speak. I'm just going to say what we
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do and just put it straightforward because
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we are what we are. Keaton says the library is currently using small grants to expand its collection of works by Tlingit authors. The library has also hosted a Native fashion show before, subsistence related programming and an elder storytelling initiative. Much of that work has happened with the help of federal grants acquired by the local tribe. They look at our grant proposal, our budget, and then they approve it and, you know, then they get the check and they send the check on to us.
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And that's very gracious of them.
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The local library also offers unique kids programs. Think a hiking program where kids start small with walks in town and eventually work up to climbing Mount Ripinski, the peak that towers over Haines. There's also music lessons on the library's nine pianos twice a week. In the end, Heaton says the local library is such a special place for one main reason. The people.
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Their library is what it is due to staff, volunteers, the board, the borough and the patrons.
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That's what makes it what it is. She adds that she's thinking about using the award prize money to once again offer workshops where people could learn something like beading or leather work from a local artist. Reporting in Haines, I'm Avery Elphelter The
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Yukon Kuskokwim Deltas had its first ever comic convention, Kusko Con. They were visiting artists, comic book vendors and lots of costumes and role playing. Kyuk's Samantha Watson went undercover at the convention to find how Bethel's stories took center stage at the three day event.
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Shh. Don't tell anybody, but I'm in a costume. I'm Lois Lane, a reporter from the Superman universe. It's the only way to blend in here at Cusco Con where people introduce themselves to each other as characters from their favorite comics, movies or games. The three day event is built around a lineup of workshops led by locals and visiting professionals which includes everything from how to sketch dinosaurs to a Dungeons and Dragons live play. In one session, local Rachel Erba even breaks down how to build a computer. What we need in power to town is our motherboard. Cusco Con is the YK Delta's first ever comic con convention. A type of event where people come together to connect over games, fandoms, comics, books and art. It's put on by the Kuskokwim Consortium library and spread out between Bethel's cultural Center and UAF's Kuskokwim campus next door. In addition to workshops for all ages, Cusco Con features a lineup of comic book and game vendors, a cosplay contest, karaoke and a Cusco Con ball. And it's all very specific to here, the YK Delta and the people who call it home. Visiting illustrator Lee Post runs a workshop called Comics and community drawing the best of Bethel. He leads a classroom filled with Bethelites of all ages. Through drawing exercises that pull from environmental inspiration.
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We are going to think about like what is great about Bethl but also what's unappreciated.
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So people drew spring snow machine camping, loose village puppies and the annual cross country run by the dump. I drew a fishing rod and then I drew a fish. It said what I love that. Be quiet. 12 year old Gloria Jones is hard at work sketching their Bethel. And then there is camping cathedral tent with next to the river. And then there was the Chai dance.
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Things like dance bands and headjets and the gym.
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There are comic artists here who have worked on Godzilla and Teenage mutant Ninja Turtles. Comics developers creating Alaska based video games and a lineup of professional voice actors, illustrators and writers. Cusco Cons keynote speakers created the Chickaloonies graphic novels. It's an all age action series rooted in illustrator Demima Harris's Atna Athabaskan heritage and Yani Daha mythology.
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I see the potential in a place like Alaska for telling very unique stories,
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not for people leaving their communities to go on to create stories, but to create stories in their community and draw people to come to them to share
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it where it's from.
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He says he grew up illustrating stories his grandmother would tell him at the kitchen table. McHarris Co author Casey Silver repeated through the workshops that you can tell stories about where you are as you are and better yet, collaborate. Head organizers of Cusco Con from the Library, Teresa Quiner and Mikayla Miller say it's an event they hope to continue in the future. It's finally time for the Cusco Con Ball. Local band Velmatron is fully costumed. There's someone from Dune and Star Trek and the Green Lantern universes. Someone passes out these small blinking lights that were recently used to mark the K300 sled dog race trail, and suddenly everyone is waving them together in time with the music. So the room turns into this spacey musical light show. Reporting for the Daily Planet, I'm Lois in Bethel. I'm Samantha Watson.
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And that's all for this edition of Alaska News Nightly. We had reports tonight from Liz Ruskin and Rachel Cassandra in Anchorage, Eric Stone and Yvonne Crummery in Juneau, Maggie Nelson in Unalaska, Colette Zarnicki in Rangel, Ashlyn o' Hara and Saldana, Avery Elfelt and Haynes and Samantha Watson in Bethel. Our audio engineer is Krystal Hyde. Kirsten Dobrath is our producer. And I'm Casey Grove. Good night.