Articles & Op-eds
Juneau Empire: OP-ED: Sen. Dan Sullivan: Pressing the Canadian government to take action on transboundary mining
by Senator Dan Sullivan
The Taku, Stikine and Unuk are world-class transboundary rivers that originate in Northwest British Columbia (B.C.) and flow into Southeast Alaska. These iconic rivers and their watersheds are central to our fishing industry as well as tourism in Southeast. Importantly, they've also been centers of culture for thousands of years. It's imperative for our economy and our people that these waters stay pristine for generations to come. Virtually all of the U.S. portions of these watersheds have the… Continue Reading
06.24.19
The Daily Sentinel: OPINION: America's energy, tech and defense future needs more metals, minerals
by John Adams
As the recent trade war with China has escalated, Beijing has implied that it may retaliate by withholding rare earth minerals. Such a strategic vulnerability - and America's alarmingly high reliance on imported minerals and metals - is now in the spotlight for all the world to see. China's rare earth threat underscores just how perilous U.S. mineral import reliance has become. While rare earths are currently the focus, America's overall reliance on imports of these minerals is indicative of a … Continue Reading
06.24.19
Saipan Tribune: HR 559 goes to Trump
by Jon Perez
The fate of a thousand individuals in the CNMI now rests in the hands of President Donald J. Trump. A total of 1,038 categorical parolees and employment authorization document holders are anxiously waiting for Trump's signature on a bill that would give them legal CNMI-only permanent resident status. The bill, H.R. 559, is now at the White House and must be signed by Trump on or before June 29, 2019. If not, these individuals, along with their families, will have to leave the CNMI after U.S. … Continue Reading
06.22.19
KTVA: Murkowski bill would let more low-income Alaskan kids get free summer meals
by Angela Krenzien
Alaska's senior senator announced a bill Friday that would give more low-income children access free meals during the summer. According to a release from Sen. Lisa Murkowski's office, the Summer Meals Act of 2019 would make changes to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Summer Food Service Program, which, during the summers, works with public and nonprofit groups to provide meals to kids under 18 who receive free or reduced lunches during the school year. "This bill would allow more children … Continue Reading
06.22.19
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: OPINION: Stop trying to take away critical care in Alaska
by Rina Kowalski
While the country debates the morality of bodily autonomy and works to eradicate access to reproductive care, including abortion, I want my community to know how fundamental a full range of reproductive health care is to me and my family. When I was 19 years old, I had two children and was living off welfare assistance programs because we could barely afford the basic necessities we needed to survive. As a Medicaid recipient, I was fortunate enough to have access to health care services through… Continue Reading
06.21.19
WHNT: Rape Kits: Many cities don’t have them; new proposed legislation hopes to change that
by Shevaun Bryan
In 2014, Leah Griffin of Seattle says she was raped and went to the closest hospital for a rape kit, only to be turned away. "They looked at me and shrugged their shoulders and said, 'We don't do rape kits here,'" Griffin recounted. Griffin says she later went to a second hospital that did administer the special examination to collect and preserve forensic evidence, but because of the delay in care, her case was never prosecuted. There are many places around the country where access to rape ki… Continue Reading
06.21.19
Christian Science Monitor: Senate's push for Native American safety a bipartisan effort
by Mary Hudetz
Lawmakers pressed the Trump administration Wednesday to respond with urgency in addressing violence against Native American women and children after they say two officials arrived at a key U.S. Senate hearing unprepared to take concrete positions on proposed legislation. The U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held the hearing in Washington to review a slate of bipartisan bills aimed at stemming domestic violence, homicides, and disappearances on tribal lands. The hearing followed recent p… Continue Reading
06.21.19
Utility Drive: Bipartisan bill targets federal nuke PPA by 2024, advanced reactor demos by 2025
by HJ Mai
Dive Brief: House members on Tuesday introduced bipartisan legislation to encourage further development of advanced nuclear energy programs. Key parts of the bill include developing at least two advanced nuclear reactor demonstration projects by Dec. 31, 2025; creating a nationwide strategy for nuclear science and engineering research and development; and revising federal contracting regulations. The bill extends the maximum length of federal power purchase agreements (PPAs) from 10 to 40 y… Continue Reading
06.21.19
Marianas Variety: Kilili: HR 559 passes Senate; parolees fate now with president
U.S. Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan's legislation providing permanent status for as many as 1,039 individuals, living in the Marianas under humanitarian parole, passed the Senate on Thursday afternoon. The bill, H.R. 559, now goes to the White House for the President's signature. If the President signs Sablan's legislation before June 29, parolees, who have lived lawfully in the Marianas since 2009, will be able to continue to live and work in the islands. Otherwise, the parolees, in… Continue Reading
06.20.19
KTVF: Dept. of the Interior distributes $30 million to local Alaskan governments through the P.I.L.T. program
Local governments throughout Alaska will be receiving more than $30 million dollars through the 'Payments in Lieu of Taxes' or 'PILT' program. The program provides payments to local governments throughout Alaska that contain federal lands which are not subject to state or local taxation. According to a press release from Senator Lisa Murkowski's office, the revenue helps these communities with construction of public schools, roads, firefighting, police protection, and search and rescue operatio… Continue Reading
06.20.19
KTVF: Indian Affairs Committee considers law enforcement & public safety bills
New law enforcement and public safety bills are being considered in the US Senate. According to a statement released by Senator Murkowski, the Senate Indian Affairs committee held a legislative hearing on bills to address the epidemic of missing, murdered, and trafficked Indigenous women and focus on improving public safety and justice systems. Bills, such as the 'Savanna's Act' and the 'Not Invisible Act' will combat the epidemic of murdered and missing Native women and girls by improving the… Continue Reading
06.20.19
KTVA: Sen. Lisa Murkowski votes to provide $4B for US southern border crisis
by Shayne Nuesca
Sen. Lisa Murkowski voted, along with nearly the entire Senate Appropriations Committee, to provide $4.6 billion in supplemental funding for the crisis at the southern U.S. border. In a statement dated Wednesday, Murkowski's office says the bill addresses the growing number of migrants arriving at the border. The funding will go toward supporting immigration judge teams, medical care, clothing and essential needs for migrants. The funding will also provide safety and welfare needs of migrant c… Continue Reading
06.20.19
Associated Press: Alaska Congress members ask to tap relief funds for seafood
Alaska's congressional delegation said the state's fishermen and seafood processors should be included in a federal trade war relief package, a report said. Lawmakers asked the Trump administration to give its seafood industry access to $15 billion earmarked for farmers, The Anchorage Daily News reported Wednesday. "Unjustified retaliatory" tariffs are eroding Alaska seafood's market share in China, U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan and Rep. Don Young said in a June 11 letter. The de… Continue Reading
06.20.19
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Murkowski, Sullivan support tougher PFAS standards
by Erin McGroarty
Both of Alaska's U.S senators have voiced support for an amendment to the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act that would advise the Environmental Protection Agency to step up its PFAS contaminant testing and treatment standards. PFAS, known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a category of human-made chemicals that repel water and grease and are found in products such as nonstick pans and raincoats. Much of the contamination in Alaska is caused by firefighting foams used at airports… Continue Reading
06.20.19
Alaska Journal of Commerce: Alaska senators gain support on transboundary mining issues
by Elwood Brehmer
Senators from the Western U.S. are joining the Alaska congressional delegation to press the issue of Canadian mining practices in transboundary watersheds . The bipartisan group of six senators - Mike Crapo, R-Idaho; Jim Risch, R-Idaho; Jon Tester, D-Mont.; Steve Daines, R-Mont.; Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.; and Patty Murray, D-Wash. - sent a letter along with Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan June 13 to British Columbia Premier John Horgan highlighting the steps states and the federal g… Continue Reading
06.20.19
Report: US needs more domestic sources for critical minerals
by Elwood Brehmer
Filling the country's domestic deficit of numerous minerals and metals has been a priority of the Trump administration, which on June 4 released a plan for addressing what it considers to be a national security issue. The Commerce Department report, entitled, "A Federal Strategy to Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical Minerals" lays out the ways in which the administration believes the U.S. can improve domestic control over 31 of the 35 often hard to pronounce minerals designated as … Continue Reading
06.19.19
E&E News: Murkowski 'not rushing' on reform hearing
by Geof Koss
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski signaled yesterday she's not in a hurry to hold a hearing on a broad hardrock mining reform proposal that her Democratic colleagues are pressing. "I'm not rushing to it right now," the Alaska Republican told E&E News yesterday of the hearing request made by nine of her Democratic colleagues last week on the reform bill, S. 1386 (Greenwire, June 12). The House Natural Resources Committee has already held a hearing on reforming th… Continue Reading
06.18.19
BuiltIn: Sens. Klobuchar and Murkowski address health privacy gaps in new legislation
by Folake Dosu
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, was a huge leap forward in health care privacy that set the standard for health information protection. Now, it's under fire for being outdated. In response to the changing healthcare technology landscape, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota and Lisa Murkowski, R-Arkansas are pushing legislation that would account for emerging technology such as health apps and direct-to-consumer genetic tests, reports Health IT Security. … Continue Reading
06.18.19
Daily Energy Insider: Senate bill would reduce energy, water use in federal buildings
by Dave Kovaleski
U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) introduced last week a bill to establish energy and water usage reduction goals for federal buildings. The bill, the Federal Energy and Water Management Performance Act of 2019, is cosponsored by Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Cory Gardner (R-CO), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI). It would authorize the program to do this - the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) - through 2030. "Increasing energy efficiency is an idea we s… Continue Reading
06.18.19
Arctic Today: New US icebreaker to be based in Seattle
by Melody Schreiber
The first heavy icebreaker to be taken into service by the U.S. Coast Guard since the 1970s will be be home-ported in Seattle, Washington, the Coast Guard announced Monday. Two subsequent icebreakers, if built, will also be based in Seattle. "The Pacific Northwest has been the home of our icebreaking fleet since 1976, and I am confident that the Seattle area will continue to provide the support we need to carry out our critical operations in the polar regions," said Adm. Karl Schultz, commandan… Continue Reading
