Articles & Op-eds
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Massive spending bill heads to president, with millions for Interior
by Jack Barnwell
A $1.7 trillion spending bill that include millions for Fairbanks projects passed through the House of Representatives and Senate and hit the president's desk Friday. Sen. Lisa Murkowski secured nearly $500 million in Congressionally Directed Spending projects for Alaska in the omnibus bill that benefit several sectors, from military to workforce, housing and food security. "I'm particularly pleased with the funding we secured to help address those challenges, which will make our communities s… Continue Reading
12.23.22
Alaska Beacon: Fishery disaster aid and nearly $500 million worth of Alaska projects included in omnibus budget bill
by Yereth Rosen
Aid to Alaska fishermen, companies and communities was included in the year-end omnibus appropriations package that won final passage last Friday. The $300 million in aid funding follows official disaster declarations issued last week by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for Alaska salmon and crab fishery failures dating back to 2020, as well as some salmon failures in Washington state dating back to 2019. "This will be relief for commercial, recreational, subsistence harvesters, all those… Continue Reading
12.23.22
Anchorage Daily News: What’s in the $1.7 trillion government spending bill for Alaska? Lots.
by Riley Rogerson
WASHINGTON - Congress passed a $1.7 trillion spending package Friday to fund the government through September 2023. The omnibus bill funds all corners of the federal government, with $773 billion for domestic spending, $858 billion for military spending and nearly $45 billion for Ukraine assistance. Congress passed the bill in the nick of time, averting a looming shutdown that would have started after government funding expired Friday. The bill also includes millions in appropriations for proj… Continue Reading
12.19.22
KINY: Senate passes Sullivan-Murkowski Alaska Salmon Research Task Force Act
by KINY
Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - The U.S. Senate last week voted unanimously to pass the Alaska Salmon Research Task Force Act. The legislation, introduced by Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, would form a panel of Alaska's salmon stakeholders and research experts to study Pacific salmon trends and create a coordinated research strategy for Pacific salmon in Alaska to support robust salmon runs. The Research Task Force would be directed to conduct a comprehensive review of Pacific salmon scienc… Continue Reading
12.19.22
Frontiersman: Senate passes the Sullivan-Murkowski Alaska Salmon Research Task Force Act
by Frontiersman
In a unanimous vote this week, the U.S. Senate passed the Alaska Salmon Research Task Force Act, legislation introduced by Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, which would enable the formation of a panel of Alaska's salmon stakeholders and research experts to study Pacific salmon trends and create a coordinated research strategy for Pacific salmon in Alaska to support strong salmon runs. "Salmon are a fundamental part of life in Alaska-for our families, our communities, our economy, and ou… Continue Reading
12.16.22
Anchorage Daily News: Federal government declares disasters for Alaska fisheries
by Riley Rogerson
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commerce Department on Friday announced a series of fishery disaster declarations in Alaska dating back to 2020, a key step toward securing federal disaster assistance. Now that Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has made the determination, the fisheries are eligible to receive disaster assistance from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, if Congress appropriates the necessary funds. The announcement comes months after Alaska officials canceled this year's B… Continue Reading
12.13.22
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Pending defense priorities include addressing Alaska's soldier suicide problem
by Amanda Bohman
A bill poised for a vote in the U.S. Senate soon calls for unspecified special duty pay, or "Arctic Pay," for military service in Alaska and authorizes $99 million for a physical fitness annex at Fort Wainwright. The legislation is aimed at setting national defense priorities for the federal fiscal year that started Oct. 1 and also authorizes up to $150 million for acquisition of a commercially-available icebreaker for the U.S. Coast Guard. The National Defense Authorization Act passed the U.S… Continue Reading
12.13.22
KINY: Bill recognizing Congressman Don Young’s legacy approved in U.S. Senate
Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan applauded Senate passage of their legislation, the Don Young Recognition Act. The bill honors the legacy of the late Don Young, Congressman for All Alaska and Dean of the House, who passed away in March 2022 after serving Alaska in the House of Representatives for 49 years. The legislation recognizes Congressman Young's lifelong contributions to Alaska by designating one of the most active volcanoes in the Aleutian Islands, … Continue Reading
12.12.22
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Bill naming federal building, a volcano and a job center after Don Young clears U.S. Senate
by Amanda Bohman
The U.S. Senate approved a resolution on Monday aimed at naming the federal building in Fairbanks, a volcano and a job center after the late Congressman Don Young. The measure sponsored by Alaska's two senators was approved by unanimous consent. Now it's up to the U.S. House, where Young served for 49 years, earning the title Dean of the House, until he died in March. He was 88. "We miss him every day," said U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, who joined U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski in sponsoring legislation … Continue Reading
12.11.22
Anchorage Daily News: Proposed national defense bill would boost Arctic military capabilities
by Riley Rogerson
WASHINGTON - A compromise $858 billion national defense bill is poised to authorize spending millions on Arctic security measures in Alaska. Leaders in the House of Representatives and Senate Armed Services Committees released the FY2023 National Defense Authorization Act on Tuesday. Alongside a 4.6% pay raise for military service members, the bill authorizes dozens of Arctic security and Alaska-related provisions like boosting pay for cold weather military personnel, increasing federal fund… Continue Reading
12.07.22
KINY: Partnership effort brings sustainable power to Glacier Bay National Park
by KINY
With this, the Park and Community of Gustavus will both be on sustainable power and have lower electrical rates." The agreement was signed today between Alaska Power & Telephone and the park implementing a public/private partnership to turn over park electric facilities to integrate into the community system and bring online the Congressionally funded power intertie. "Senator Murkowski's leadership and long support for this project were critical in bringing benefits to the Park, a rural Ala… Continue Reading
12.07.22
Anchorage Daily News: Respect for Marriage Act represents a balanced approach
by Sheldon Fisher
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that each of us is a literal spirit son or daughter of God, created in His image. We call God our "Heavenly Father" because he is the father of our spirits. Before this life we lived with Him; He knew us and loved us … and we knew and loved Him. Because God is the Father of all humankind, we recognize each other as spiritual brothers and sisters. In our faith, the family is central to God's plan for the eternal destiny of His childre… Continue Reading
12.05.22
Peninsula Clarion: Federal infrastructure bill makes available more than $232M for peninsula projects
by Ashlyn O'Hara
From bluff erosion, to flood mitigation, to fish passage, Kenai Peninsula projects are set to receive hundreds of millions of dollars in federal money through the bipartisan infrastructure bill passed by Congress last year. President Joe Biden signed the trillion-dollar Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law in November 2021. The legislation includes $550 billion in new spending on infrastructure over five years and was advanced by a bipartisan group of lawmakers that included Republic… Continue Reading
11.30.22
Alaska Beacon: Murkowski and Sullivan vote to advance same-sex marriage bill to U.S. House
by James Brooks
Alaska's two U.S. senators joined 10 other Republicans on Tuesday in voting to advance legal protections for same-sex and interracial marriages. The Respect for Marriage Act, which passed the Senate in a 61-36 vote, now goes to the House, which passed a different version of the bill earlier this year. The votes of both senators were expected; each senator had voted in favor of a procedural motion to advance the bill toward final passage two weeks ago. In a prepared statement, Alaska's senior … Continue Reading
11.28.22
Anchorage Daily News: Sen. Murkowski pushes for a half-billion dollars in earmarks for Alaska
by Riley Rogerson
WASHINGTON - As Congress races toward the Dec. 16 deadline to fund the government, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski is pushing to secure nearly half a billion dollars for Alaska projects as one of a handful of Senate Republicans who embraces earmarks. After a 10-year hiatus, congressionally directed spending - commonly referred to as earmarks - returned to Capitol Hill in 2021. Members of Congress could once again request funding during the budget process for governmental or nonprofit projects in the… Continue Reading
11.26.22
Fairbanks Daily News Miner: Murkowski marks anniversary of federal bill worth billons for Alaska
by Amanda Bohman
About $96.3 million in federal funding is being spent on capital improvements in the Fairbanks North Star Borough thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was signed into law one year ago on Nov. 15. The program is expected to bring in $1 billion a year to Alaska over five years. U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, announced the one-year anniversary of the legislation earlier this month, calling it "one of the most significant measures I've ever worked on." So far, about $3… Continue Reading
11.16.22
KUCB: EPA takes coordinating role in contaminated ANCSA land cleanup
by Theo Greenly
The Environmental Protection Agency has stepped up to take the lead in coordinating the cleanup of contaminated lands that were conveyed to Alaska Native communities, according to U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski. The federal government conveyed 44 million acres of land to Alaska Native communities as part of the 1971 Alaska Native Corporation Settlement Act, or ANCSA. But lots of that land was polluted, by things like mining and military operations - and different governmental agencies, committees and… Continue Reading
11.15.22
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: TCC gets $30 million broadband grant for Interior villages
by Jack Barnwell
Another wave of federal broadband funding went to the Tanana Chiefs Conference to ensure high speed internet access for four Interior villages and communities in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area. The $30.3 million federal grant comes from the USDA's ReConnect Program and is funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, according to an Oct. 28 news release from Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan. The grant will eventually fund the construction of a high speed fiber project, some… Continue Reading
11.07.22
KINY: Alaska Tribes and Organizations receive over $18 million for Tribal Climate Resilience Projects
by KINY
Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski last week announced 48 awards benefitting Tribes and tribal organizations in Alaska amounting to more than $18 million to address the impacts of climate change. The investments support adaption planning, climate implementation actions, ocean and coastal management planning, capacity building, relocation, managed retreat, and protect-in-place for climate risks projects. "Communities across Alaska face growing risks from coastal erosion, floodin… Continue Reading
10.31.22
Eye on the Arctic: $30.3 million grant announced to build up high-speed internet in rural Alaska
by Eye on the Arctic
The Indigenous non-profit corporation responsible for health and social services for the majority of Alaska's interior will receive $30.3 million US to help build up high-speed internet in the region. Nobody at the Tanana Chiefs Conference (TCC) could be reached for comment on Monday, but in a news release on Friday, the TCC leader said the grant was an important step for the region. "[The Tanana Chiefs Conference - TCC ] is proud to have secured funding for this vital infrastructure project o… Continue Reading
