08.01.24

Murkowski Secures Another Round of Wins for Alaska Appropriations Spending Bills

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announced another substantive list of investments in projects across Alaska through the Senate Appropriations Committee. These Alaska-specific wins were included in four Fiscal Year 25 (FY 2025) spending bills: Defense; Energy and Water Development; Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies; Financial Services and General Government. The bills were passed overwhelmingly by the full committee, and now heads to the Senate floor for consideration.

“Not only do these bills provide more major investments to Alaska, including our military, infrastructure, mail service, and public safety, but the Senate is on schedule to be done with our work in time to avoid any stoppage in government services,” said Senator Murkowski. “The return to the regular committee process that vets these bills carefully have resulted in smart, surgical financing of deeply important projects to Alaskans.”

FY25 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Highlights

Supporting Alaska Ports and Waterways Development
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plays a vital role in Alaska development, overseeing public engineering, design, and construction management for projects ranging from port development to coastal shoreline protection. Senator Murkowski ensured that Alaska Army Corps projects were funded, including an increase to $18.3 million for the National Coastal Mapping Program, with $6.2 million recommended for Alaska-specific coastal mapping, $25 million for the Port of Nome construction, and $600 thousand for the Homer navigation improvements.

Developing domestic critical mineral supply chain
If America is going to strengthen our economy and national security, having a sustainable, domestic plan for developing critical mineral mining projects has to be a priority. Senator Murkowski fought to include $249 million for critical mineral activities across the Department of Energy.

Investing in renewable energy projects

Renewable energy is becoming a critical part of diversifying our domestic energy portfolio. Senator Murkowski oversaw inclusions of multiple projects in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, including $24 million for a new megawatt scale tidal energy pilot, $15 million for Energy Transitions Imitative, $130 million for Geothermal Technologies, $326 million for Weatherization Assistance Programs, and $10 million to support Alaskan hydropower through the Energy Policy Act of 2005 section 242 program.

Prioritizing rural energy

The cost of energy in rural Alaska can cost anywhere from three to five times as much versus households connected by the Railbelt. The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs funds and oversees programs and projects that promote Tribal energy development with the goal of lowering costs. Senator Murkowski oversaw investments in the office, including $70 million for Indian Energy, $8 million for microgrid research development and deployment, and report language that ensures the office will design funding opportunities that do not exclude Tribes. She also included language that will direct $1 million for the Arctic Energy Office to work with the Office of Nuclear Energy to help the Department of Defense place a small modular reactor at Eielson AFB.

Denali Commission

The Denali Commission remains one Alaska’s most important instruments in providing federal investment towards critical utilities and infrastructure development with a focus on rural Alaska. Senator Murkowski included $18.5 million for the commission with $1 million for Bulk Fuel storage projects to strengthen energy interdependence in remote regions. She also included report language that caps cost sharing responsibilities of rural communities to 90/10 when the Denali Commission is directing the majority of federal funds towards projects.

In addition to programmatic funding to help Alaskans, Murkowski was able to secure investments specific to five Alaska communities, projects that have been requested and prioritized by local governments and organizations:

  • Juneau: $600,000 to conduct a study to replace the Juneau Auke Bay Wave Attenuator, which is needed to protect public and private moorage facilities, Juneau's recreational launch ramp facility, and a marine fuel facility located between Juneau and Haines.    
  • Bethel: $750,000 to be used to identify and develop a conceptual design for an optimized Bethel Power System.
  • Northwest Arctic Borough: $1 million to be used to establish an electrical intertie between the isolated-microgrid villages of Ambler and Shungnak.
  • St. George: $2 million towards the St. George Harbor Improvement project.
  • Homer: $2.5 million to be used to conduct the necessary preconstruction field studies on the existence, location and quality of potential geothermal resources on Mt. St. Augustine.    

FY25 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Highlights

Serving rural Alaska

Senator Murkowski prioritized funding for services that will help rural Alaskans and their communities. She oversaw a number of increases in programmatic funding, including a $1 million increase to the Alaska Native Women’s Resource Center and a $1 million increase to the American Indian and Alaskan Native Suicide Prevention Initiative. She also ensured that Employment and Training Native American Programs, and Indian Education were fully funded, and was successful in including new bill language to lift the 20% funding cap on Native American Language Immersion grants.

The committee also recognized that Native Americans and Alaska Natives experience cancer and higher mortality at a strikingly higher rate than non-native populations. Senator Murkowski secured $8 million for the Improving Native American Cancer Outcomes initiative to support efforts including research education, outreach, and clinical access related to cancer in Native populations.

Boosting menopause research
Earlier this year, Senator Murkowski led on historic bipartisan legislation that will boost research, expand training and awareness around menopause. She continued to push for these priorities in her capacity as an appropriator, directing the National Institute of Health to launch a comprehensive research agenda that will guide future investments in menopause-related research and advance the treatment of menopausal symptoms.

Fighting the opioid epidemic

Opioids, particularly fentanyl, have become a deadly scourge in Alaska and across the country. Senator Murkowski is fighting back by increasing the State Opioid Response grants by $25 million, Substance Use Prevention Treatment & Recovery Services Block Grant by $40 million, and Building Communities of Recovery by $1 million.

Supporting Alaska’s children
Senator Murkowski capitalized on numerous opportunities to invest in Alaska’s youth. She has long been a champion of Head Start and was eager to see its funding increased by $700 million, which will greatly help the largest early childhood program in Alaska. She also made sure both the Education for Homeless Children & Youth program and the Runaway and Homeless Youth program were fully funded.

Fighting ALS
Virtually everyone knows someone who has been impacted by ALS. Senator Murkowski is no exception, and she has made combatting this terrible disease a personal mission. She fought for a $10 million increase for ALS funding and research at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), and maintained dedicated funding for her legislation, the Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Act. She also got a $1 million increase in funding for the National ALS Registry, a program that collects, manages and analyzes data about persons with ALS to look for disease pattern changes over time to identify common risk factors.

Supporting survivors of domestic violence

Senator Murkowski was able to secure a number of funding wins that will help protect survivors of domestic violence. She was able to secure a funding increase of $2 million for the Office of Family Violence Prevention & Services, and maintained funding levels for the National Domestic Violence Hotline, National Human Trafficking Hotline, and Refugee Support Services.

Bringing Alaska seafood to the White House
Senator Murkowski is always looking for new and creative ways to champion Alaska seafood. She included language that directs the White House to source domestic seafood, including wild-caught Alaska seafood, to serve at State Dinners and other official White House functions.

In addition to programmatic funding to help Alaskans, Murkowski was able to secure investments specific to 45 Alaska communities, projects that have been requested and prioritized by local governments and organizations:

  • Arctic Slope: $500,000 to help local educators provide education in a culturally and linguistically appropriate way to ensure students’ academic success and to build students’ skills in the Inupiaq culture, language, and values.
  • North Slope Borough School District: $500,000 to create 1,500 Inupiaq Immersion Language Kits for each classroom and family in the North Slope Borough School District, write culturally relevant curriculum for the core literacy and math programs in grades 6-12, and support school mentors to support and train teachers.
  • Statewide: $1.62 million for the Alaska Safe Communities and Schools program, which will help improve safety and incident response awareness, update District School Crisis Response Plans to incorporate the cultural values and behaviors of the community, build nurturing cyber-safety practices that help avoid challenging and traumatic experiences, and provide opportunities for youth to engage in supportive community projects.
  • Soldotna: $300,000 to implement a new Career Technical Education program for Alaska Native students attending Alaska Christian College, and will include new courses to teach small engine repair, commercial driving/heavy equipment operation, and culinary arts.
  • Statewide: $200,000 to the Alaska Council of School Administrators to recruit and retain school leaders in Alaska and provide in-person and virtual professional development and mentoring to aspiring Pre-K through 12th grade principals.
  • Statewide: $300,000 to Learning Point Alaska’s project that will expand and extend a high-impact in-school tutoring model that is producing increased academic achievement for rural Alaska Native students.  
  • Statewide: $150,000 to expand Alaska Resource Education’s K-12 STEM educational programs and empower students to become more informed stewards of Alaska's natural resources; enhance students’ technical, communication, and problem-solving skills; help students make informed decisions about career pathways; and increase academic proficiency in science.
  • Juneau: $750,000 to the Goldbelt Heritage Foundation to enhance the educational experiences and outcomes for all students, particularly those from diverse backgrounds, through culturally responsive curriculum and assessment practices and professional development for school district staff by creating indigenous-based learning programs.  
  • Statewide: $500,000 to help the Association of Alaska School Boards establish a statewide and regional model for youth leadership programs that strengthen educational and mental health outcomes for Alaska youth from Lower Yukon, North Slope, Chevak, Sitka, and Fairbanks.
  • Statewide: $300,000 to support the Alaska Native Heritage Center’s multifaceted statewide program that addresses academic disparities for Alaska Native youth through development of peer support networks for students and improved cultural education for school professionals.
  • Fairbanks: $3 million to construct a four-bed child psychiatric unit at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital, which will serve voluntary and involuntary patients.
  • Glenallen and Delta Junction: $2 million to provide emergency rural health services.
  • Anchorage: $1.43 million to provide housing and support for more than 150 individuals experiencing homelessness that are over the age of 55, have a disability and identify as Alaka Native or American Indian within the Municipality of Anchorage.
  • Fairbanks: $1.64 million to fund an Interior Regional Crisis Stabilization Center, which will provide timely community-based behavioral health crisis care, including suicide care and medication-assisted treatment for community members.
  • Sitka: $2.5 million to purchase medical equipment for the new Mt. Edgecumbe Medical Center, which will enhance the capability for SEARHC to continue to provide healthcare to Alaska Natives and communities of Southeast Alaska.
  • Anchorage: $5 million to improve Anchorage's Behavioral Health Crisis Continuum of Care by opening the Behavioral Health Expansion Project, which will include a 16-chair Adult Crisis Stabilization Center, a 16-bed Adult Crisis Residential Program, and a 30-bed Detox Program across the street from the Alaska Native Health Campus.  
  • Mat-Su: $350,000 to expand dental services in Palmer, and purchase equipment and provide for facility renovations in the current medical clinic.
  • Northwest Alaska: $1 million to purchase eight portable X-ray units for eight village clinics and allow clinics to diagnose or rule out simple fractures, dislocations, pneumonia, or other issues in the villages and reduce travel costs for simple injuries.
  • Fairbanks: $728,000 to purchase a Medical Ambulance Bus and associated medical equipment for the Fairbanks Fire Department.
  • Petersburg: $3 million to be used to construct a new Long-Term Care Facility as part of the Petersburg Medical Center.
  • Fairbanks: $1.2 million towards design and pre-construction plans and engineering of a new building for the Interior AIDS Association, which houses the HIV Care and Prevention, Opioid Treatment and Overdose Prevention in Fairbanks.
  • Anchorage: $1.93 million these funds will be used for the expansion of mental health services in Anchorage as part of Anchorage Community Mental Health Services, Inc.
  • Anchorage: $725,000 to the University of Alaska Anchorage to expand healthcare simulation capacity in medically underserved areas in Alaska including Mat-Su, Fairbanks, Kenai, Kotzebue, Bethel, Homer, Ketchikan, Sitka, Dillingham, Juneau, Kodiak, Nome, Valdez, and Petersburg. It will include training in diagnostic medical sonography, surgical technology, certified nursing assistant, and the WWAMI Doctor of Medicine education program.
  • Ketchikan: $694,000 to purchase ambulances for the South Tongass Fire Station, to replace two that were lost after a fire.
  • Juneau: $100,000 to provide supportive services for Haa Yaitx'u Saiani, including therapy, respite, financial assistance, and independent legal advice for grandparents and other relatives raising children outside the foster care system.
  • Statewide: $250,000 for the Alaska Eating Disorders Alliance to provide prevention and education efforts on to reduce eating disorders throughout Alaska.
  • Juneau: $250,000 to the University of Alaska Southeast to strengthen and expand existing counseling services to meet the needs of students more effectively. Expanded counseling services would include additional sessions on mental well-being, suicide prevention, increasing preventative care appointments, providing more regular and broader diversity of group counseling sessions, and expanding virtual counseling services.
  • Anchorage: $3 million for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium to bring the current operating room recovery space and perioperative bays to industry standards, improving patient care and throughput efficiency in the hospital.
  • Anchorage: $800,000 for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Southcentral Alaska to provide education and mentorship to youth and will culturally tailored to benefit school-aged children who are members.
  • Utqia?vik: $1.5 million to fund the purchase of an Advanced Imaging Center and renovate the Samuel Simmonds Memorial Hospital to accommodate the new equipment.
  • Statewide: $1 million to provide expanded mental health services for young Alaskans and their families through the Volunteers of America of Alaska.
  • Anchorage: $500,000 to provide for enhanced clinical training of students at the UAA dental hygiene program, which runs a community clinic that provides free and low-cost dental preventive services to community members.
  • Statewide: $100,000 to the Juanita Strong Forever Project to provide comprehensive support services, including case management and mentorship/peer support programs, to youth and young adults in Alaska through specialized training focused on mental health, youth development, and drug and alcohol prevention.
  • Statewide: $100,000 to the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Alaska to facilitate positive mentoring relationships for vulnerable Alaskan youth aged 6-21 with Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and/or indicators of ACEs such as alcohol/substance use, feelings of loneliness, isolation, and depression, behavior problems, and records of school failure.
  • Bethel: $220,000 to the Bethel Family Clinic to provide healthcare services in rural Alaska through the Village Travel Health Program and Bethel Family Clinic, which provide needed healthcare services in underserved locations in Western Alaska.
  • Statewide: $1.02 million to help transition veterans to employment and apprenticeships as part of VIPER’s career services program, which recruits, educates, trains and transitions servicemembers, veterans, and military spouses with employment opportunities in professional trade programs.  
  • Statewide: $730,000 to provide training to rural utility staff as part of the Renewable Energy Alaska Project’s (REAP) People in Power (PIP), which is Alaska's only dedicated training coordination service designed to address the stated needs of stand-alone electric utility staff in remote and rural microgrid Alaska communities.
  • Nome: $3 million to create a sustainable, inclusive, and equitable workforce development system in Nome, Alaska in response to the development of the Port of Nome. Funds will be used for training and employing residents in essential sectors like home construction, repair, and maintenance in order to prepare the local workforce for high wage jobs in Nome’s growing construction industry.
  • Anchorage: $1 million to expand the capacity of the Aviation Maintenance Technology and Airframe programs at UAA to address the need for more Aircraft Maintenance and Service Technicians over the next 7 years.
  • Statewide: $1 million to expand broadband and energy apprenticeship programs and purchase new equipment that will enable the training of more Alaskan workers to obtain federally registered apprenticeship completion certificates as linemen and outside telecommunications workers.
  • Juneau: $1 million to fund pre-apprenticeship programs to help develop a skilled workforce in Southeast Alaska in the electrical, welding, pipefitting and health industries.
  • Statewide: $1.72 million towards the Alaska Primary Care Association to provide training and technical assistance to future community health center leaders with industry-specific education and training.
  • Juneau: $500,000 to develop and implement a sustainable program for Sealaska Heritage Institute to provide authentic cultural interpretation to Southeast Alaska visitors and promote standards for Northwest Coast Native Art and handicrafts to ensure compliance with the Indian Arts and Crafts Act. It will also create online cultural workforce development training for 500 employers/employees and place 50 Cultural Ambassador interns in Southeast organizations.
  • Juneau: $160,000 for the University of Alaska Southeast to develop new maritime course offerings, including online courses, that provide a pathway for receiving U.S. Coast Guard certifications and foster partnerships with local school districts, industries, governmental agencies, tribal entities, and other regional/community organizations.
  • Statewide: $100,000 for employment and training for the Nudlaghi Leadership Institute and will subsidize tuition and instruction costs for scholarships to the Institute.

FY25 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Highlights

Protecting rural Alaska mail

Neither snow nor rain nor heat should stop the mail, regardless of where you live. Rural Alaska communities’ mail services have been under threat, as many Alaskans have seen delays in their mail and threats of service shutdowns all-together. Senator Murkowski included report language that will pause consolidation and closures of rural United States Post Offices, and directs the Postal Regulatory Commission to review facilities in rural Alaska.

Defending Alaska’s history

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is America’s record keeper, saving and archiving the historical documents and materials of our nation. In 2020, Seattle’s National Archives, which houses Alaska’s priceless federal documents, maps, and photos, was on the chopping block with its content set to ship to California and Missouri. Senator Murkowski defended Alaska’s historical content, including report language directing NARA to provide advance notice and consult with the Appropriations Committee on any action regarding the facility. She also included report language providing direction on the Alaska Digitalization Project, which will make Alaska’s contents more broadly available to the public by digitizing Alaska’s most important records.

In addition to programmatic funding to help Alaskans, Murkowski was able to secure investments specific to five Alaska communities, projects that have been requested and prioritized by local governments and organizations:

  • Anchorage: $100,000 for UAA to conduct 150 comprehensive business evaluations through UAA's Alaska Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), tailoring strategies for resilience, growth, job creation, and local economic empowerment for manufacturers in Alaska, while fostering economic diversity, job creation, and environmental sustainability.
  • Statewide: $100,000 for the Alaska Library Network to create an Arctic Digital Library by digitizing collections from Alaska partners across the entire state and allow Alaskans, historians and researchers to access digitized, online documents related to Alaska’s history found currently only in hard copy in such places as university libraries and private collections.  
  • Statewide: $500,000 for the Alaska Small Business Development Center at UAA to empower rural Alaskan businesses to flourish in the digital economy. The Center will team up with tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Meta to offer comprehensive e-commerce training tailored for Alaskan entrepreneurs and help participants learn to set up and manage online stores, handle payment systems, and implement effective online marketing.
  • Statewide: $400,000 for the AK Fentanyl Response Project to decrease the impact of illicit drug overdose and poisoning through a comprehensive approach that combines prevention, awareness, education, and naloxone training and distribution efforts.
  • Anchorage: $150,000 for the Anchorage Community Land Trust to serve more entrepreneurs and business owners in low-income and underserved communities through increased trainings, workshops, and technical assistance support.  

FY25 Defense Appropriations Highlights

Supporting our men and women in uniform
Senator Murkowski has made it a priority to provide for our servicemembers as they defend Alaska and America. To that end, she helped secure a 4.5% pay raise for our military, with an additional 1% raise for Junior Enlisted. She also made sure that childcare initiatives were fully funded at $2.1 billion, suicide prevention and response programs fully funded at $261.2 million (with $2 million focused specifically on rural, remote, isolated, and OCONUS installations), and fully funded Basic Needs Allowance. Additionally, she secured an additional $70 million of impact aide to better equip military connected school districts, of which $20 million is appropriated specifically to better equip and accommodate children with disabilities. Furthermore, the Senator secured vital funding increases for peer-reviewed ALS research, peer-reviewed breast cancer research, and increased focus on rapid Traumatic Brain Injury screening.

Protecting Alaska’s Active Guard Reserve

Earlier this year, there were announced plans that the Air National Guard would eliminate nearly 80 Active Guard Reserve (AGR) positions in Alaska, threatening the United States homeland defense mission in Alaska and beyond. Through the dogged advocacy of Senator Murkowski and the Alaska delegation, the Air National Guard delayed the decision, but Senator Murkowski wanted the issue put to rest – permanently. She fought and won for a $27.6 million increase in the Active Guard Reserve’s programmatic funding so that the funds would be there to pay for the AGR positions in Alaska. Senator Murkowski also saw an increase in investment that will go towards the purchase of 5 additional HH60W rescue helicopters that she is working on directing to Alaska’s Air National Guard.

Bolstering Alaska’s military

As we saw with the recent joint military excursion from Russia and China in our Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), Alaska is on the frontline. That’s why it’s so critical that our military readiness and capabilities remains on the cutting edge. Senator Murkowski was able to secure $40 million for fourteen Facilities Sustainment Renovation and Maintenance (FSRM) projects across Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (JBER), Eielson Air Force Base, and Eareckson Air Station.

She also oversaw an increase of $3 billion that will go towards the revitalization of the U.S. defense industrial base, as well as an additional $2.7 billion that will go towards assets focused on countering China’s growing military presence in the Pacific. Furthermore, she secured tens of millions of dollars in infrastructure upgrades ranging from the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex to various defensive cyber investments to ensure continuation of operations and the American way of life.

Investing in Alaska’s growing space industry

Alaska’s geography and military infrastructure provides a unique opportunity to be at the cutting edge of the United States military space program. Senator Murkowski saw fund increases to Alaska’s state-operated space port rocket systems launch program in Kodiak, secured funding for low earth orbit communications satellite to provide high availability connectivity to legacy infrastructure equipment, and secured funding for the Poker Flat research range in Fairbanks.