Recent News

The Alaska Fisheries Report with Jay Barrett

Coming up this week: Fishermen seek broader habitat protection for the Tongass, MSA reauthorization gets underway in Congress, and no, it’s not too early to start talking about herring. Thanks to Brianna Gibbs for filling in as host the last month. We had help this week from APRN’s Peter Granitz in Washington D.C., KDLG’s Mike Mason in Dillingham, and CoastAlaska’s …

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Kodiak Delegation Dubious of School Voucher Bill

Brianna Gibbs/KMXT There’s been a lot of discussion about school vouchers in the state capitol these days. In mid February Senate Joint Resolution 9 surfaced, which called for a constitutional amendment to be put to Alaska’s voters. The amendment would change the way the state’s education system is funded and allow state money to go toward private and religious schools. …

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New Guest Worker Visa Won’t be Ready This Season

Jay Barrett/KMXT We continue our series this week with Senator Mark Begich discussing fishing industry issues from the Boston Seafood Show. Today, he talks about the replacement for the J-1, or foreign student workers visa bill, which he calls “H-2-O.” He introduced the legislation this week, but says it will not likely help processors this summer. That’s because it’s part …

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Only Incumbents on KEA Ballot

Jay Barrett/KMXT The three incumbents on the Kodiak Electric Association board of directors whose terms are expiring must be doing an OK job, as they will not face any challengers in this spring’s election. Gordon Gould, jay Johnston and Linda Freed, who’ve served for 12, six, and three years respectively, were the only co-op members to throw their hats into …

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Stevens Reflects on New Role in Senate

Brianna Gibbs/KMXT Tonight members of Kodiak’s city council and borough assembly will host a reception in the state capital with the hopes of shedding a bit more light on local projects. Many have already met with various legislators this week and will use a seafood reception as an opportunity to further advocate for the community of Kodiak. The city, borough …

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Begich Introduces Seafood Protection Bill

Jay Barrett/KMXT This week Alaska Senator Mark Begich introduced a bill that seeks to stem the tide of mislabeled seafood in the American marketplace. He says such actions hurts Alaska fishermen and cheats consumers. He said his bill gives government agencies, such as NOAA Fisheries and the FDA better tools to deal with the huge pirate fishing industry. Begich says …

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Austerman: Too Early to Predict Capital Spending

Brianna Gibbs/KMXT It’s been just over a week since the House Finance Committee released a $9.7 billion operating budget for Alaska, and Kodiak’s Representative Alan Austerman said the budget should hit the House Floor sometime this week. Austerman is the co-chairman of the finance committee and said the proposed budget, which includes cuts in almost every department, will see some …

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Begich Touts Alaska Seafood at Boston Show

Jay Barrett/KMXT Alaskans are making a strong presence at the annual Boston Seafood Show going on this week. Stopping by to check in with them for a second year is Alaska’s junior senator, Mark Begich. He took a few minutes yesterday to also check in with KMXT, live from the convention floor. As of lunchtime Monday, Begich had yet to …

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