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Tax-focused ballot propositions drive many Juneau voters to the polls this Election Day

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 16h

Registered voters have until 8 p.m. tonight to return their ballots. Initial results will be released later this evening, but that will only include ballots returned before Election Day.

This year’s ballot features three propositions, four candidates running for three open seats on the Assembly and four candidates running for three seats on the school board. One write-in candidate…

2025 Juneau Municipal Election - KTOO

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 19h

Still deciding between candidates and ballot measures? Use our candidate comparison tool to figure out who best represents your views and watch a video breaking down this year's ballot propositions. Return your ballot by 8 p.m. tonight!

The latest news and information about the Oct. 7 municipal election in Juneau. For more information, including where and how to vote in the by-mail election, visit the city election website. Do you…

Six years after fatal Unalaska plane crash, jury finds PenAir liable for nearly $17 million

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 20h

After a six-week trial and about three days of deliberation at a Kent, Washington courthouse, jurors found Peninsula Aviation Services, Inc. liable for the death of David Oltman of Washington.

(From KUCB - Unalaska)

A Washington state jury awarded $16.9 million to the family of a man who died in a 2019 airplane crash on Unalaska's runway.

Alaska lawmakers question use of state savings for $50 million private equity investment

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 21h

Former Revenue Commissioner Adam Crum committed to investing $50 million in state dollars in the fund shortly before his resignation took effect, according to his successor.

(From @alaskapublic.org)

Former Revenue Commissioner Adam Crum committed to investing $50 million in state savings in a private equity fund before he resigned, according to his successor.

Juneau high school students vote in annual mock elections. How will they stack up against final results?

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 22h

Most students at Yaaḵoosgé Daakahídi High School and Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa. at Kalé are too young to vote in Juneau's municipal election, so they voted in mock elections last week instead.

Election Day is Tuesday, although Juneau voters have been casting ballots since last month. The city’s high school students also cast votes in mock elections to learn more about how they work.

Trump approves appeal for Ambler Road project, reversing Biden administration’s rejection

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 1d

The action removes a major hurdle for the project, but developers would still need to overcome lawsuits and opposition from environmental and tribal groups.

(From @alaskabeacon.com)

The proposed road, being developed by Alaska’s state-owned investment bank, would open access to a mining region in northwest Alaska.

Tuesday is the last day to vote in Juneau’s municipal election

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 1d

Deputy City Clerk Andi Hirsh said as of Saturday, about 4,600 ballots had been returned.

The city has ballot drop boxes in different locations all across town. Voters can also mail their ballots back or go to a vote center.

Haines, Skagway and Juneau to vote on seasonal sales tax proposals

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 1d

Each seasonal sales tax looks slightly different. But the goal generally speaking is to take advantage of the busy summer season to generate local tax revenue.

(From KHNS - Haines)

Each proposal looks slightly different, but they all seek to take advantage of the busy summer season to generate local tax revenue.

2025 Juneau Municipal Election - KTOO

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 1d

Ballots in Juneau's local election are due by tomorrow night! Use our election guide to answer all of your last minute questions about candidates and propositions.

The latest news and information about the Oct. 7 municipal election in Juneau. For more information, including where and how to vote in the by-mail election, visit the city election website. Do you…

In antimony race, companies working in Alaska want feds' financial support. This one is getting it.

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 1d

The revived interest comes amid a push from the federal government to boost mineral production and China’s ban on antimony exports to the U.S. China has been the United States’ biggest supplier of the mineral.

(From KUAC - Fairbanks)

This week, the Pentagon awarded a grant worth more than $43 million to the Alaska subsidiary of Australia-based Nova Minerals, Alaska Range Resources.

Women, Infants and Children food benefits are at risk if shutdown lasts

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 1d

A spokesman for Gov. Mike Dunleavy, says Alaska has enough money in the program to last through the first week of the shutdown. Whether cash reserves last beyond then is unclear.

(From @alaskapublic.org)

The state has enough money to pay WIC benefits for the first week of the shutdown. It's unclear what happens after that. In past lapses, the state found money to keep the program running.

Dismissed charges in Fultz case show limitations of Alaska's sexual assault laws

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 4d

The acquittal order for the charge said it was dismissed because the woman accusing Fultz was aware that the contact she received was “sexual and that it was not part of legitimate medical treatment.”

Earlier this month, a judge one of those remaining charges against former Juneau chiropractor Jeffrey Fultz. It reveals a gap in state laws that makes it harder for alleged victims of sexual assault…

Former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson joins 2026 race for governor

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 4d

In a crowded field that includes 12 Republicans, Bronson said he shared many of his competitors’ values and policy priorities, but he said his experience as mayor sets him apart.

(From @alaskapublic.org)

Bronson often clashed with the left-leaning Anchorage Assembly over its approach to COVID-19 and homelessness and weathered a number of scandals during his time as mayor.

Juneau voters weigh costs and benefits of removing tax on local food and utilities

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 4d

The current 5% tax on food and utilities brings in quite a bit of revenue to the city — to the tune of a combined $9 to $11 million annually.

If voters choose to pass Proposition 2 on the local ballot this year, the current 5% sales tax would drop to zero percent for everyone, regardless of their income.

Alaska cities and boroughs consider higher sales taxes to help pay for public services

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 4d

Many communities are considering whether to raise local sales taxes to pay for the escalating cost of public services, including basic infrastructure like road repairs and landfills.

(From @alaskabeacon.com)

Most of Alaska's local governments will hold municipal elections on Oct. 7, and voting has already begun in many places.

Petersburg joins other Southeast Alaska communities in asking for stronger sea otter management

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 4d

The resolution also asks the federal government to loosen regulations for how Alaska Native subsistence hunters can use harvested sea otters.

(From KFSK - Petersburg)

Sea otters were once wiped out in Southeast Alaska due to the fur trade, but their population has skyrocketed since reintroduction in the 1960s.

From boxes to bookshelves: Kax̲dig̲oowu Héen Elementary reopens school library after repairs

KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 4d

The school closed temporarily in 2022 after flooding from burst pipes. While students went back to the school a couple months later, the library needed more repairs.

The school put more than $90,000 in insurance money toward modernizing and rebuilding its library after flood damage in 2022.

Federal shutdown could complicate Juneau’s plans to address glacial outburst flood impacts

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 5d

Juneau's flood science team is made up of federal workers at the National Weather Service and the U.S. Geological Survey and scientists at the University of Alaska Southeast. While NWS and UAS staff remain unaffected by the shutdown, USGS staff were furloughed Wednesday.

The shutdown comes as the Juneau Assembly is considering major questions about protecting Mendenhall Valley neighborhoods, including repairing or upgrading the existing flood levee.

Former Juneau chiropractor accused of sexual assault has been assigned a public defender

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 5d

Jeffrey Fultz's trial ended in a mistrial on 14 counts of felony sexual assault, and two not guilty counts. The state is pushing forward to retry the remaining charges that are eligible to be considered again.

Prosecutors argued that Jeffrey Fultz shouldn't be eligible for a public defender, but the judge disagreed.

14 small public broadcasting stations in Alaska will receive one-time grant funds

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 5d

Months after Congress defunded public broadcasting, 14 public media stations in Alaska got some good news this week.

(From @alaskapublic.org)

Months after losing federal money, the Interior Department steps forward with a one-year reprieve. Meanwhile, stations like KUCB in Unalaska are basking in love from afar.

Suit challenging use of Alaska homeschool funds for private school tuition moves forward

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 5d

The lawsuit centers on what are known as correspondence school allotments, cash payments to families who homeschool their kids in the state’s public correspondence school system.

A judge denied a group of homeschool parents' effort to dismiss the case, saying a Supreme Court ruling requires a closer look at how allotments are spent in practice.

Juneau Symphony debuts new music director and Juneau Ghost Light Theatre spooks and jiggles with "Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors"

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 5d

Yesterday on Juneau Afternoon, guests previewed Juneau Symphony's season opening, Juneau Ghost Light Theatre's “Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors” and First Friday events and Garden Talk discussed preparing for winter.

Juneau Afternoon airs at 3 p.m. on KTOO and KAUK with a rebroadcast at 7 p.m.

On this episode of Juneau Afternoon: Juneau Symphony's new season, "Dracula" from Juneau Ghost Light Theatre, Garden Talk, and First Friday updates with City Museum.

KTOO Public Media | Official Merchandise | Bonfire

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 6d

Federal funding for public media may have ended, but you can still show your support for KTOO by visiting ktoo.org/donate or buying yourself or your loved ones some KTOO swag in our shop!

Celebrate 50 years with KTOO with just a small selection of our favorite artwork from over the years.

www.bonfire.com

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KTOO Public Media @ktoopublicmedia.bsky.social · 6d

At the Zach Gordon Youth Center, people wore orange shirts and came together to educate young people about the history of residential schools and to celebrate Native languages and cultures that thrive in spite of that history.

Juneau descendants of boarding schools survivors sing to remember what wasn’t lost on Orange Shirt Day

Orange Shirt Day recognizes the Indigenous children who were separated from their language, families and culture and sent to residential schools across North America from the late 1800s well into the…