Articles & Op-eds
Anchorage Daily News: Alaska congressional delegation safe, denounces riotous invasion of Capitol
by James Brooks
The three members of Alaska's congressional delegation were unharmed after Wednesday's invasion of the U.S. Capitol by violent supporters of President Donald Trump hoping to overturn his electoral defeat in the presidential election. As they returned to a joint session of the U.S. House and Senate on Wednesday evening, U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said he was prepared to vote to accept the victory of Democratic President-elect Joe Biden. "I want to thank the courageous work of our law enf… Continue Reading
12.09.20
Utility Dive: Senate works to pass comprehensive energy bill in 2020 as renewables sector vies for more aid
by Catherine Morehouse
Dive Brief: The Senate is continuing to struggle through negotiations on the landmark American Energy Innovation Act first introduced by Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Joe Manchin, D-W. Va., early in the year, but still hopes to pass it this year, according to Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. If passed, the bill would likely be a slimmed down version of what Democrats and the clean energy industry want to see in a comprehensive energy bill, and Democrats are urging President-elect Joe Biden… Continue Reading
12.09.20
Alaska Public Media: Moderates unite in U.S. Senate, beating path to Murkowski’s door
by Liz Ruskin
Moderates in Congress, including Sen. Lisa Murkowski, may finally be having their day. Or so it would seem with a COVID-19 relief bill gaining momentum in the Capitol after months of partisan stalemate. "It came together when a group of eight people said, 'There's got to be a better way,'" Murkowski said. The bipartisan critical mass came together at her place in D.C., she said, after Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., suggested they meet away from the Capitol. "You can't go to a restaurant right now.… Continue Reading
12.09.20
JD Supra: Marine Plastic Pollution
by Blank Rome
As the inveterate pundit Pogo once said, "We have met the enemy and he is us." This could very well be said for our disposable society, which uses and disposes tons of plastic in ways that are not wise and negatively impact the health of our oceans and sea life within. Although many reports focus on larger plastics, microplastics, which go largely unnoticed, are also wreaking havoc on our oceans. Microplastics are small pieces of plastic that come from a variety of sources, both from degradation… Continue Reading
12.09.20
Home News: Seawatch: Young fishermen’s act praised
by Christy Fry
The Alaska Marine Conservation Council is touting the passage of the Young Fishermen's Development Act passed by the U.S. Senate, a major milestone for policy that had a companion bill passed in the House of Representatives and which AMCC has spent years advocating for. News of promising COVID-19 vaccine trials even offers glimmers of hope for future in-person events. The bipartisan bill, championed by Alaska Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, both Republicans, and Democratic Senator Ed… Continue Reading
12.07.20
Natural Gas Intelligence: Alaska Oil, Natural Gas Auction Set for Early January — Before Biden Takes Office
by Carolyn Davis
The Trump administration plans to hold an oil and gas auction for the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in early January, setting up a showdown with opponents less than three weeks before President-elect Biden takes over. Northern Alaska The Department of Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) set the video livestream lease sale for Jan. 6. The information was published Thursday in a Notice of Sale for the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program, with the Federal Register n… Continue Reading
12.02.20
Seafood Source: Bipartisan COVID relief plan calls for more fishery support
by Steve Bittenbender
A bipartisan group of lawmakers from both the U.S. Senate and House proposed on Tuesday, 1 December, a USD 908 billion (EUR 750.8 billion) COVID-19 relief package that would include additional funding for fisheries affected by the pandemic. That package includes USD 26 billion (EUR 21.5 billion) for nutrition and agriculture programs, which U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) said in a release would include assistance for fisheries. The exact amount or nature of the assistance was not made clea… Continue Reading
12.02.20
E&E News: Trump does U-turn on DOE loans for clean energy
The Trump administration is opening over $42 billion in loans from the Department of Energy for projects that boost the nation's supply of key clean energy minerals, despite the president's repeated attempts to eliminate funding for the program. In new guidance published yesterday, the Energy Department's Loan Programs Office (LPO) encouraged companies to seek loans for the production, processing and recycling of "critical minerals" that are central to electric vehicles, renewable energy, advanc… Continue Reading
12.01.20
Alaska Public Media: As pandemic worsens, Alaskans’ patience wears thin for a new relief bill from Congress
by Nat Herz
A few months after the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, Kate Stavick was furloughed from her job as a college recruiter in the Mat-Su, which paid her $3,000 a month. When a federal boost to the unemployment insurance program expired, Stavick's benefits dropped to roughly $300 a week - far less than what she earned in her job. Since then, she and her husband have skipped fishing and hunting trips, to allow her husband to keep working. They canceled an anniversary trip. And they're spending more tim… Continue Reading
12.01.20
Washington Times: Lisa Murkowski calls on Trump to end court fights
by Victor Morton
Sen. Lisa Murkowski called on President Trump and his legal team to end their court fights on the 2020 election and begin the transition process. The Alaska Republican issued a statement Sunday evening on Twitter saying that Democrat Joseph R. Biden had apparently won the election fair and square and the Trump administration should start preparing to turn over power on Jan. 20. "Each state has worked to ensure a free and fair elections process. President Trump has had the opportunity to litiga… Continue Reading
11.30.20
New York Times: Alaska’s Controversial Pebble Mine Fails to Win Critical Permit, Likely Killing It
by Henry Fountain
The Army Corps of Engineers on Wednesday denied a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska, likely dealing a death blow to a long-disputed project that aimed to extract one of the world's largest deposits of copper and gold ore, but which threatened breeding grounds for salmon in the pristine Bristol Bay region. The fight over the mine's fate has raged for more than a decade. The plan was scuttled years ago under the Obama administration, only to find new life under President Trump. But op… Continue Reading
11.30.20
Environmental News Service: World’s Best Wild Salmon Run Protected From Huge Mine
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has denied a permit to the proposed Pebble Mine, a giant copper and gold mine in Bristol Bay, Alaska that would threaten the world's largest, most valuable wild salmon fishery. The decision met with approval from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in Congress as well as environmental groups, but the mining company that proposed the project was "dismayed" by the decision. Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. based in Vancouver, Canada, announced November 25 that its … Continue Reading
11.30.20
Washington Post: Bipartisan group of senators prepares $908 billion stimulus plan, aiming to break partisan logjam
by Seung Min Kim and Jeff Stein
A bipartisan group of senators is expected to unveil an approximately $908 billion stimulus proposal on Tuesday, aiming to break a months-long partisan impasse over providing emergency federal relief to the U.S. economy, according to four people aware of internal negotiations. Congress has faced increasing pressure to approve additional economic relief since talks between the White House and House Democrats collapsed, first over the summer and then again in the fall ahead of the Nov. 3 president… Continue Reading
11.25.20
Fox News: ALS patients hope Congress can deliver access to potential therapies with bipartisan bill
by Anna Olson
It's the fight of her life. Mayuri Saxena is 36 years old, holds a double master's degree and has lost the ability to use her body bit by bit. She was diagnosed with ALS four years ago, and the progression of the neurodegenerative disease has been swift and relentless. She can no longer walk, stand, use her arms or legs, swallow unassisted or speak. As a New Yorker coming of age in a post-9/11 world, she once hoped to affect change through her work in international relations. But as a quadripl… Continue Reading
11.25.20
North of 60 Mining News: Senator sees interesting times for Alaska
by Shane Lasley
With it becoming increasingly apparent that Joe Biden will be confirmed as the 46th President of the United States, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski believes the coming years will be "interesting times" for the state's resource sectors. "There is near certainty that he is going to be taking office on Jan. 20, 2021," Alaska's senior senator said, referring to Biden, during the Resource Development Council for Alaska annual convention. "If he follows through on some of his campaign promises, that could… Continue Reading
11.24.20
KTVF: Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski comments on 2020 election
by Alex Bengel
Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski released a statement on Sunday, November 22nd voicing her thoughts on the 2020 election. Lisa Murkowski standing in front of a building: Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski released a statement on November 22nd voicing her thoughts on the 2020 election.© Provided by Fairbanks KTVF Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski released a statement on November 22nd voicing her thoughts on the 2020 election. In the statement, the senator explained that the integrity of the election p… Continue Reading
11.23.20
Alaska Public Media: Sen. Murkowski calls on Trump administration to begin ‘full and formal transition’
by Liz Ruskin
While President Trump still refuses to concede the election, Sen. Lisa Murkowski says it's time to begin the transition process. "President Trump has had the opportunity to litigate his claims, and the courts have thus far found them without merit," she said in a statement issued yesterday. She called his pressure campaign on state legislators to influence the outcome "inconsistent with our democratic process." Twenty percent of Senate Republicans have publicly acknowledged Democrat Joe Biden… Continue Reading
11.20.20
OP-ED: A pathway toward ending the legacy of violence against Native women
by U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) & Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
For years now, we've known that Native American communities are facing a crisis of missing, murdered and trafficked American Indians and Alaska Natives November marks National Native American Heritage Month, a time to honor the rich history, immense diversity and important contributions of Native people, while also acknowledging our country's dark history toward tribal nations. As representatives of states with vibrant tribal communities, we wanted to share how we're working together to hel… Continue Reading
11.20.20
OP-ED: ANWR’s 1002 Area: Promise, potential and now a plan
by Senator Lisa Murkowski, Senator Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young
Today, Alaskans are one step closer to a generational goal: the fulfillment of a 40-year fight toward the first lease sale in the non-wilderness Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, or ANWR. On Nov. 17, the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management published a call for nominations for tracts throughout the 1.6 million-acre program area to be included in an upcoming lease sale, opening a monthlong period for input. A 30-day notice of a sale, which could occur in… Continue Reading
11.19.20
Youth Today: Bill Seeks ‘Pandemic Funding’ For 21st Century After-school Programs
by Stell Simonton
As Congress considers a spending bill with behind-the-scenes negotiations this week, many youth-serving organizations hope for an injection of cash into out-of-school time programs to aid hard-pressed youth and families. None of the Senate spending bills released Nov. 10 included extra money for after-school programs. But legislation introduced by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., calls for an additional $1.2 billion for the 21st Century after-school programs that se… Continue Reading
