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Ketchikan: Governor: Public Meeting in Ketchikan to Discuss Fiscal Plan & Q&A - Representative Dan Ortiz (I-Ketchikan) will be joined by Alaska Governor Bill Walker and members of his administration for a special, mid-legislative session, trip to Ketchikan on Monday, February 29th.

“It is an honor to join Governor Walker (I) for this trip that will allow him and members of his administration to learn first-hand about the issues affecting Ketchikan,” said Rep. Ortiz.

During Monday’s visit, Governor Walker is scheduled to meet with local officials to discuss Ketchikan’s Gravina Access Project and the fiscal issues impacting Alaska. Governor Walker will also hold a public meeting at the Ted Ferry Civic Center beginning at 5 p.m. on Monday. - More...
Thursday AM - February 25, 2016

Ketchikan: Ketchikan Man Charged in Thefts - The Ketchikan Police Department received a report that Joseph M. Wurzer, age 42, an employee of Fastenal, is alleged to have stolen approximately $37,000.00 worth of Fastenal merchandise using at least two fictitious accounts. The thefts were discovered after an internal investigation by Fastenal located in Ketchikan.

On February 11, 2016, approximately $18,000.00 of stolen merchandise was located in Wurzer’s personal storage unit. On February 20, 2016, Ketchikan Police Officers executed a search warrant on Wurzer’s home and located numerous stolen items from Fastenal with an approximate value of $1,600.00.

According to information released by Ketchikan Deputy Chief of Police Josh Dossett, approximately $3,700.00 of stolen merchandise was also recovered by individuals who had received the merchandise from Wurzer.

On February 20th, Wurzer was charged with Theft in the First Degree and he was transported to the State Jail and held without bail. - More...
Thursday AM - February 25, 2016

Alaska: Bill Filed to Protect the Right to Sue in the Public Interest in Alaska - Legislation was filed this week that would protect public interest litigants in Alaska from having to pay large sums of money in attorney’s fees if they lose the case they are pursuing. Representative Andy Josephson (D-Anchorage) filed the bill Tuesday to repeal sections of Alaska Statutes that prohibit courts from considering whether a party is a public interest litigant in determining award of attorney’s fees and whether the party should be required to pay a bond.

“Individuals and organizations should be free to challenge laws and decisions if such a challenge is in the public interest,” said Rep. Josephson. “However, in Alaska many of these public interest litigants are wary of taking a case to court for fear of having to pick up huge sums in attorney’s fees. My bill puts that discretion back in the hands of judges who can best judge if a case was brought to protect the public interest.”

The sections of Alaska Statutes subject to repeal under Rep. Josephson’s bill were put in place in 2003 and follow the ‘loser pays’ principle for attorney’s fees. The new law was invalidated by a trial court but in 2007 the Alaska Supreme Court reversed that ruling and eliminated the public interest exception in Alaska, except for cases dealing with constitutional issues. - More...
Thursday AM - February 25, 2016

Alaska: Bill Would Require Warning Labels for Foods Containing Harmful Additives - An Anchorage Senator would like to require that the food Alaskans eat and feed our families be clearly labeled if it contains toxins known to cause major adverse health effects. Yesterday, SB 199 was introduced by Senator Bill Wielechowski (D-Anchorage) to inform and educate Alaskans about the health effects of harmful food additives.

Synthetic food dyes were first identified as potentially harmful in the 1970s. Since then, numerous dyes such as Green #1, Red #1, Red #2, and Violet #1 have been banned in the United States over cancer concerns. The health problems associated with these unnecessary and harmful additives continue to grow. To date, the Center for Science in the Public Interest has, “collected more than 3,000 testimonials from parents who struggled to identify the food dyes as a contributing source of their children’s behavior issues.”

Numerous studies have shown links between synthetic color additives and a host of health concerns from allergies to behavioral problems in children, particularly those with ADHD and other behavioral challenges, and even cancer. Regarding adverse behavioral issues, in 2010 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded: - More...
Thursday AM - February 25, 2016

Alaska: Bill Introduced to Protect Alaskans from Predatory Insurance Company Practices - Consumer protection legislation was introduced this week to prohibit insurance companies from raising rates or denying coverage based on credit scores without the customer’s permission. Currently, insurance companies are allowed to use credit scores to decide whether to cover someone and to set the initial rates. However, without the customer’s permission they cannot consider credit scores when renewing an existing policy. House Bill 367 would prevent Alaskans from being denied insurance coverage based on credit scores and would require the customer to give permission for credit scores to be used to calculate prices.

HB357 was introduced Wednesday by Representative Adam Wool (D-Fairbanks) Wednesday and has been referred to the Alaska House Labor and Commerce Committee.

“This is just common sense,” said Rep. Wool. “What do credit scores have to do with insurance? If you don’t pay your bill, your coverage gets dropped. When you rent a car you pay the same rate regardless of your credit score. Why should insurance be any different?”

Using credit scores for insurance is a relatively new practice. The first time credit scores were used to decide insurability in Alaska was in 1989 and credit scores were not used to set rates in Alaska until 1998. Credit scores are not used for health insurance, but are used by some insurance companies for homeowners, automobile, and other types of insurance. - More...
Thursday AM - February 25, 2016

Alaska: Biotoxins may affect human use of Arctic mammals By DEBORAH MERCY - Just the thought of harvested seal or walrus being contaminated with biotoxins is a big concern for Alaska residents who feed them to their families. But warmer temperatures in the Arctic are creating favorable conditions for toxin-producing harmful algal blooms and making this a reality.

Clam meat salvaged from the stomach of a walrus legally harvested for subsistence purposes near Little Diomede Island, Alaska. Fresh clam meat from walruses is a delicacy throughout the Bering Strait region.
Photo by Gay Sheffield

It is not known if algal toxins have always existed in the Arctic, but a recently published paper in the journal Harmful Algae reports that the toxins found in certain types of plankton are present in northern marine mammals.

The two most common algal toxins are domoic acid and saxitoxins. In 2015, both biotoxins caused significant illness and mortality in marine mammals along the U.S. Pacific coast. However, to date they have not been known to commonly exist in marine mammals foraging throughout Alaska waters.

Gay Sheffield, Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory agent in Nome, is a co-author on the paper. Sheffield provided samples for the study from ice-associated seals both harvested for subsistence and stranded dead in the Bering Strait region.

While the amounts of toxins in the marine mammals do not exceed regulatory limits for food safety, their presence does generate food security concerns for the people of the Arctic.

Sheffield wonders if these toxins have always been in the Bering Strait. “Are these types of plankton new, or are they just what we’ve had all along? The project results don’t answer that but they do provide baseline data regarding low levels of biotoxins in northern marine mammals,” Sheffield said. - More...
Thursday AM - February 25, 2016