Alaska: Appeals court revives Alaska suit on roadless rule By MARY KAUFFMAN - A federal appeals court on Friday revived a lawsuit by the state of Alaska challenging the national roadless rule, which prohibits road construction and timber harvesting on millions of acres of forest land, ncluding large sections of national forest land here in Alaska.

A glimpse of the Tongass National Forest, the nation's largest national forest, covering most of Southeast Alaska.
Photo courtesy U.S. Forest Service

In a 3-0 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reversed a federal judge's ruling that Alaska waited too long to file its complaint. The appeals court said Alaska's lawsuit, filed in 2011, was within the required six-year time limit and today sent the lawsuit back to the D.C. District Court for further consideration.

Alaska Senate Majority Leader John Coghill (R-North Pole), on behalf of the Alaska Senate Majority, welcomed today's decision by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia which revived the lawsuit by the state of Alaska challenging the national roadless rule. Repealing the roadless rule would enable Alaskans to responsibly develop and harvest resources in areas like the Tongass National Forest.

“The private timber industry is hurting in Alaska. Harvests are a mere fraction of what they once were,” said Senator Coghill. “Of the 16.9 million acres in the Tongass National Forest, we are now only harvesting a mere few thousand acres. Jobs continue to evaporate. The state needs to fight for people’s livelihoods and grow our economy. That’s why this decision is important.”

Senator Coghill continued, “At statehood, Alaska was promised access to its natural resources to lessen dependence on the federal government to survive. The decision today allows the state to at least plead its case.”

The Forest Service argued to the U.S. Court of Appeals that Alaska’s suit ran out of time because, according to the Forest Service, Alaska’s right of action accrued in 2001 when the Roadless Rule was issued.

The court's three-judge appeals panel disagreed, saying, the fundamental problem with the Forest Service’s argument is that the Forest Service repealed the Roadless Rule in 2005. After being repealed by the Forest Service in 2005, it was reinstated in 2006 as a result of an order by the District Court for the Northern District of California.

Appeals Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh wrote, "But the Forest Service says that this case is different because the rule was reinstated in 2006 as a result of a court order. In our judgment, however, it does not matter for these purposes whether the 2006 rule was issued by the agency acting on its own or as a result of a court order. Either way, when the rule was reinstated in 2006 after its repeal in 2005, a new right of action accrued." - More...
Friday PM - November 07, 2014

Fish Factor: Fishing Jobs Grow By ELAINE O'BRIEN - Alaska’s largest employer continues to add more jobs to its roster.

Commercial fishing jobs grew last year to a level not seen since the year 2000, according to the state Department of Labor. Driven primarily by an increased salmon harvest, notably from the record run of pinks, fishing jobs grew by nearly 2.5 percent last year. That brought the annual monthly average to 8,400 jobs, just 400 shy of the record over a decade ago.

Seafood harvesting and processing jobs are a focus of the November Alaska Economic Trends, which breaks down the numbers by region. Some highlights:
Salmon fishing jobs were the main source of growth between 2012 and 2013 with a statewide gain of 452 jobs, or 10 percent. Salmon at Bristol Bay accounted for 98% of harvesting jobs, and 73% in the South Central region. Alaska crabbing dropped by about 100 jobs over those two years, down 17 percent. The average loss for groundfish harvesting jobs was 187 jobs, or 15 percent.

Southeast Alaska has steadily been generating the most fishing jobs at 2,510, gaining 210 last year – the most since 2000. South Central was next at 1,619 jobs due to the region’s halibut fleets and the Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet salmon fisheries. The Aleutians/Pribilof Islands’ ranked third for fishing employment at 1,513, followed by Bristol Bay with 1,364 fishing jobs. Conversely, jobs in Kodiak fisheries dropped nearly 13 percent last year to 770 due to decreased landings of halibut and groundfish. A total of 380 fishing jobs was listed for the Yukon Delta,and 146 for the “Northern” region.

The Trends report also highlights jobs in 170 Alaska seafood processing plants, which are projected to grown by nearly seven percent through 2022; the highest-paid processing occupations are expected to grow at nearly twice that rate. These jobs are related to high level management, engineering, metal fabricators and fitters, installation, maintenance and repair.

Because of the remoteness of Alaska’s fisheries and the low resident populations, it is necessary for processors to seasonally bring in non-resident workers, which top 73 percent.

Interestingly, next to slime line workers, the highest rates of nonresident workers were among vessel engineers (59.5 percent); captains, mates, and boat pilots.
The Economic Trends report also looks at Alaska’s Community Development Quota program. - More...
Friday PM - November 07, 2014

Alaska: Senate & House Majority Announce Key Leadership Positions - Yesterday, Representative Mike Chenault (R-Nikiski) was chosen by his fellow incoming House Majority Caucus members to serve as Speaker of the House for a record fourth term, during a meeting in Anchorage today. Caucus members also selected other key leadership positions, with all principle standing committee chairmanships announced.

“What an honor,” said Chenault. “The Speaker’s desk is a hallowed one, and I’ve enjoyed my time there. It’s a humbling feeling to get the backing of so many good people. We can continue to build a family atmosphere, honor the institution of the legislature, and the votes Alaskans entrusted us with Tuesday. Come January, Alaskans will see another solid group of legislators team-building and focused and ready to take on the operating budget, gasline updates, implementing the ballot initiatives and all the rest.”

House Majority Leadership members chosen Thursday are:
Speaker – Chenault, R-Nikiski
Majority Leader – Charisse Millett, R-Anchorage
Rules Chair – Craig Johnson, R-Anchorage
Finance Co-Chair – Mark Neuman, R-Su-Valley (Operating Budget)
Finance Co-Chair – Steve Thompson, R-Fairbanks (Capital Budget)
Majority Whip – Bob Herron, D-Bethel