KTOO News Update
The day’s local and state news in about 10 minutes.
Newscast – Wednesday, July 23, 2025
In this newscast: A 35-year-old woman has died after the vessel she was on capsized near Sitka on Sunday; Nearly all the staff of Juneau’s only print newspaper left the publication for a new, web-based local news outlet; Haines is Alaska’s oldest borough – and a recent survey of residents under 40 years old provides a clearer picture of why. Respondents outlined a long list of factors that make it increasingly difficult for younger people to live in the small Southeast community, ranging from scant housing and childcare options – to polarized local politics; The Alaska Department of Health says it’s still assessing how President Trump’s so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act will affect the state’s Medicaid program. State officials say they do not have reliable estimates of how many Alaskans could lose coverage or how much the new law will reduce federal health care spending.
Read More »Newscast – Tuesday, July 22, 2025
In this newscast: The City and Borough of Juneau is inviting developers, nonprofit and tribal governments to apply for grants or loans from its affordable housing fund; Two black bear cubs were electrocuted to death after climbing a utility pole in downtown Juneau Monday night; The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development is appealing a federal decision that could cost the state $80 million; A coalition of schools and advocacy groups, including several Alaska school districts, is suing the Trump administration over its decision to withhold about $6.8 billion in federal education funds approved by Congress; The state's only med school program started this week with its biggest cohort
Read More »Newscast – Monday, July 21, 2025
In this newscast: Tomorrow marks one month since Juneau resident Benjamin or “Benny” Stepetin was last seen in the capital city; For years, the state has struggled to keep up with Alaskans who apply for government benefits intended to help people facing disabilities and poverty. Despite efforts to address the problem, thousands of Alaskans are still caught in backlogs; It’s been three weeks since the Alaska Department of Fish and Game seized dozens of animals from a wildlife facility outside Haines. But a number were left behind; An IT outage that grounded all Alaska Airlines flights Sunday night led to cancellations today at the Anchorage and Fairbanks international airports.
Read More »Newscast – Friday, July 18, 2025
In this newscast: The Environmental Protection Agency is sticking with its veto of the proposed Pebble Mine project in southwest Alaska. Northern Dynasty, the parent company behind the Pebble project, is still suing to get the veto overturned; The late civil rights activist John Lewis didn't have Juneau ties, but Juneau residents marked the anniversary of his death Thursday with a protest of the Trump Administration’s cuts to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policy and what they see as an attack on civil rights; The U.S. House passed a rescission bill Thursday to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, sending the bill to the president to sign into law; The U.S. Department of Interior announced Wednesday that it finalized the transfer of nearly 28,000 acres of federal land in the Northwest Arctic to NANA Regional Corporation. The land is on the western end of the Ambler Road corridor – a proposed 200-mile road branching from the Dalton Highway to connect to a mining region south of the Brooks Range.
Read More »Newscast – Thursday, July 17, 2025
In this newscast: The Juneau Assembly is moving forward with a plan to temporarily move its regular meetings from City Hall to Centennial Hall due to sound quality issues; The candidate filing period for Juneau's local election opens tomorrow morning at 8 a.m.; City officials are warning residents in Mendenhall Valley's flood zone to evacuate when the flood happens — even with temporary levees in place; This week's Curious Juneau looks into a local Easter egg that has fallen silent
Read More »Newscast – Wednesday, July 16, 2025
In this newscast: The Petersburg Borough settled a lawsuit from its police chief out of court; The Juneau School District Board of Education approved grant funding to maintain a high school counselor position; A Juneau man pleaded guilty to killing a 1-month-old infant in his care last year; A retired school teacher and principal from the City of Angoon entered Alaska's 2026 governor's race earlier this month; Camping in certain public spaces in Anchorage will soon be a criminal offense following Assembly approval; The Native village of Klukwan is in the middle of a research project to better understand landslide risk in the area
Read More »Newscast – Tuesday, July 15, 2025
In this newscast: As electronic gaming machines chime away at the Eklutna Tribe’s new casino near Anchorage, the high-stakes legal battles over its right to operate goes on. It’s a case that other tribes have their eye on; The Juneau Assembly is considering changing city code to make it easier for Juneau Police officers to arrest people without housing who are camping in public spaces; A man who was wrongfully detained in Anchorage by federal immigration officials is claiming that officers stole his wallet, which contained his immigration documents and social security card; The Trump administration’s new budget reconciliation bill is drawing criticism from some Alaskans for its cuts to social safety net programs. But residents in one Arctic community say the bill will support their economy, thanks to several carveouts for Alaska, including an increased tax break for whaling captains.
Read More »Newscast – Monday, July 14, 2025
In this newscast: June's commercial salmon harvest in the South Alaska Peninsula was one of the lowest in four decades; Wrangell students are continuing to track wildlife with cameras at the Anan Wildlife Observatory; A Shungnak man died Saturday after falling into the Kobuk river Saturday; A man jailed in Anchorage died Friday after correctional officers restrained him during a fight, according to Alaska State Troopers; Firefighters in the Interior utilize specially trained dogs to keep them safe from bears.
Read More »Newscast – Friday, July 11, 2025
In this newscast: A Juneau man who pleaded guilty to stabbing someone to death at a senior and disabled housing facility in 2020 was sentenced this week, nearly 5 years after his arrest; Juneau officials released a list of potential hazard mitigation projects for review on Thursday; Juneau has a high cost of living compared to other cities in Alaska and the rest of the nation; Sport fishing for wild king salmon just got a bit more restricted for nonresidents; An atmospheric research facility near Gakona in the Interior has been a magnet for conspiracy theories for decades, so the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program hosts an open house every year to show the public what they're really up to
Read More »Newscast – Thursday, July 10, 2025
In this newscast: The Juneau Assembly is moving forward with a plan to ask voters this fall whether to implement a new seasonal sales tax system next year; Like much of Alaska, Juneau has its share of disasters and emergencies. Part of living here is planning ahead for scenarios that may require evacuating your home. Juneau Animal Rescue wants to inform residents about how best to prepare to evacuate their pets too; An immigration detainee originally from Peru and recently held in Alaska was later hospitalized in Washington state with tuberculosis, according to his attorney. State corrections officials deny claims he contracted TB at the Anchorage jail; Multiple research vessels are out in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska this summer conducting surveys that inform stock assessments for fisheries managers. One of those surveys only happens every two years and comes during a challenging time for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; A fire burned through the public safety building and city jail in the Western Alaska coastal community of Chevak early Tuesday morning. City officials say the building is a total loss.
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