NEWS: Rep. Holmes Bill to Bolster Alaska’s Housing Economy Now Law
May 22, 2012
“We need to take charge to guarantee Alaska’s housing market stays strong”
This afternoon, the governor signed HB 269, a bill by Representative Lindsey Holmes (D-Anchorage) that ensures housing projects in the state can keep moving forward.
Before this fix, an unintended glitch in state law could cause projects to stall out if their timeline ran a little too long. The obsolete provision was adopted in 1986 but has been updated nationally since 1994. HB 269 updates Alaska’s law to the national standard. The bill is widely supported by banks, trust companies, and homebuilders in Alaska.
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NEWS: House Democrats Laud Successful Cook Inlet Lease Sale
May 16, 2012
Today, four members of the House Democratic Caucus said that today’s successful Cook Inlet lease sale was another reason for Alaskans to be optimistic about Alaska’s ability to meet long-term local energy needs with Alaskan gas.
“The industry’s renewed interest in Cook Inlet is not surprising given the incentives we’ve put in place and the real potential to find large amounts of untapped oil and gas,” said Representative Pete Petersen (D-Anchorage). “It shows they think there’s a lot of gas there, and that they’re willing to produce it. That’s good news for Alaska’s energy future.”
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NEWS: It’s Official: Texting While Driving Is Illegal in Alaska
May 10, 2012
Ban Signed Into Law Today
Today, thanks to legislation led by Representative Les Gara (D-Anchorage) and Representative Bill Thomas (R-Haines), Alaska’s strong anti-texting law is officially back on the books. Last year, a number of judges questioned whether the law at the time covered texting while driving, but the new law is clear—it is illegal to text while driving in Alaska.
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NEWS: House Democrats Call on NOAA to Assist With Tsunami Debris
May 9, 2012
“Tsunami debris threatens Alaskan coastal resources, communities and economies”
JUNEAU – Today, eight members of the Alaska House Democratic Caucus called on the federal government to create an aggressive plan to protect Alaska’s coastline from the threat posed by debris from last year’s tsunami in Japan.
“This debris could cause serious ecological, health and safety concerns for our coastal communities, not to mention significant economic impacts that could ripple throughout the state,” said House Democratic Leader Beth Kerttula (Juneau). “We know it’s coming—the first of it is already here. We need federal resources to get an idea of what we’re up against so we can develop the best way to deal with these waves of debris that could keep coming for months or more.”
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NEWS: Rep. Tuck to Impersonators: This Needs to Stop
April 26, 2012
JUNEAU - Today, officials from the Alaska Department of Transportation notified Rep. Chris Tuck (D-Anchorage) that someone posing as him has been calling residents of his district and giving them false information that a pending road construction project in their area has been cancelled.
According to an email from Highway Design Project Manager Jim Amundsen, “The reports came from a couple of different property owners that were very upset since our ROW section has already been in contact with them and DOT&PF is in the early stages of acquiring their property for the project. “
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