If Alaskans’ drinking water, children or fishing streams are at risk, Alaskans should have a say
Today, Representative Les Gara (D-Anchorage) expressed concern about the governor’s proposal to eliminate public input on pesticide use that could contaminate waters where Alaskans fish and get drinking water.
Read More →Without work schedules, continued delay likely
JUNEAU – Today, nine members of the House Democratic Caucus called on the Department of Natural Resources to require firm timelines and work schedules before approving Exxon’s most recent Plan of Development for Pt. Thomson. In their official comments submitted today, the lawmakers said that without a timeline for Exxon to complete the work, this Plan of Development is likely to result in the same delay and inaction that has kept the resource undeveloped for over thirty years.
Read More →Today, Rep. Les Gara launched the Summer Foster Youth Laptop Drive designed to pair foster youth with laptop computers donated by generous Alaskans.
“Past holiday drives were very successful, so we’re hoping to spread that success throughout the year,” said Rep. Gara, whose office started this effort with foster youth advocate Amanda Metivier two years ago.
Read More →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.
Read More →“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.”
Read More →Today, the governor signed into law Representative Les Gara’s legislation to ensure future public access to Alaska’s fishing streams, House Bill 144. The bill passed the House last year with a vote of 38 Yeas and passed the Senate by a vote of 20 to 0 on February 27.
“I want to thank the governor and the legislative body for their support in protecting Alaskans’ access to fishing streams for this and the next generation. In other states you have to pay access fees to fish a stream, or are simply blocked from this public resource. We don’t ever want that to happen in Alaska,” said Rep. Les Gara (D-Anchorage), an avid fisherman and fishing writer.
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