3 days ago · The Alaska Beacon is an independent, nonpartisan news organization focused on connecting Alaskans to their state government. Our journalists fairly and fearlessly report on the people and interests that determine state policy.

Jan 23, 2025 · Hegseth nomination for Pentagon chief advances in U.S. Senate in close vote BY: Ashley Murray - January 23, 2025 WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Republicans on Thursday advanced the nomination of veteran and onetime Fox News host Pete Hegseth to lead the nation’s military, despite numerous allegations of alcohol abuse and sexual misconduct, and his history of disparaging women in the armed forces.

Nov 6, 2024 · Alaska voters favored a ballot measure backed by labor unions by a margin of 12.46 percentage points with roughly 70% of the ballots counted early Wednesday.

2 days ago · Education funding is back on the docket for the Alaska Legislature. On Friday, Independent Rep. Rebecca Himschoot of Sitka introduced legislation, House Bill 69, to substantially increase the amount of funding per student. The two-page bill would increase the base student allocation, the core of the state’s school funding formula.

Dec 3, 2024 · The average hourly wage in Alaska was $33.60 in 2023, putting the state in 11 th place among all 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The median hourly wage – which is calculated in a way that reduces the influence of the highest and lowest numbers – was $26.99.

Alaska Beacon is an independent, nonpartisan news organization focused on connecting Alaskans to their state government. Alaska, like many states, has seen a decline in the coverage of state news. We aim to reverse that.

Sep 20, 2024 · The state of Alaska will hold public hearings Monday and Tuesday on ballot measures that seek to raise the state’s minimum wage and repeal its current elections system.

Nov 28, 2024 · Alaska’s minimum wage workers will get a tiny bump in pay starting on Jan. 1 before a larger increase becomes effective six months later. The state’s minimum wage will increase by 18 cents to $11.91 an hour at the start of the new year, the result of a ballot measure passed 10 years ago, the Alaska Department of Labor and …

2 days ago · Facing steep growth in demand, constant turnover and employee retirements, Alaska’s health care industry has a staggering need for new workers, a new report says. “To meet those variables, we have to find over 9,400 new health care workers every single year,” Jared Kosin, executive director of ...

Nov 19, 2024 · A day after the votes for keeping Alaska’s open primary and ranked choice voting system overtook those to repeal it, the vote count tightened on Tuesday.. The votes against the ballot measure to repeal the system are only 45 votes ahead of those in favor of repeal, after having a 192-vote lead on Monday. Until then, the votes to pass the measure had been ahead in the counting that began on ...