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Former Mayor Dan Sullivan drops out of senatorial race
Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
Former Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan is dropping out of the race for U.S. Senate. He made the announcement just 15 days after he filed to challenge Lisa Murkowski in the Republican Primary.
Democrats say Murkowski sinks bill with riders
Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, through her  assignment on the Appropriations Committee, is charged with writing a bill that funds a wide swath of the federal government. It is a major opportunity to direct money to agencies important to Alaska. The committee passed her bill today, but a Democratic leader says it’s unlikely to see the full Senate.
Major change for Alaska vets as TriWest steps aside
Zachariah Hughes, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
A major change is coming in the way Alaska veterans get medical care. Congressional leaders announced Monday that TriWest, the subcontractor acting as an intermediary between veterans and medical providers, will no longer be responsible for booking appointments. Veterans in Alaska have criticized the appointment process as a major bottle-neck in accessing critical care. Many see the change as a small potential improvement within a larger web of problems connected to the 2014 Choice Act.
Dividend checks would drop, but not by as much, under revised bill
Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau
Alaskans’ Permanent Fund dividends would still be cut, but not as much, under a new version of a bill to restructure fund earnings.
Michael Johnson to be new commissioner of education and early development
Lori Townsend, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
Dr Michael Johnson will be the new commissioner of education and early development. In a state release today, Governor Bill Walker said he was pleased to have Dr Johnson begin his new appointment on July 1st.
Former military leaders fight on the side of lease sales in the Arctic
Rashah McChesney, KTOO – Juneau
More than a dozen former military leaders jumped into a fight over offshore drilling in the Arctic yesterday, asking the Department of the Interior to allow lease sales in Alaska’s Arctic.
First evidence of ancient trade with Asia uncovered in Northwest Alaska
Emily Russell, KNOM – Nome
There’s new evidence that metal goods from central Asia made their way to Alaska long before contact with Europeans.
Numerous wildfires hit Interior and St. Lawrence Island
Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks
There were 9 new wildfires reported in Alaska on Wednesday, including 6 on a machine gun training range on Ft. Wainwright in Fairbanks. The range fires each burned well less than an acre before being put out by military personnel. Alaska Fire Service spokeswoman Beth Ipsen said the Army works with the agency to minimize wildfire risk.
Copper River King salmon run slower than anticipated
Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks
The Copper River King salmon run is coming in weaker than anticipated. Alaska Department of Fish and Game Glennallen area management biologist Mark Somerville said run measures, including a weak commercial king harvest on the delta, and sub-par in river counts and catches all point to the same thing.
Troopers reveal victims in Atka crash were from Anchorage
Associated Press
Alaska State Troopers say the three men killed Tuesday in a traffic crash on a remote Aleutian island were all from Anchorage.
Fairbanks man gets 17 years behind bars in murder-for-hire
Associated Press
A former Fairbanks chiropractor and gun dealer has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for soliciting the murder of federal officers and others involved in an investigation against him in a separate murder-for-hire plot.
Bethel elders could be spending more time alone once ONC closes Senior Center
Anna Rose MacArthur, KYUK – Bethel
Bethel’s Senior Center is closing its doors to seniors. Orutsararmuit Native Council, or ONC, runs the program and will keep many of its services. But starting next month, it will no longer offer a space for seniors to gather, talk, and eat. Seniors will remain fed and supported, but they could be spending a lot more time alone.
