When tourists arrive in Anchorage and check into one of the downtown hotels, they’re often greeted with two starkly contrasting views. On a clear day, they might catch a glimpse of majestic Mt. McKinley on the horizon. But every day this summer, without fail, what greets them closer to ground level is another sprawling homeless encampment, just steps from where the Saturday Market sets up and directly beneath the Ramada by Wyndham.
As part of our continuing series on Anchorage’s worsening vagrancy crisis, we invite you on a photo and video tour of what has become the city’s unofficial welcome mat. This is the reality visitors encounter in downtown Anchorage — a visual story of what life looks like under Democrat leadership in Alaska’s largest city.
Below the video and images, you can find links to our tours of other vagrant encampments around Anchorage in recent weeks, as Mayor LaFrance continues to oversee the decay of the largest city in Alaska.
Arthur Keyes has been appointed by the US Department of Agriculture to serve as Alaska’s executive director of the Farm Service Agency.
Keyes, owner of Glacier Valley Farm in Palmer, has years of Alaska agricultural experience, including serving as the director of the Alaska Division of Agriculture from 2016 to 2019.
Keyes was a produce manager for the Carrs supermarket chain until 2002, when he began working as a full-time farmer.
The Farm Service Agency serves a number of programs, including loans, price support, and commodity programs to stabilize farm income and promote agricultural productivity. The work includes direct and guaranteed loans for farm ownership, operations and emergency loans and disaster relief programs to help farmers recover from natural disasters or economic losses.
The amount of this year’s Permanent Fund dividend has been set by the Alaska Legislature at $1,000. The governor is not allowed to add back the funds taken by legislators and used for state services, so even if he vetoes part of the budget, he cannot restore the dividend to its statutory amount, which was the $3,900 he put in his proposed budget last fall.
Since Gov. Bill Walker vetoed half of Alaskans’ dividends in 2016, the Legislature has set subsequent dividends by negotiations, not a fixed formula as directed by statute, making them subject to the political whims of election years.
During election years for the past five years, the dividend has tracked higher. In 2024, there was a moderate increase with the “energy relief” portion of the dividend, which occurred during the election year.
2022’s high PFD aligns with the election and high oil prices, suggesting political motivation to boost dividends. 2024’s moderate increase also occurred during an election year.
If the trend continues, Alaskans might expect that the Permanent Fund dividend in 2026 will trend higher, as it will be another election year.
The PFD payments are typically disbursed in early October for online applicants with direct deposit, just three weeks before the general election, which makes it especially tempting for legislators to be more generous to constituents, as in vote buying.
As of May 29, gas prices in Alaska’s major cities have seen a notable decrease compared to the same period last year, aligning with national trends of declining fuel costs.
In Anchorage, the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is currently $3.58, down from $4.25 a year ago, a decrease of 67 cents, according to GasBuddy, a blog that tracks fuel prices.
That is a nearly 20% drop in prices since last year, when Biden was president. We found gas at Circle K on Old Seward Highway as low as $3.46.
The reduction reflects a broader national trend, with the US average price of gasoline at $3.13 per gallon, which is 43 cents lower than a year ago.
The highest gas price ever recorded in Anchorage history was during the Biden Administration on June 20, 2022, at $5.56, with diesel selling at $6.07.
Fairbanks residents are currently paying an average of $3.69 per gallon for regular gasoline, compared to $4.21 at this time last year, a 52-cent decrease, according to AAA.
Juneau drivers are paying an average of $3.62. It’s higher in Ketchikan, at $4.76, according to AAA.
“While the national average didn’t fall quite as far as anticipated for Memorial Day, it was still one of the most affordable since 2021 — and, when adjusted for inflation, among the cheapest in nearly a decade,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy in a blog post. “As we move into the heart of summer, I believe we’re likely to see a relatively stable stretch for gas prices as refinery maintenance wraps up. Don’t expect the national average to rise above $3.30 per gallon, nor drop much below $3 for now. While refining issues on the West Coast are beginning to ease, several factors could still influence prices in the weeks ahead — including growing uncertainty around the upcoming hurricane season. We’ll also be watching OPEC+’s meeting this week to see if they boost oil production again for July as well.”
The US Energy Information Administration reported that the national average price for regular gasoline was $3.16 per gallon as of May 26, down 41.7 cents from the same time in 2024.
According to the EIA’s short-term energy outlook released in May, the average US regular gasoline retail price is projected to be $3.09 per gallon in 2025, down from $3.31 in 2024.
“The national nightmare that was Biden’s war on American energy is over,” the White House wrote last week. “After President Donald J. Trump declared a National Energy Emergency on his first day in office, his administration has takenrelentlessaction to revive the nation’s energy capabilities and undo the Biden-era stranglehold on American energy production.”
In October of 2022, Democratic state Sen. Bill Wielechowski and Sen. Scott Kawasaki sent a huffy demand letter to Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor, reiterating their unfounded claim that Alaska gasoline prices were high due to collusion and price gouging.
Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, says his time has come to an end in service to the federal government, where he was in charge of cutting waste, fraud, and abuse, and where he battled the political machine that was bent on out-of-control spending.
“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending. The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government,” Musk wrote on X.
The change was planned for weeks due to his status as a special, unpaid government employee, which limits employment to 130 days.
He announced his departure on May 28 and said he will focus more on his companies, particularly SpaceX and Tesla, though the White House and Musk have indicated that DOGE’s cost-cutting efforts will continue without his daily involvement.
Musk may still influence policy indirectly, despite scaling back his political involvement.
Voters in Sitka have overwhelmingly rejected a citizen-led ballot proposition special election aimed at regulating large cruise ship traffic, dealing a blow to those advocating for tighter limits on visitor numbers and port calls during the summer tourist season.
In a special election held Wednesday, preliminary results show that roughly 2,000 voted against the initiative, and 800 voted for it — 72% to 28%.
After polls closed at 8 pm, only about 100 absentee votes were outstanding, insufficient to change the outcome. The remaining ballots are to be counted June 2.
The measure would have implemented sweeping restrictions on large cruise ships, defined as vessels carrying 250 or more overnight passengers. If passed, the ordinance would have gone into effect for the 2026 cruise season and established the following limits:
Confined cruise ship port calls to the period between May 1 and September 30;
Limited port calls to six days per week, requiring one cruise-free day;
Imposed an annual cap of 300,000 scheduled passengers ashore;
Enforced a daily cap of 4,500 scheduled passengers ashore.
In addition to passenger and scheduling restrictions, the proposition required the City and Borough of Sitka to create a permitting and scheduling system for all cruise ships, large and small, and to impose penalties—including fines, permit revocations, or yearlong suspensions—for noncompliance. It also would have mandated that cruise operators report visitation data to local authorities.
Supporters of the measure, clearly in the minority, said it was necessary to preserve Sitka’s quality of life, natural environment, and infrastructure.
Opponents, including many in the local business community, argued the restrictions were too rigid and could have significant economic consequences for a city that depends heavily on summer tourism.
The recent failure of activists in Juneau to gain sufficient signatures to put yet another anti-cruise initiative on the ballot in October is evidence that local residents recognize the economic value of the industry.
This latest effort, to place a hard cap on cruise visitors, had legal, even constitutional issues, and undercut voluntary agreements between the city and the industry that were reached after years of citizen involvement and fruitful negotiations.
It wasn’t that long ago many believed there was no way Juneau could possibly support more cruise visitors, and that the community had finally reached an absolute limit. Since then, cruise visitation has more than doubled. Through technological improvements that limit ship emissions and voluntary mitigation strategies such at Tourism Best Management Practices, the City and Borough of Juneau has become a leader in managing visitor impacts.
Anti-cruise ship crusaders’ mantra has been that passenger numbers are unsustainable and will creep even higher. That simply isn’t possible. The five-ship limit, the rule against “hot-berthing,” and agreed-upon daily passenger limits, will prevent that. Furthermore, Juneau’s dock infrastructure and Gastineau Channel’s restricted maneuvering area cannot support the larger ships being built.
City and industry collaboration is the best way to enhance the benefits to our community while mitigating any social and environmental impacts.
The economic benefits of cruise visitors have become so embedded in the community that many residents may be unaware of them or just take them for granted. But they are significant and the Assembly ‘s penchant for spending can’t be satisfied without those dollars.
In 2023, Juneau commissioned a study by McKinley Research Group that outlines the economic impacts of cruise visitors. In that year alone, the cruise industry accounted for $375 million in direct spending in Juneau, $320 million of which is attributable to passenger spending; $39 million to cruise line spending; and $16 million to crew member spending. Expenditures were approximately evenly split between tour activities and retail/hospitality sectors.
Including direct and indirect impacts, Juneau’s cruise industry supported 3,850 jobs, $196 million in labor income, and total spending of $490 million in 2023.
But that isn’t all.
CBJ collected an estimated $22 million in cruise-related fees such as moorage and head tax revenues in 2023. The Assembly just approved a significant increase in docking fees that will raise an additional $2.5 million per year.
While some dock fees and head taxes are slated for cruise-related bond retirement and port improvements, a significant amount supports CBJ operation and administration. The CBJ FY26 draft budget includes millions of cruise dollars allocated to municipal departments such as Fire/EMS ($781,000), Parks & Rec ($862,000), Police ($1.3 million), and City Transit ($1.0 million) with lesser amounts to the Mayor’s Office, City Manager’s Office, Finance, Streets, and city harbors.
Additionally, an estimated $18 million in sales tax revenues resulted from overall cruise industry spending. Even though cruise ships visit only half the year, they now account for 25% of all sales taxes collected annually in Juneau.
While Assembly members can spend sales tax dollars on anything they choose to fund, it is unfortunate that they have done so, in some cases, contrary to wishes of voters. Voters have taken notice and have until May 30 to sign petitions now being circulated for three initiatives designed to restrain Assembly spending.
Not included in these numbers is the sizable amount of property taxes that are collected from visitor-related businesses that cater to the ships. Restaurants, tour companies, retail stores, and more pay property tax and, in many cases, would not be open year-round, if not for the visitor industry.
Indeed, the increase in revenues from cruise ship visitors has far outpaced Juneau’s population growth. So why must the CBJ Assembly now increase debt and taxes on its residents?
It’s past time to look at the fallacy of the Assembly’s method of basing its annual budget on last year’s expenditures as a starting point. A critical review would find that CBJ doesn’t have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem.
At the very least, it would confirm that the cruise industry has earned and proven its value to the Juneau community.
After retiring as the senior vice president in charge of business banking for Key Bank in Alaska, Win Gruening became a regular opinion page columnist for the Juneau Empire. He was born and raised in Juneau and graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1970. He is involved in various local and statewide organizations.
Aviation affects nearly every single Alaskan. Only 22% of our state is connected to a road system. The rest of our communities, especially in rural areas, rely on aviation for their groceries, for their mail, or to transport patients in medical emergencies.
From bush pilots in Nome to air traffic controllers in Anchorage, our skies are the critical infrastructure that remains a hallmark of everyday life in Alaska. Air safety is deeply personal, and it’s why I’ve made it a top priority in Congress.
In October 1972, my grandfather, Rep. Nick Begich Sr., disappeared aboard a twin-engine Cessna 310 flying from Anchorage to Juneau. Despite one of the largest search efforts in American history, the aircraft and its four occupants were never found. The tragedy changed my family forever. It also exposed critical gaps in aviation safety at the time — gaps that, tragically, still persist in too many parts of our airspace system today.
America was once the gold standard in aviation technology. But over the past two decades, our infrastructure has stagnated while the demands on our system have only grown. Today, the Federal Aviation Administration employs 2,300 fewer certified air traffic controllers than needed. Controllers are being asked to do more with less — working mandatory overtime, managing increasingly congested airspace, and doing so with outdated radar and voice systems that in some cases predate the internet.
I recently introduced the bipartisan Air Traffic Control Workforce Development Act of 2025, legislation that invests in the people who make our skies safe. This bill improves recruitment and retention incentives, enhances mental health support, funds state-of-the-art tower simulators, and strengthens the training pipeline for new controllers. It is backed by industry leaders and labor organizations alike and is the House companion to Senate legislation introduced earlier this year.
But fixing the staffing shortage is just one part of the broader modernization challenge. We also need a 21st-century air traffic control system, one that uses fiber optics, satellite technology, and real-time data to give pilots and controllers the tools they need to make faster, smarter, and safer decisions.
The Don Young Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative, which recently delivered $25 million in critical improvements to our aviation infrastructure, is a strong example of what partnership between Congress and the FAA can achieve. As a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I worked with committee leadership to include $260 million for the Don Young Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative in the committee’s budget reconciliation proposal. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House and Senate to pass this proposal out of Congress and to the president’s desk.
President Donald Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy recently laid out a plan to overhaul our air traffic control system. Their initiative calls for upgrading more than 4,600 air traffic sites with cutting-edge communications and radar equipment; replacing towers and Terminal Radar Approach Control facilities with modern, standardized platforms; and building six new coordination centers for the first time in over 60 years. It’s a long-overdue investment that I fully support.
I commend the administration for its focus on aviation safety, and I look forward to working with Trump and Duffy as a member of the House Subcommittee on Aviation to ensure Alaska and rural America are not left behind in this transformation.
The risks of delay are real, and they are growing. Without immediate action, overworked air traffic controllers will continue to manage increasing traffic with aging equipment. Fatigue and staffing shortages will heighten the risk of near misses. Our nation, home to some of the busiest and most complex airspace in the world, deserves better.
Upgrading our aviation system will greatly reduce flight delays and improve efficiency, but more than that, it will save lives. No family should have to experience the kind of loss mine did over 50 years ago due to an aviation-related tragedy.
America is still a beacon of innovation. We lead the world in so many fields: energy, space, medicine, technology, etc. There is no reason why we cannot lead in aviation once again. But leadership requires investment, vision, and political will.
Let’s train the next generation of air traffic controllers, modernize our infrastructure, and bring air safety into the 21st century. The skies over Alaska and across our nation deserve nothing less.
Nick Begich represents Alaska’s At-Large Congressional District in the House of Representatives and serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Aviation. This column first ran in the Washington Examiner.
BTC USA Holdings, a media company led by Canadians, filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in the United States. Chapter 15 is a US designation that applies to cross-border companies. In February, BTC USA Holdings entered receivership proceedings in Canada, which has entirely different bankruptcy laws.
The company, formerly operating under the name Local First Media Group, had acquired radio stations in Texarkana, Arkansas/Texas and in Juneau, Ketchikan, and Sitka, from Frontier Media LLC in 2022 for $1.3 million.
Soon thereafter, BTC USA announced it was purchasing five stations in northern Michigan from J&J Broadcasting for the same amount. That deal never went through.
BTC USA’s financial troubles were revealed after the company defaulted on a loan from Canadian lender ATB Financial, totaling over $8.1 million. Subsequently, the company was placed into receivership in Canada, in a process equivalent to Chapter 7 liquidation under US bankruptcy law.
Since the receivership, BTC USA’s former US operations have been restructured under previous branding.
Stations in Alaska have reverted to the Frontier Media name, and those in Texarkana are now operating once again as Texarkana Media Center.
KINY issued a formal response to a Canadian receivership order that names the company and several affiliates in connection with an alleged loan default.
“The company asserts that the order, tied to a loan from a company in Canada, is inaccurate and misleading. According to Frontier Media, it was neither a borrower nor a signatory to the loan agreement, and none of its FCC-licensed assets were pledged as collateral,” the station wrote. “President and majority shareholder Cliff Dumas emphasized that federal law protects U.S. broadcast licenses from foreign influence and legal actions and confirmed that attorneys in both the United States and Canada are actively opposing the Chapter 15 filing.”
Despite the bankruptcy filing, “Frontier Media maintains that its Alaska radio operations remain financially sound, with steady advertising revenue, strong cash flow, and no limits on its licenses,” the station wrote. “The company continues to invest in infrastructure upgrades and local programming to serve communities in Juneau, Ketchikan, and Sitka.”
KINY has broadcast continuously since May 31, 1935.
Stations in Southeast Alaska that were part of the BTC empire include:
JUNEAU
KINY (94.7 FM/800 AM) – Classic Hits
KJNO (99.3 FM/630 AM) – News/Talk
KTKU (Taku 105, 105.1 FM) – Country
KSUP (Mix 106, 106.3 FM) – Adult Contemporary
KXXJ (93.3 FM/1330 AM) – Classic Hits
KXLL (Hawk 107.9, 107.9 FM) – Sports
KETCHIKAN
KTKN (93.5 FM/930 AM) – Adult Contemporary
KGTW (106.7 FM) – Country
SITKA
KSBZ (103.1 FM) – Rock
KIFW (96.5 FM/1230 AM) – Adult Contemporary
So far, the station operations across Southeast Alaska are continuing uninterrupted.
