Peter Segall

Rep. Kevin McCabe, R-Big Lake, speaks on the floor of the Alaska House of Representatives on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022. McCave introduced bills to enact a reciprocal tax on Washington state after lawmakers in that state forwarded a bill that would tax refined fuel to Alaska and House members passed a resolution urging Washington lawmakers not to pass the bill. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Alaska lawmakers push back on proposed Washington state legislation

Withdrawn fuel tax provision proves unpopular with lawmakers.

Rep. Kevin McCabe, R-Big Lake, speaks on the floor of the Alaska House of Representatives on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022. McCave introduced bills to enact a reciprocal tax on Washington state after lawmakers in that state forwarded a bill that would tax refined fuel to Alaska and House members passed a resolution urging Washington lawmakers not to pass the bill. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities is currently working on a study for a second crossing across the Gastineau Channel, seen here on Aug. 22, 2021, to North Douglas Island. The public outreach portion of the study is set to begin in May, according to DOT. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities is currently working on a study for a second crossing across the Gastineau Channel, seen here on Aug. 22, 2021, to North Douglas Island. The public outreach portion of the study is set to begin in May, according to DOT. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Pat Pitney was named President of the University of Alaska Friday after serving as interim president for over a year. She is the first woman to hold the position in UA's history. (Courtesy photo / University of Alaska)

Pat Pitney named UA President

After shedding interim label, she’s the first woman to hold the post.

Pat Pitney was named President of the University of Alaska Friday after serving as interim president for over a year. She is the first woman to hold the position in UA's history. (Courtesy photo / University of Alaska)
The MV Tazlina arrives in Juneau in this May 2020 photo. Federal relief dollars may be coming to the state to aide the Alaska Marine Highway System, but the unions that run the ships say workers are leaving the state. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
The MV Tazlina arrives in Juneau in this May 2020 photo. Federal relief dollars may be coming to the state to aide the Alaska Marine Highway System, but the unions that run the ships say workers are leaving the state. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
Doug Simon with the Alaska Section of the Alaska Society of Civil Engineers gave a presentation on Alaska's infrastructure report card at the Alaska State Capitol on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022. ASCE graded Alaska's overall infrastructure at a C-. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Doug Simon with the Alaska Section of the Alaska Society of Civil Engineers gave a presentation on Alaska's infrastructure report card at the Alaska State Capitol on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022. ASCE graded Alaska's overall infrastructure at a C-. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
The front doors of the Alaska State Capitol was missing the sign notifying visitors of the building's masking requirement on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, after an early morning by lawmakers changed the rule. Masking rules have been in place since October 2020, much to the consternation of some lawmakers. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
The front doors of the Alaska State Capitol was missing the sign notifying visitors of the building's masking requirement on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, after an early morning by lawmakers changed the rule. Masking rules have been in place since October 2020, much to the consternation of some lawmakers. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, gave her annual address to the Alaska State Legislature Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022, at the Capitol building in Juneau. Murkowski's speech emphasized bipartisanship and making Alaska ready for the opportunities brought by the recent infrastructure package. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Murkowski: Good things can come together with bipartisanship

Senator talks working across the aisle in annual address.

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, gave her annual address to the Alaska State Legislature Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022, at the Capitol building in Juneau. Murkowski's speech emphasized bipartisanship and making Alaska ready for the opportunities brought by the recent infrastructure package. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Juneau members of Veterans for Peace Craig Wilson, left, and K.J. Metcalf, wave signs urging a diplomatic solution in Ukraine the morning of Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Juneau members of Veterans for Peace Craig Wilson, left, and K.J. Metcalf, wave signs urging a diplomatic solution in Ukraine the morning of Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
A class photo from the Sitka Industrial Training School ca. 1897-1929, shows young Alaska Native women who were taken from their homes are raised in one of Alaska's boarding schools. This week, the First Alaskans Institute is hosting a summit for survivors and others impacted by the boarding school system. (Courtesy photo / Alaska's Digital Archives)
A class photo from the Sitka Industrial Training School ca. 1897-1929, shows young Alaska Native women who were taken from their homes are raised in one of Alaska's boarding schools. This week, the First Alaskans Institute is hosting a summit for survivors and others impacted by the boarding school system. (Courtesy photo / Alaska's Digital Archives)
Senate Finance Committee members Sens. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, and Natasha Von Imhof, R-Anchorage, listen to public testimony for bills related to the Permanent Fund Dividend on Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. The majority of callers accused lawmakers of stealing PFD money. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Senate Finance Committee members Sens. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, and Natasha Von Imhof, R-Anchorage, listen to public testimony for bills related to the Permanent Fund Dividend on Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. The majority of callers accused lawmakers of stealing PFD money. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Senators and members of the House of Representatives gather in the House Chamber for Gov. Mike Dunleavy's State of the State speech on Jan. 25, 2022. Both the House and Senate Chambers are located on the second floor of the Alaska State Capitol building. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Senators and members of the House of Representatives gather in the House Chamber for Gov. Mike Dunleavy's State of the State speech on Jan. 25, 2022. Both the House and Senate Chambers are located on the second floor of the Alaska State Capitol building. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Copies of the Alaska State Constitution are available outside the lieutenant governor's office on the third floor of the Alaska State Capitol. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Constitutional convention could change everything, or nothing

This article appears in the Juneau Empire’s Guide to the 2022 Alaska State Legislature. Legislative impasse over the past few years has led some in… Continue reading

Copies of the Alaska State Constitution are available outside the lieutenant governor's office on the third floor of the Alaska State Capitol. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
A student walks across the campus of the University of Alaska Southeast in this Feb. 4, 2021 file photo. An Anchorage Superior Court ruled Thursday against a group of UA students who had sued the state over funding for higher education scholarship programs. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
A student walks across the campus of the University of Alaska Southeast in this Feb. 4, 2021 file photo. An Anchorage Superior Court ruled Thursday against a group of UA students who had sued the state over funding for higher education scholarship programs. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks to the Alaska Municipal League and Alaska Conference of Mayors winter meeting at Centennial Hall on Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022. The governor gave a presentation on the state finances which included a slide referencing the disagreements with his proposals some lawmakers were likely to have. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks to the Alaska Municipal League and Alaska Conference of Mayors winter meeting at Centennial Hall on Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022. The governor gave a presentation on the state finances which included a slide referencing the disagreements with his proposals some lawmakers were likely to have. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
A map from the Alaska Redistricting Board shows proposed House Districts in Anchorage, two of which were the subject of a lawsuit against the board for their being paired together in a single senate seat. A judge ruled early Wednesday the board violated the Alaska State Constitution in its drafting of new legislative districts. (Screenshot / Alaska Redistricting Board)
A map from the Alaska Redistricting Board shows proposed House Districts in Anchorage, two of which were the subject of a lawsuit against the board for their being paired together in a single senate seat. A judge ruled early Wednesday the board violated the Alaska State Constitution in its drafting of new legislative districts. (Screenshot / Alaska Redistricting Board)
African-American soldiers of Company L, 24th Infantry, famously known as "Buffalo Soldiers" on parade on 5th Avenue in Skagway, between Broadway and State streets, in front of the Daily Budget newspaper on July 4, 1899. A recent book from a University of Alaska Anchorage history professor traces the long history of Black Americans in Alaska. (Courtesy image / Alaska's Digital Archives)
African-American soldiers of Company L, 24th Infantry, famously known as "Buffalo Soldiers" on parade on 5th Avenue in Skagway, between Broadway and State streets, in front of the Daily Budget newspaper on July 4, 1899. A recent book from a University of Alaska Anchorage history professor traces the long history of Black Americans in Alaska. (Courtesy image / Alaska's Digital Archives)
The entrance to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services building in downtown Juneau on Jan. 14, 2021. Gov. Mike Dunleavy has twice proposed splitting the department using an executive order, but the Division of Legislative Legal Services has raised issues with the most recent order. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
The entrance to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services building in downtown Juneau on Jan. 14, 2021. Gov. Mike Dunleavy has twice proposed splitting the department using an executive order, but the Division of Legislative Legal Services has raised issues with the most recent order. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)
Gubernatorial candidate Les Gara, right, announced as his running mate Jessica Cook, left, an Eagle River school teacher, at a news conference in Anchorage on Monday, Feb. 14, 2022. (Courtesy photo / Erin Kirkland)
Gubernatorial candidate Les Gara, right, announced as his running mate Jessica Cook, left, an Eagle River school teacher, at a news conference in Anchorage on Monday, Feb. 14, 2022. (Courtesy photo / Erin Kirkland)
Rep. Chris Tuck, D-Anchorage, seen here on Feb. 7, 2022, announced Thursday he was running to fill the Alaska State Senate seat soon to be vacated by Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson who's announced a bid for the U.S. Senate. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Rep. Chris Tuck, D-Anchorage, seen here on Feb. 7, 2022, announced Thursday he was running to fill the Alaska State Senate seat soon to be vacated by Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson who's announced a bid for the U.S. Senate. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore speaks at a press conference in Anchorage on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, to announce three bills introduced by Gov. Mike Dunleavy meant to address sex and human trafficking in the state. (Screenshot)
Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore speaks at a press conference in Anchorage on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, to announce three bills introduced by Gov. Mike Dunleavy meant to address sex and human trafficking in the state. (Screenshot)