Alex DeMarban

The goal is limiting the footprint where seismic exploration could take place and avoiding polar bear dens and caribou calving areas, the Interior Department said.

The measure would also provide guaranteed sick leave to most workers, and prohibit employers from punishing employees for declining to attend meetings of a political or religious nature, used in some cases to dissuade unionizing.

The regulatory commission also approved a pilot program to incentivize electric use during times of low demand.

The vast majority of Alaskans can’t afford a newly built home, said a representative with the National Association of Home Builders.

It will support a new cruise port being built in Seward, the city said in a statement. The shoreside power will be unusual for a small town, a project official said.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers canceled a bid request process for the deepwater project after pricing came “well above” the statutory limit.

Plus, a yard-sign franchise for special celebrations has launched, while a freeze-dried food manufacturer is growing. An express car wash also opened, and Eagle River gets a prime steakhouse, while the Originale sandwich shop is for sale.

The companies will make stops in Anchorage as they fly between Asia and North America.

The second lease sale is supposed to be held by Dec. 22, according to the law. The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority was the main bidder in the federal government’s first-ever lease sale in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2021.

The Alaska Federation of Natives decided to table a vote on Ballot Measure 1 that calls for a minimum-wage increase.

New president Ben Mallott said he hopes to bring back the handful of large regional organizations that have left the organization in recent years.

Inupiat leaders from the North Slope Borough oppose the request from Gwich’in tribal governments to establish a sacred site in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s coastal plain.

The $1.5 million center will help improve a section of the neighborhood near Anchorage’s Davis Park, residents said.

ConocoPhillips will increase its holdings in the Kuparuk and Prudhoe Bay fields.

The decision supports a plan presented by utilities but also allows further study of a different option presented by the Eklutna tribal government.