Southeast Alaska secure land trade with approved bill

KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) — A recently approved U.S. Senate bill secures a long-awaited land trade.

The Ketchikan Daily News reports the $1.1 spending bill approved by the Senate Thursday will permit a land trade between the U.S. Forest Service and the Alaska Mental Health Trust. The bill is heading to President Donald Trump’s desk for final signature.

The land trade has been an ongoing effort by the Mental Health Trust Authority Board, who use land proceeds to fund the state’s mental health services. Last summer, the board threatened to pursue timber sales on Deer Mountain and lands in Petersburg if the trade was not approved by Jan. 15. Ketchikan residents pushed back against the threats.

The bill also secures funding for gauges to monitor water quality in transboundary rivers and the Forest Service’s recreational process for special use permits.

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