In this newscast:
- Philanthropist Allen announces discovery of USS Juneau: Philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has announced that wreckage of the sunken military ship on which five brothers died in World War II has been discovered in the South Pacific.
- Juneau Assembly punts decision over future of Cornerstone Campus property: The Juneau Assembly has narrowed the choice to two contenders vying to take over the former Cornerstone Campus in the Mendenhall Valley. The Assembly was unable to decide Monday between Gehring Nursery School, a childcare facility, and Alaska Legacy Partners, an assisted living center for seniors.
You can hear these stories and more at www.ktoo.org/listen.
In other news:
State budget advances, but how to pay for it remains unclear
The Alaska House Finance Committee finished its work on the budget on Friday. Its budget includes $5.3 billion for the part of the budget that the Legislature directly controls each year. That’s $337 million more than this year, and $37 million more than what Gov. Bill Walker proposed.
The Senate budget still has to take shape. The Senate did pass the bill known as the fast-track supplemental last week. That includes $45 million of the Medicaid increase.
New state Forest Service leader has Alaska experience
The U.S. Forest Service is getting a new top official in April. David Schmid will have to deal with a particularly controversial land management plan that’s under attack.
Schmid began his Forest Service career in Alaska. He and his wife moved here in the early 1980s for his first agency job, in Southcentral’s Chugach National Forest. Later, he worked in the Tongass in Southeast.
Alaska’s Energy Desk has a new series about how Alaskans around the state heat their homes: The Cost of Cold