Clarise Larson

In this newscast: Federal workers in Juneau are among the thousands nationwide to receive layoff notices in the inboxes last week and over the holiday weekend. This is part of the Trump Administration’s continued efforts to downsize the government; State lawmakers are considering a new student loan repayment program to attract former Alaskans to return and serve as teachers and state workers; Alaska’s state ferry system continues to face stiff headwinds when it comes to staffing, state officials say.

In this newscast: Juneau Democratic Representative Sara Hannan introduced a bill that would impose a statewide tax on e-cigarette or vape products and raise the minimum purchasing age in Alaska. Versions of this bill have come before lawmakers multiple times in the past few years and public testimony was divided; Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order to eliminate federally funded programs that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. That order could affect a wide range of programs in Alaska, from climate research to summer camps; The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race will now start in Fairbanks due to a lack of snow, race officials announced yesterday. The last-minute change follows alarms raised by some mushers over the weekend who said stretches of the trail were not safe for their teams. 

In this newscast: Juneau’s city-owned hospital is in a much better financial position than it has been in years. For the last eight months, the hospital has been making steady positive income; A deadly strain of bird flu is sweeping the nation. It has killed more than 20 million chickens since October, and that has scrambled the egg market. Alaska Public Media’s Ava White has more on how Anchorage businesses are coping with rapidly increasing egg prices along with supply problems; Juneau’s city-owned hospital is in a much better financial position than it has been in years. For the last eight months, the hospital has been making steady positive income; Sen. Lisa Murkowski voted to confirm Tulsi Gabbard as President Trump’s director of national intelligence. She also announced that she intends to vote to confirm Robert Kennedy Jr. as secretary of health and human services.