KTOO News Update

In this newscast: Yearly homicides more than doubled from 2011 to 2019 in Alaska; Alaska's State Board of Education passed a resolution in favor of banning transgender girls from competing on girls' sports teams; The Southeast Alaska business competition Path to Prosperity is changing

In this newscast: Wildlife biologist Janet Neilson says things are looking up for Southeast's humpback whales; KTOO talked to middle schoolers at the Alliance, an LGBTQ club that Gov. Mike Dunleavy's bill would require parental permission to attend; People who recreate in public outdoor spaces are disproportionately white and the UAF Dept. of Natural Resources and Environment want to know why; Alaska's state education department has selected five tribes for a pilot program that will allow tribes to open new independent schools

In this newscast: Juneau's three high school National Ocean Sciences Bowl teams swept the Alaska region's competition in Seward; The Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska issued a statement in support of a bill in the Alaska Legislature that would prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation; Students spoke out against Gov. Mike Dunleavy's parental rights bill at a joint meeting of the House and Senate Education Committees on Wednesday; Alaska's congressional delegation says species collapse in Alaska's fisheries is nearing crisis levels

In this newscast: Southeast Alaska lawmakers are joining tribal and municipal governments, calling on the federal governments to stop British Columbia's mining activities in transboundary watersheds; According to the ACLU, state corrections officials have been forcing a man serving prison time in Seward to take psychotropic medications against his will for years; Heavy rain Thursday is melting the snowpack across Juneau which will increase the risk of flooding and avalanches

In this newscast: The Juneau School Board adopted a $96 million budget last night based on an assumed increase in state and city funding; Juneau resumed discussion of landslide and avalanche hazard zones this week with the introduction of a new draft ordinance,

Yesterday, the EPA proposed the first ever national limit on PFAS compounds in drinking water. The news comes as one Alaska senator continues his fight to regulate PFAS at the state level

In this newscast: The City and Borough of Juneau sent property assessment notices to homeowners and some got a shock; Some Alaskans saw a familiar face on stage at the 95th annual Academy Awards, an actor born and raised in Ketchikan who starred in "Everything Everywhere All at Once;" The No. 2 administrator at Ketchikan's school district is calling for a school board member to resign and accusing her of improperly interfering with the renewal of her contract

In this newscast: How the National Weather Service in Juneau predicts the weather -- or tries to; A new ferry terminal north of Juneau is one step closer to becoming a reality; Alaska's Congressional Delegation has filed an amicus brief in a federal lawsuit that threatens to shut down salmon trolling in Southeast Alaska this summer

In this newscast: A Sitka-based residential treatment program for Alaska teenagers is moving to Juneau. Democratic lawmakers in Alaska are trying to restore anti-discrimination protections for gay and transgender Alaskans. The Alaska Native Language Preservation and Advisory is working to expand their efforts with a new house bill from Juneau Rep. Andi Story.

In this newscast: Juneau’s wastewater is awash with COVID-19, which provides a source of public health data beyond submitted test results. The City and Borough of Juneau is inviting kids to submit artwork for display at the Augustus Brown swimming pool downtown. Juneau city cleanup crews are responding to a wastewater spill on Douglas Island.…

In this newscast: A former Sitka doctor accused of sexual assault four years ago is now behind bars. Assessed values of Wrangell houses and businesses could be quite different this year. Alaska legislators are urging Walgreens leadership to reconsider the decision not to sell the abortion drug mifepristone.