WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 -- The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs issued the following news release on Feb. 13, 2024: The Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it has exempted or reimbursed more than 143,000 copayments totaling approximately $2.5 million for more than 3,800 eligible American Indian and Alaska Native Veterans. This is a result of VA's new 2023 policy (https://news.va.gov/press-room/va-waives-copayments-for-eligible-native-american-and-alaska-native-veterans/) that eligible  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued the following news release: The Departments of Agriculture and the Interior today announced a proposal to strengthen Alaska Tribal representation on the Federal Subsistence Board (FSB), which manages subsistence use on federal lands and waters in Alaska. For thousands of years, subsistence practices have been immensely important for Alaska Native communities, and remain deeply intertwined with their lifeways, food security, and cu  more

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Feb. 15 -- The office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska issued the following news release on Feb. 14, 2024: An Anchorage man was sentenced today to 20 years in prison, subsequent to his conviction by a federal jury of one count of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking and one count of felon in possession of firearms and ammunition in July 2023. According to court doc  more

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Feb. 13 -- The office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska issued the following news release: An Arizona man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in an international drug trafficking ring targeting Alaska. According to court documents, Joel Rascone, 30, of Yuma, Arizona, was a member of Miguel Guevara's drug trafficking ring that smuggled over a dozen kilos of meth, heroin and cocaine from Mexico into Alaska for six years. As part of his role in the en  more

BOSTON, Massachusetts, Feb. 14 -- The U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration's New England Division issued the following news release: ANCHORAGE, Alaska - An Anchorage man was sentenced today to 20 years in prison, subsequent to his conviction by a federal jury of one count of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking and one count of felon in possession of firearms and ammunition in   more

BOSTON, Massachusetts, Feb. 12 -- The U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration's New England Division issued the following news release: ANCHORAGE, Alaska - An Arizona man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in an international drug trafficking ring targeting Alaska. According to court documents, Joel Rascone, 30, of Yuma, Arizona, was a member of Miguel Guevara's drug trafficking ring that smuggled over a dozen kilos of meth, heroin and cocaine from Mexico into   more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued the following news release: Agriculture Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced today that the Biden-Harris Administration is investing $20 million to support federally recognized Tribes and Alaska Native corporations and villages as part of President Biden's Investing in America agenda. The funding, made possible by President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act and distributed through competitive grants administered by the US  more

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Feb. 15 -- The U.S. Justice Department's Drug Enforcement Administration's Seattle Division issued the following news release on Feb. 14, 2024: An Anchorage man was sentenced today to 20 years in prison, subsequent to his conviction by a federal jury of one count of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking and one count of felon in possession of firearms and ammunition in July 2023.   more

SEATTLE, Feb. 14 -- The U.S. Justice Department's Drug Enforcement Administration's Seattle Division issued the following news release: An Arizona man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in an international drug trafficking ring targeting Alaska. According to court documents, Joel Rascone, 30, of Yuma, Arizona, was a member of Miguel Guevara's drug trafficking ring that smuggled over a dozen kilos of meth, heroin and cocaine from Mexico into Alaska for six years. As part of his ro  more

EIELSON AFB, Alaska, Feb. 14 -- The U.S. Air Force Eielson Air Force Base (354th Fighter Wing) issued the following news: The Eielson Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility team held a Leading Inclusively Virtual Experience training on Feb. 8, 2024. This training is a DEIA tool developed by Air University to help participants better understand inclusivity through simulated scenarios with real people behind avatars. Participants are given a scenario in which they need to discuss a situ  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service issued the following news release on Feb. 14, 2024: Agriculture Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced today that the Biden-Harris Administration is investing $20 million to support federally recognized Tribes and Alaska Native corporations and villages as part of President Biden's Investing in America agenda. The funding, made possible by President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act and distributed through competi  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 -- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued the following news release: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office on Women's Health (OWH) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have awarded winners in the second and final phase of the $1.8 million HHS Racial Equity in Postpartum Care Challenge. This national competition was developed to improve equity in postpartum care for Black or African American and American Indian/Alask  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 (TNSres) -- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Alaska Fisheries Science Center issued the following feature story: * * * Hatchery-reared salmon show genetic differences from wild populations in only a few generations, but those differences vary among hatcheries. * * * A new genetic study shows hatchery salmon's adaptation to their environment can lead to potentially adaptive genetic differences between hatchery and wild salmon populations in only a few   more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (TNSres) -- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Alaska Fisheries Science Center issued the following feature story: * * * Critical links identified between young pollock survival and changes in habitat and prey availability over a 60-year timeframe. * * * Scientists developed a novel approach that combines information from different types of ecosystem models to help account for data gaps and improve understanding of predator-prey relationships in a chang  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 16 (TNSres) -- The National Transportation Safety Board issued the following news release on Feb. 15, 2024: * * * Bilge alarms did not sound before capsizing * * * The National Transportation Safety Board determined flooding into the lazarette, a compartment below the main deck, or port void (empty) space likely caused the fishing vessel Hotspur to lose stability, capsize and sink near Nunez Rocks, Alaska. Hotspur was transiting through Dixon Entrance on Aug. 2, 2022, when   more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 -- The National Transportation Safety Board issued the following news release on Feb. 13, 2024: * * * Existing fleet excluded from FAA proposal * * * The National Transportation Safety Board Tuesday again called on the Federal Aviation Administration to require all existing airplanes that require a cockpit voice recorder and a flight data recorder to be retrofitted with devices capable of recording 25 hours of audio, instead of the current standard of two hours. NTSB inv  more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 -- The U.S. Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued the following news release: On February 8th, 2024, the Department of the Interior announced the commitment of more than $157 million through 2026 towards projects that build climate resilience and address climate change impacts; restore healthy lands and waters; and enhance communities' qualities of life. This includes more than $18 million allocated to various DOI Bureaus in Alaska to advance co  more