WASHINGTON, April 27 -- Blue Star Families, Encinitas, California, submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. Department of Defense regarding state priorities for 2028 impacting service members and their families. The organization highlighted persistent quality-of-life challenges such as spouse unemployment, childcare access, food insecurity, and mental healthcare disruptions, which directly affect military readiness and retention. The letter emphasized the high unemployment rate among milit  more

WASHINGTON, April 26 -- The Copper River Valley Regional Planning Organization, Glennallen, Alaska, has submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation addressing the unmet transportation needs of rural communities in Alaska, particularly within the Copper River region. The letter offers insights related to the Rural Opportunities to Use Transportation for Economic Success Initiative, aiming to improve support for rural stakeholders by identifying key obstacles and pro  more

WASHINGTON, April 26 -- Friends of Animals submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. National Park Service opposing a recently proposed rule aimed at amending hunting, fishing, and trapping regulations within Alaska's national preserves. The letter argued that the proposal undermines NPS's federal conservation mandates by reverting to pre-2015 regulations that prioritize state-led management practices favoring hunting over biodiversity protection. The organization asserted that the proposed  more

WASHINGTON, April 26 -- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, has announced a grant opportunity aimed at enhancing mental health services for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations. This initiative seeks to empower communities and improve overall behavioral health outcomes by fostering culturally relevant practices and integrating holistic approaches to care. The Circles of Care program will provi  more

WASHINGTON, April 26 -- Kwethluk Inc., Alaska, has submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. Department of the Interior responding to the ongoing review of the Federal Subsistence Management Program. The review follows a petition by Safari Club International requesting extensive alterations to the program that would reduce protections for rural Alaskan subsistence users. Kwethluk represents the interests of Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta tribal nations and communities reliant on federal subsistence p  more

WASHINGTON, April 26 -- The Seward Peninsula Subsistence Regional Advisory Council has submitted a public comment letter to the National Park Service concerning the agency's proposed rule regarding hunting and trapping regulations in Alaska's national preserves. The council, which represents subsistence users resources on federal lands in the Seward Peninsula region, expressed opposition to the rule as currently drafted. The proposed NPS rule would rescind regulatory language developed and adde  more

WASHINGTON, April 26 -- Vizsla Copper Corp. submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. Forest Service regarding the agency's proposed revisions which governs locatable mineral operations on National Forest System lands. The company emphasized the importance of regulatory consistency between the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management for mineral projects that span both agencies' jurisdictions, particularly given the unique regional context of Southeast Alaska's Tongass National Fores  more