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P E N I N S U L A
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2014 Soldotna-Kenai, Alaska
Vol. 44, Issue 107
Question Do you think the minimum wage should be raised? n Yes; or n No. To place your vote and comment, visit our Web site at www. peninsulaclarion. com. Results and selected comments will be posted each Tuesday in the Clarion, and a new question will be asked. Suggested questions may be submitted online or e-mailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
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Board ups Kenai king goal Vote up for reconsideration today By RASHAH McCHESNEY and MOLLY DISCHNER Morris New Service-Alaska
After three hours of debate and several off-the-record conversations with an increasingly agitated audience — some wiping away tears as they spoke to board members — the Alaska Board of Fisheries increased the escapement goal for laterun king salmon on the Kenai River. After the vote, members of the sportfishing advocacy organization that submitted the original proposal and the large
group of commercial setnet fishers in the audience who face the possibility of reduced fishing time next season were united in their lack of enthusiasm for the result. Next summer, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game will be tasked with trying to ensure that between 16,600 and 30,000 late run kings return to the Kenai River. That’s more than the previous escapement goal, set by ADFG at 15,000 to 30,000 last March. The new goal passed in a 4-3 vote, with board members Tom Kluberton, Karl Johnstone,
Reed Morisky and Orville Huntington voting in favor. After the meeting however, Kluberton and Huntington met with a large group of aggravated commercial fishermen and Kluberton said he would motion to reconsider the vote during Tuesday’s meeting which — if passed — will reopen the debate. At issue is an escapement goal range on the Kenai River that some users believe is too Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion low, and others believe is ad- A crowd gathers with Alaska Board of Fisheries members Tom equate to sustain a healthy run Kluberton and Orville Huntington after the board voted in favor of king salmon. of a new, higher escapement goal for late run Kenai River king See GOAL, page A-8 salmon during a meeting Monday in Anchorage.
Drilling hearing on hold
In the news Judge considers request to block abortion regs
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ANCHORAGE (AP) — A judge is deciding whether to temporarily block the state from implementing new regulations defining what constitutes a “medically necessary” abortion in order to receive Medicaid funding. Judge John Suddock heard arguments from Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest and state attorneys on Monday. He said he needed to think about the case and read case law before deciding. Planned Parenthood has sued the state over the new regulations, and is seeking to have the court block implementation while the lawsuit goes forward. The regulations went into effect Sunday. Suddock’s former law partner has represented Planned Parenthood in the past. He asked both sides if he should remove himself from the case because of that, and neither sought Suddock’s removal.
Commission requests additional information from CIRI, Buccaneer By KAYLEE OSOWSKI Peninsula Clarion
Photo by Dan Balmer Peninsula Clarion
Sharon Tyone (right) and Charce Dunn of Soldotna wave to passing motorists in front of Stanley Ford in Kenai Saturday. The group was one of several posted around Kenai and Soldotna, collecting money for September Klump, who needs to raise $30,000 to pay for cancer treatment.
Inside ‘A lot of people must have called in sick after the Super Bowl. It’s not cleaned up as well as usual.’ ... See page A-5
Index Opinion.................. A-4 Nation/World.......... A-5 Sports.....................A-6 Classifieds............. A-9 Comics................. A-12 Pet Tails............... A-13
A day for September Volunteers raise money for woman’s cancer treatment By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion
Soldotna resident September Klump has never been the type of person who would give up the fight. Despite all the turmoil of the past two years in her battle with cervical cancer and seven punishing rounds of chemotherapy that dropped her weight down to 103 pounds, Klump, a mother of five, does not let her failing health become an excuse. This past Saturday, family, friends and
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cancer patients, said she was asked if she would help Klump. Covey did not know her, but had seen her at the store and admired her determination to continue to work. “We all have seen how (the cancer) has taken a hold of her,” she said. “She puts in our face what we all fear. Everybody fears cancer, but she doesn’t let it stop her from living her live. She is a tough cookie.” In just one week, Covey organized a campaign on Facebook, $30K in a Day See DAY, page A-8
See DISPUTE, page A-8
Parnell’s education measure draws criticism By MIKE COPPOCK Associated Press
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strangers came together for one day to raise $30,000 to get Klump to a cancer treatment center. On perhaps the biggest day in her life, Klump was where you might expect to find her, working at the Soldotna Fred Meyers. “I don’t know what I would do without work,” she said. “If you stay home you get depressed and a lot of people give up hope and lose the battle. I’m not one of those people who take things lying down.” Katherine Covey of Ninilchick, who has organized numerous fundraisers for
The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission determined additional information is needed before making any rulings in a dispute between Cook Inlet Regional Inc. and Buccaneer Alaska LLC. The commission held a hearing Thursday in Anchorage with the two agencies as well as the Alaska Department of Natural Resources and the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, who also have stakes in the issue. CIRI has accused Buccaneer of illegally producing gas from its Kenai Loop No. 1-1 and No. 1-3 wells, which are constructed on Alaska Mental Trust Authority-owned land off of Marathon Road in Kenai. According to CIRI, while none of Buccaneer’s four wells are on its property, drainage from its property has been occurring. Along with CIRI, Buccaneer has lease agreements with the state and the Trust at its Kenai Loop Project. None of the landowners nor Buccaneer dispute that drainage is occurring. However, there is no pooling agreement, an agreement to combine oil or gas rights, in place and royalty payments are only being made to the Trust. CIRI is claiming a share of pro-
JUNEAU — Gov. Sean Parnell’s omnibus education bill drew bipartisan criticism during a joint hearing of the House and Senate Education committees Monday. Rep. Harriet Drummond, D-Anchorage, and Rep. Peggy Wilson, R-Wrangell, both questioned the bill’s section on
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charter schools. Among the concerns was whether school districts would be forced to fund a charter school if they chose not to open it but the Alaska State Board of Education approved
the school. They also questioned the bill’s funding, asking if a properly funded charter school would mean less funding for a traditional school in the district. “This will take funds away from traditional schools,” Wilson said, speaking to Alaska’s education commissioner, Mike Hanley. Hanley acknowledged both C
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concerns as legitimate, though he said he couldn’t envision circumstance where a charter school would be forced on a district. He said some districts had been using only the basic student allocation, or per-pupil funding formula, in calculating charter school funding. The governor’s bill would require districts to also take into the calculation state aid
for special needs students, construction, vocational instruction and transportation. Hanley said many of the 27 charter schools in Alaska have been treated unfairly by being denied these extra funds which are then used for a district’s traditional schools. “So if you take it that way, it is a shifting of funds,” Hanley said. See BILL, page A-8