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P E N I N S U L A
TUESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2014 Soldotna-Kenai, Alaska
Vol. 44, Issue 263
Atwater resigns
Question Do you think victims of the Ebola virus should be transported into the United States. 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 emailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday
Board unanimously approves change, effective Dec. 1
Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion
In this Nov. 20, 2013 file photo Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Superintendent Steve Atwater gives a presentation. Atwater announced his resignation Monday.
Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Superintendent Steve Atwater announced his resignation during his superintendent’s report to the Board of Education Monday in Soldotna. His resignation is effective Dec. 1 and he did not immedi-
ately discuss why he was leaving or where he was going. The board unanimously approved his resignation. During discussion, board member Tim Navarre said Atwater would be the University of Alaska Associate Vice President for K-12 Outreach.
By KAYLEE OSOWSKI Peninsula Clarion
Spokesman: 5 immigrant children sent to Alaska
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Inside ‘Sometimes you play parallel to a word and you’re making twoletter words along the way. I call those the amino acids of Scrabble. The more twoletter words we have, the more possibilities a word will fit.’ ... See page A-3
Index Opinion.................. A-4 Nation.................... A-5 World..................... A-6 Sports.....................A-8 Classifieds........... A-10 Comics................. A-13 Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com
See ATWATER, page A-7
Borough Mayor vetoes bed tax
In the news
JUNEAU (AP) — A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says five unaccompanied immigrant children have been sent to Alaska. Kenneth Wolfe said the children were sent to sponsors in Alaska between Jan. 1 and July 7. He did not respond to additional questions sent by email. The voicemail box on his cell phone was full. This year, the federal government has placed as many as 30,000 minors who have crossed the border illegally with sponsors nationwide. Sharon Leighow is a spokeswoman for Gov. Sean Parnell. She said a Parnell aide spoke with Susan Johnson, the department’s regional director. Leighow said Johnson would not provide the state with details such as the communities in which the children were living or the relationships between the children and their sponsors.
Board member Penny Vadla said she appreciated Atwater’s visionary outlook. With the new school year beginning on Aug. 19, board member Sunni Hilts said with Atwater’s resignation it’s a strange time for an ending.
Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Mike Navarre vetoed the proposed 3 percent boroughwide bed tax, subject to voter approval, Monday. “I don’t really like dedicated taxes personally,” he said. After hearing a lot of opposition from Homer constituents, Navarre said he didn’t like that if the rest of the borough votes for a bed tax, that Homer would be stuck with it “whether they See TAX, page A-7
‘You Playing in the mud have the wrong Cleaning up what’s left behind number’ Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion
Hazel Allen, 10, builds a sand structure on the beach to keep water running into the Cook Inlet Monday in Kenai.
Groups gather to pick up garbage from the Kenai River fishery Filing error By RASHAH MCCHESNEY Peninsula Clarion
When the final evening of dipnet fishing at the mouth of the Kenai River winds to a close each year, the north and south beaches of the Kenai River be left looking as though a large storm moved through — leaving a trail of debris and dead fish behind. This year, when the last of the fishing was finished, several groups set about removing barbecue pits, broken dipnets, torn waders and trash piles left behind by the vacating visitors. Dozens of bags of trash, truckloads of debris and several hours of work later, many involved said the beaches were
Photo contributed by Rocky Knudsen
Rocky Knudsen and Shauna Thornton make their way down the north beach of the Kenai River during a beach clean-up event Friday in Kenai.
much tidier and easier to clean this year than they have been in previous years. “I was really surprised be-
Opinion in draft
Proposal would allow Lawmakers to tout position on the state’s oil tax referendum By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
To subscribe, call 283-3584.
JUNEAU — Lawmakers can use state resources, like their legislative websites, to make known their positions on the upcoming oil tax referendum, according to a proposed recommendation set to be considered
by the Alaska Public Offices Commission. The draft recommendation, by commission staff member Thomas Lucas, points to a decision by the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics that found action to support or oppose an initiative was related to lawmakers’ duties.
cause it was not as bad as I thought it was going to be,” said Shauna Thornton, a candidate for Democratic candidate The ethics committee, in a campaign-themed newsletter earlier this year, noted lawmakers often are asked to take a stand on public issues. According to the newsletter, activities permitted with the use of state resources include letters, mailings and emails concerning a lawmaker’s position on an initiative or referendum and having staff research issues related to a ballot measure. House Speaker Mike Chenault and Senate President Charlie Huggins requested guidance from the public offices commission regarding lawmakers expressing their opinions on ballot measures and the upcomC
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for State House of Representatives District 30 who organized the event along with Rocky Knudsen, a Democratic candidate in House District 29 and Eric Treider, an non-affiliated candidate for State Senate District 0. Thornton said the three decided to organize a clean-up event for Friday after the issue was raised several times while the three were campaigning. “We had been canvassing and meeting and greeting our constituents and a lot of the people’s concerns were the dipnetting and the overcrowding,” Thornton said. “It has always been really, really yucky in the past. As candidates, we can’t let this kind of stuff happen.” See TRASH, page A-7
ing oil tax referendum. Supporters of the repeal effort say the new tax structure gives too much to the oil companies. Opponents say the new tax structure is working, encouraging additional investment on the North Slope. The referendum will appear on the Aug. 19 ballot. Lucas’ draft advisory opinion considered activities such as use of state emails or distributing at state expense brochures to express a position on the referendum and providing links on their legislative websites to either the “vote yes” or “vote no” groups. See DRAFT, page A-7
causes months of confusion, for Anchorage man plagued with calls for Nikiski candidate By KELLY SULLIVAN Peninsula Clarion
For Anchorage resident Braylon Blades, a small factual error in a listing for Rocky Knudsen on the State of Alaska Division of Elections website has turned into an unexpected headache. “The calls started about two months ago,” Blades said. “People were asking for Rocky.” The filing period for the August Primary election opened on June 2. Until early August, the second to last digit was filed incorrectly for District 29 Democratic candidate Knudsen who is running against House Speaker Mike Chenault, R-Niksiki. “I haven’t had any calls in a few days,” Blades said on Sunday. “But they usually don’t call over the weekends.” At first Blades said he ignored the calls. After a month he started answering and asking the person on the other end of the line if he could “be taken off their list.” Blades said the strangest part was after he explained who he See MISDIAL, page A-7