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CLARION P E N I N S U L A
FEBRUARY 22, 2015 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 45, Issue 122
50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday
Fish board nominee withdraws By MOLLY DISCHNER Associated Press
Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion
Local members of the Key Coalition rally at Soldotna Creek Park on Friday.
Rallying for Key support C
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Coalition advocates for those with developmental disabilities By BEN BOETTGER Peninsula Clarion
The local chapter of the Key Coalition, a group advocating on behalf of people seeking state aid for developmental disabilities, held its annual rally on Friday at Soldotna Creek Park. Volunteer organizer Lynette Haas of Hope Community Resources, one of the Coalition’s member groups, said that approximately 70 people came to demonstrate with signs and cheers by the side of Sterling Highway between noon and 12:40 p.m. Haas said that the annual Key Rally demonstrations have taken place “since 1988, when services got cut ... and (health) agencies didn’t have anything to fall back on.” “It was that year that a bunch of agencies decided to form the Key Coalition so
‘We all have choices, we all want to do things, and because you have a disability doesn’t mean your life should wind up in a big building with a bunch of other people who all have disabilities.’ — Lynette Haas we could talk to the legislators and explain how important services were in the communities,” Haas said. In addition to organizing statewide public awareness demonstrations, the
Key Coalition also sent members to Juneau to give a presentation to the House Health and Human Services committee. The presentation to the House committee outlined three actions the Key Coalition seeks from the state legislature: to create and implement a cost-savings plan for disability services, maintain the Medicaid waiver program, and eliminate the long wait-list of individuals seeking access to services without receiving them. According to the Key Coalition’s 2015 Legislative Priorities document, the Medicaid waiver program allows individuals to receive care in their homes through community organizations, rather than requiring them to be placed in an institution. Haas said that community-integrated care is preferable to institutionalized care for both financial and human reasons. See KEY, page A-2
JUNEAU — A state official says a controversial Board of Fisheries appointee has indicated he no longer wants to be considered for a seat on the board. Karen Gillis, director of boards and commissions, said she was told Friday to prepare a letter to the Legislature, informing lawmakers Roland Maw was withdrawing his name from consideration. Maw didn’t immediately return a call to The Associated Press seeking confirmation.
Katie Marquette, a spokeswoman for the governor, said Maw gave a letter to chief of staff Jim Whitaker on Friday. Maw has fished commercially in Cook Inlet and is the former director of the United Cook Inlet Drift Association. As part of that job, he had advocated on behalf of commercial interests at board of fisheries meetings, although Maw said during a confirmation hearing that he would focus on biology as a board member. Gov. Bill Walker appointed Maw in January after former board chair Karl Johnstone See BOARD, page A-2
Theater group looking for land By BEN BOETTGER Peninsula Clarion
The non-profit Kenai Performers theater group has requested a donation of land from the city of Kenai for the construction of a theater to serve as the group’s permanent home. The Performers are seeking donation of two adjacent cityowned parcels on the corner of the Kenai Spur Highway and Evergreen street, totalling 2 acres and together assessed by the borough at a value of $68,000. The highway location was selected to make the proposed theater visible and accessible. Sally Cassanos, president of the Kenai Performers Board of
Directors, spoke in support of the donation at the Kenai city council’s Wednesday meeting after first approaching city planner Rick Koch about the matter approximately three weeks ago. At the Wednesday meeting, the council authorized Koch to continue negotiating with the Performers to produce a proposal for a land donation or lease for the council to vote on at a future date. In her speech to the council, Cassanos said that the Kenai Performers have been self-sustaining for 45 years, and that they hope to expand. “We would eventually like to be a group that is allencompassing with the arts See KENAI, page A-2
Alaska’s share of federal highway funding steady By MOLLY DISCHNER Associated Press
JUNEAU — Major transportation projects are being put on hold, or remain in limbo, as the state of Alaska deals with the fallout of declining oil prices and the changing priorities of a new administration. But other projects, such as the recent $25 million Brotherhood Bridge replacement project in Juneau, continue to be paid for by a federal government fund that has been very friendly to
Alaska over the years. Figures compiled by The Associated Press show the total amount of money available to states from the Federal Highway Trust Fund has declined 3.5 percent during the five-year period ending in 2013, the latest year for which numbers were available. During that span, the amount of inflation-adjusted federal highway money dropped in all states but Alaska and New York. Federal funding for Alaska’s highways and other projects has
Six arrested in meth, heroin bust in Kasilof Staff report
A two-month investigation into distribution of methamphetamines and heroin in the Kasilof area resulted in the arrest of six people Thursday. At about 9:30 a.m. Thursday, members of the Soldotna office of the Statewide Drug Enforcement Unit, along with the Alaska Bureau of Investigations, Alaska Wildlife Troopers, Kenai Police Department, Soldotna Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and Homeland Security served search warrants
at a residences on Tustumena Lake Road and Friendship Avenue in Kasilof. According to troopers, four suspects were identified during the Statewide Drug Enforcement Unit investigation. Troopers say evidence was collected through controlled buys, mobile and static surveillance operations. Arrested in Thursday were Joshua Tri, 30, of Kasilof, for two counts of third-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance; John Fisler, 51, of See ARREST, page A-2
held steady in recent years. For fiscal year 2013, Alaska received about $545 million from the Federal Highway Trust Fund, on par with the inflationadjusted $542 million the state received in 2008. Overall, the state also saw about a 25 percent increase in total state and federal highway spending, once adjusted for inflation. When all state and federal funding sources are tallied, including earmarks, the total transportation spending for Alaska in 2013 was about $990
million. Over the years, members of Alaska’s congressional delegation have pushed to secure federal funding for transportation projects in Alaska, arguing the federal government should help pay for roads and bridges in this young state. For now, the state’s budget situation won’t put securing federal funds at risk, although that could change. Federally funded transportation projects generally require a match, anywhere in the range
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Inside ‘It is going to affect our states, and it’s going to affect every state in the country.’
from 6 to 20 percent depending on the project, said state Department of Transportation spokesman Jeremy Woodrow. New Gov. Bill Walker has put several big-ticket transportation projects on hold, including building a new road for the Ambler mining district. Walker’s proposed capital budget for next year includes about $63 million to serve as a match for federal funds, Woodrow said. Each year, the budget typically contains a lump sum for
matches, and the department can apply it to whichever projects need it. “If the state match were constrained, then a decision would have to be made by the Governor and/or Legislature as to which projects are priority,” Woodrow wrote in an email. That hasn’t happened yet. Woodrow said the state typically budgets for covering an extra 30 percent of funding, to be on the safe side. The state has about $150 See FUNDS, page A-2
UA regents vote to raise tuition By RASHAH McCHESNEY Peninsula Clarion
September, an anticipated shortfall of at least $40 million caused the regents to reconsider their votes, according to the release. About 11 percent of the university’s revenue comes from tuition, according to the release. The tuition increase is expected to raise about $5 million in additional revenue.
Students at Kenai Peninsula College will see a 5 percent ... See page A-7 increase in tuition following a Friday vote by the University of Alaska Board of Regents. Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com The change will equate to an $ 8-$11 increase for in-state unTo subscribe, call 283-3584. dergraduate students, according to a University of Alaska Office of University of Advancement Reach Rashah McChesney news release. While the board voted at rashah.mcchesney@peninagainst a tuition increase in sulaclarion.com. C
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