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Vol. 50, Issue 3
In the news
Bullet shatters man’s dresser; neighbor arrested ANCHORAGE — A man suspected of firing shots in his backyard, including one that penetrated a neighbor’s wall, has been charged with weapons misconduct. Anchorage police say 49-year-old Fredrick Knipe is also charged with violating conditions of release. He’s jailed in Anchorage. Online court documents do not list his attorney. A neighbor at around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday reported he was sitting on his bed at his home in east Anchorage when he heard shots. One round passed through the wall of his mobile home and shattered a dresser mirror. Police determined the shots had been fired by Knipe from his yard behind the man’s home. Police seized the gun fired by Knipe and a second gun inside Knipe’s home that had been reported stolen in a 2016 home burglary.
Utqiagvik voters reject proposed soda tax UTQIAGVIK — Voters in the nation’s northernmost community have rejected a proposal to impose Alaska’s first tax on sugary sodas and other sweetened beverages. Voters in Utqiagvik turned down the ballot measure Tuesday. According to unofficial city results, 497 votes were cast against it and another 126 supported it. The measure called for a 1-cent tax per 1 ounce of soda, energy drinks and sugar-sweetened beverages sold in the community. Fountain drinks also would have been taxed by volume. The proposal did not cover 100% fruit or vegetable juices, milk products, medicinal drinks, baby formula, weight-loss drinks or alcohol. Zerocalorie sodas and bottled water also would have been exempt. Most of the tax proceeds would have been reserved for youth programs and activities sponsored or conducted by the city.
See news, Page A3
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Successful underwater launch by North Korea
NFL Week 5 dawns with brighter hopes
World / A6
Sports / A7
CLARION
51/41 More weather, Page A2
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P E N I N S U L A
Thursday, October 3, 2019 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
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PFD: Impact on state wide-ranging By Victoria Petersen Peninsula Clarion
A majority of Alaskans will wake up Thursday morning $1,606 richer as the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend check is distributed across the state. The PFD check means different things to different people. For some, the annual check means a new TV, help with bills or the ability to make ends meet. Researchers are finding that the check also impacts many aspects of
socioeconomic life in Alaska. Researchers at the University of Alaska Anchorage are beginning to understand how the annual check impacts residents’ behavior and spending habits. At the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research, social scientists are analyzing “the causal effect” of the PFD on a variety of socioeconomic outcomes, including employment, consumption, income inequality, health and crime. Associate professor of
economics at the institute, Mouhcine Guettabi, published a report in May exploring the socioeconomic effects of the annual PFD check. Since 1982, Alaskans have received a PFD check every year. The smallest payout was $331.29 in 1984. The highest was $2,072 in 2015, though, in 2008 the year’s $2,069 PFD check included an additional one-time payment of $1,200. A surplus of state natural resource revenues were
More info Applicants who filed a paper application, or require a paper check will be eligible for payment on Oct. 24. To be eligible for the PFD check, an applicant must have been an Alaska resident for an entire calendar year preceding the date they applied for a dividend.
See pfd, Page A3
Trump rails against Dem inquiry Impeachment standoff: The president sees it as a hoax; Democrats key on stonewalling. By Lisa Mascaro, Mary Clare Jalonick and Jonathan Lemire Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Agitated and angry, President Donald Trump squared off against House Democrats on Wednesday, packing his increasingly aggressive impeachment defense with name-calling and expletives. Quietly but just as resolutely, lawmakers expanded their inquiry, promising a broad new subpoena for documents and witnesses. Democratic leaders put the White House on notice that the wide-ranging subpoena would be coming for information about Trump’s actions in the Ukraine controversy, the latest move in an impeachment probe that’s testing the Constitution’s system of checks and balances. They said they’d be going to court if necessary. Amid the legal skirmishing, it was a day of verbal fireworks. The president complained that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was handing out subpoenas “like cookies,” railed against a government whistleblower as “vicious” and assailed the news media as corrupt and the “enemy.” All that alongside a presidential tweetstorm punctuated with an accusation that congressional Democrats waste time and money on “BULL——.”
Evan Vucci / Associated Press
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting Wednesday with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto in the Oval Office of the White House.
Pelosi said Democrats had no choice but to take on the most “solemn” of constitutional responsibilities to put a check on executive power after the national security whistleblower’s complaint that recently came to light. The administration and Congress are on a
collision course unseen in a generation after the whistleblower exposed a July phone call the president had with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in which Trump pressed for an investigation of Democratic political rival Joe Biden and his family. “We take this to be a very sad
time” for the American people and the country, Pelosi said. “Impeaching the president isn’t anything to be joyful about.” Standing beside her, intelligence committee Chairman Adam See trump, Page A2
Local agencies take control of Swan Lake Fire By Brian Mazurek Peninsula Clarion
Management of the Swan Lake Fire is now back in the hands of local agencies as fire activity remains minimal. The Swan Lake Fire is currently at 90% containment, and as of Wednesday the Kenai Kodiak Office of the
Alaska Division of Forestry took command from the Alaska Type 3 Team. The only area of the fire that has not been fully contained is Division Kilo, located at the southeast corner of the fire just east of Skilak Lake. Crews from the Division of Forestry will continue monitoring that area for any potential growth or hot spots,
but the rugged terrain has made full containment difficult. The fire is 167,182 acres in size, according to the latest mapping of the area. Only one engine and eight personnel remain staffed on the fire, which has cost approximately $49 million to manage according to the latest Incident Management Situation
Report from the National Interagency Coordination Center. Division of Forestry Prevention Officer Darren Finley said in a video update from Oct. 1 that over 2,000 personnel have been a part of suppression efforts for the Swan Lake Fire since it first started See fire, Page A3
Portion of Nikiski dock collapses in Cook Inlet By Brian Mazurek Peninsula Clarion
A portion of the Offshore Systems Kenai (OSK) dock in Nikiski collapsed Wednesday, spilling approximately 300 gallons of diesel fuel into the Cook Inlet and prompting a suspension of operations. “The Coast Guard is temporarily closing the north portion of the dock as a precaution to protect life and property as well as reduce further impact to the environment,” Coast Guard Captain of the Western Alaska Port Sean Mackenzie said in a Wednesday news release from the U.S. Coast Guard. Coast Guard pollution responders
from Marine Safety Detachment Homer responded Wednesday to a report that heavy seas caused a 50-foot wide section of the OSK dock to fall into the Cook Inlet. Pollution responders are working with the responsible party and state authorities to mitigate further pollution caused by the collapse. The dock continues to erode, but all remaining oil and hazardous material have been removed. All operations on the north face of the pier are suspended until permanent repairs can be made, according to the release. Members of the public who find oil or other signs of the pollution in the area should report it to the National Response Center by calling 1-800-424-8802.
U.S. Coast Guard courtesy photo
Heavy seas caused an Offshore System Kenai (OSK) earth and fill dock, with fuel lines, to collapse, resulting in the discharge of approximately 300 gallons of oil. Inspectors from Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Homer responded to the incident and are coordinating with the responsible party and state authorities to mitigate further pollution. The dock continues to erode, but all remaining hazardous materials have been removed.