Hi! The Alaska Memo is a political newsletter by me, Matt Acuña Buxton, focused on Alaska politics with a dash of Anchorage and a smattering of everywhere else. At the heart of it, my mission is to explain not just what happened but why it matters, bringing in the context and background that I’ve amassed in more than a decade of reporting in Alaska.
Hello Again, Murkowski's address and a constitutional amendment for public education
A reboot, Murkowski's annual speech sounded a tad more Republican-y than usual and a dedicated fund for K12 advances.
Help for Mt. Edgecumbe and a S-corp tax fix passes Senate amid 'chloroform' warning
Help for Mt. Edgecumbe may be on the way, while Republicans are lashing out over the passage of an amendment that would close the "S-Corp loophole."
Supplemental budget passes, Alaskans lost millions in federal health care help because of GOP
As most lawmakers try to play it safe, one argued they should be busy praising the president for bailing the state out rather than worrying about what-ifs.
'Delicate balance' election bill clears the House, on track to pass the Legislature
Oil price certainty is in the eye of the beholder. Bipartisan election bill passes with technically bipartisan support. Legislators get some big, bad numbers for rising health care costs.
Even at its second-most volatile point, Alaska can't quit oil
Ultimately, forecasts are just forecasts, and as House Majority Leader Chuck Kopp joked on the House floor on Monday, "the sole purpose of oil price forecasting is to make astrology look respectable."
The oil price roller coaster and Begich's legislative address
Let's unpack the latest tribulations on oil prices through the very best of metaphors – the roller coaster.
As legislators rail against feds accessing voter info, Dunleavy officials say they'd do it again
State officials say they wanted to be good partners with the Trump administration.
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