Masking the Material & Piscine Prognostication Masking the Material & Piscine Prognostication November 22, 2020 Dear Friends and Neighbors, I can't really pretend I'm excited to have Thanksgiving without a crowd of friends at the table this year, but we're all adapting. Everyone is making their usual dishes and we'll trade containers so each household gets a full feast. We'll do a lot of phone/video check-ins with friends and family, too. Plus, we dug a little deeper than usual this year to help some of the nonprofits making sure everybody a Thanksgiving meal. My family, staff, and I wish you a happy, healthy Thanksgiving! Feds & Fish There’s a lot about to change at the federal level as America barrels toward swearing in a new President. In ways direct and indirect, the change will have a big impact on commercial fishing. Nothing federal happens overnight, of course, but I expect some different currents under Alaska's fleet. We'll almost certainly see a different approach to Pebble, with significantly more concern for protecting crucial fish habitat. The Biden-Harris administration will also likely unfreeze visas for overseas workers, making it easier to staff seasonal fish processing plants. Those changes will hit pretty fast. Tariff policy will also evolve, albeit more slowly. America's relationship with China will likely thaw some, making it easier to send Alaska fish there. I'd expect the opposite for Russia, in a roundabout way. President-Elect Biden’s approach to Russia will likely focus more on the traditional approaches of sanctions and tariffs in response to Russian aggression in Eastern Europe. That's likely to impact the amount of Russian salmon and crab that have been undercutting Alaska seafood prices globally. I’ll keep my eye on these federal issues as we continue looking at state fish policy. There's nothing indirect about a slanted slate of Board of Fish nominees or the threat of budget cuts so deep they'd mean shorter seasons and fewer fish in the supermarkets. Those things would take dollars directly out of the pockets of the hundreds and hundreds of commercial fishing households in our district. With Rep. Story (Rep. Hannan was on the phone) last week for a virtual town hall. Public Records are... Public We're learning more about the bad behavior of former Attorney General Kevin Clarkson, who knew what in the governor's office, and when they knew it. Setting aside for a moment the ex-AG's abuse of power and how long the governor's team knew without stopping it, something else bowled me over last week. The governor’s position on public records requests is a new low in government transparency. First, he gave the task to the Attorney General at the center of the inquiry. There's a heck of a conflict there. Now, the Governor’s office is telling the press it's just not going to turn over public records. The chief executive's office decided the records don’t “benefit the public enough” to be gathered up and handed over. That’s not how this works. If stuff is subject to the Public Records Act, the government can't just decide transparency isn’t in the public interest. (Even if it were legal, how does an agency weigh the public benefit of records it hasn't gathered?) Alaska law speaks to that pretty directly. It reads, in part: "the people... do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know... the people's right to remain informed shall be protected so that they may retain control over the instruments they have created." The Alaska Supreme Court has ruled repeatedly that access to public information is "a fundamental right." I don't know how much more the governor's office is hiding, but it's time to follow the law and come clean. Alaskans deserve nothing less from the institutions that serve us. All my best, Did someone forward you this newsletter? Did you fall into it through the series of tubes? Want more? SUBSCRIBE Events & More Around District Q Skagway Turkey Trot You can walk or run on Thanksgiving morning in the Turkey Trot. Justify the calories from all that pie, or just have fun! Shop in Skagway Support local businesses and get entered into a Christmas Eve drawing. It starts Nov. 27. Haines Lighting of the Library Have fun at this outdoor, distanced-for-safety event featuring lights, hot cocoa, and an online auction on Nov. 28! Juneau Turkey Trot This Turkey Trot is going on now through Nov. 26. You can pick your own time to run or walk! Juneau Tree & Wreath Sale Get your winter greenery and support the JDHS & TMHS Swim & Dive Teams too starting Nov. 27! (They have online purchasing and delivery available!) Is there an event in our district I should know about? Please call or email! Snail Mail? Alaska State Capitol Room 419 Juneau, AK 99801 Call: 800 550 4947 907 465 4947 Email Me! ‌ ‌ ‌ Contact My Staff: Edric Carrillo 907 465 6419 [email protected] Cathy Schlingheyde 907 465 6827 [email protected] Senator Jesse Kiehl | Alaska State Capitol, Rm. 419, 4th Avenue & Main Street, Juneau, AK 99801 Unsubscribe [email protected] Update Profile | About our service provider Sent by [email protected]