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Alaskan Congressman Don Young issued the following statement this afternoon regarding the release of President Obama’s budget for Fiscal Year 2012: “The budget released today is nothing more than a blueprint for tax increases, and ineffective budget cuts on the backs of rural America. We’ve got an urban President trying to dictate to rural America that subsidies for clean energy are more important... Read more »

The Alaska Congressional Delegation is pleased to announce the following grants and contracts awarded to communities in the State of Alaska: U.S. Department of Transportation: · $636,790 to the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority for construction of the maintenance and repair facilities of the Alaska Ship and Drydock facility in Ketchikan. U.S. Army: · $24,996,801 to Olgoonik Logist... Read more »

Alaskan Congressman Don Young has introduced legislation that would tie TRICARE fee increases to Cost of Living Allowances (COLA) for veterans and annual pay raises for active duty personnel. Specifically, H.R. 652 ensures that TRICARE fees cannot be increased by more than half of that year’s COLA. “America’s servicemen and women shouldn’t have to pay the consequences for Washington’s inability to... Read more »

Today the U.S. House of Representatives took up consideration of H. Res. 72 - Directing certain standing committees to inventory and review existing, pending, and proposed regulations and orders from agencies of the Federal Government, particularly with respect to their effect on jobs and economic growth. As a senior Member on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and as the Ch... Read more »

Congressman for All Alaska Don Young introduced H.R. 574 which would prohibit the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce from allowing commercial finfish aquaculture operations in federal waters unless specifically authorized by Congress. This legislation comes in conjunction with a new policy announced by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association on farmed fish. “Alaskan wild ... Read more »

Alaskan Congressman Don Young introduced legislation this morning amending the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act to improve the Alaska pipeline construction training program. Similar legislation was introduced by Congressman Young in the 111th Congress as H.R. 6395. “The gas pipeline is a necessary piece to Alaska’s future,” said Rep. Young. “Trained, skilled workers are vital to its success and to ... Read more »

Congressman for All Alaska Don Young introduced two pieces of legislation today: H.R. 520 which would require the labeling of genetically engineered (GE) fish, and H.R. 521 which would outright ban genetically-engineered fish. This legislation comes in response to a proposal by AquaBounty Technologies, currently under consideration by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA): “Frankenfish are uncert... Read more »

Alaskan Congressman Don Young released the following statement this morning following news that continual regulatory delays and uncertainty have forced Shell to forgo their 2011 exploration program in Alaska: “Unfortunately, this was inevitable. What did we expect? Shell has spent more than $3 billion and been ready to put Alaskans to work for the last few years but because of an inefficient burea... Read more »

Alaskan Congressman Don Young introduced H.R. 517 last night which will amend the Clean Water Act to remove the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to veto an Army Corps of Engineers decision regarding 404 permits. This legislation was introduced in the 111th Congress as H.R. 5992. “I am reintroducing this legislation because it is important that we streamline the permitting process,” ... Read more »

Alaskan Congressman Don Young released the below statement this afternoon following the announcement by Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Director Michael S. Black that Eugene R. Virden has been named Regional Director of the BIA’s Alaska Regional Office in Juneau. Virden has been serving as the acting regional director since 2001. “Of the 12 BIA regional offices in the country, Alaska’s is the only ... Read more »