A coronavirus outbreak sweeping through the Alaska Capitol is threatening to delay the House’s work on the state budget and further souring relationships between lawmakers who were already deeply divided over masking and other mitigation measures.
There were 15 active confirmed cases among people working at the Capitol, according to an internal email circulated Monday evening by the office of House Speaker Louise Stutes, R-Kodiak. That includes Anchorage Democratic House majority members Chris Tuck and Ivy Spohnholz, who both publicly confirmed their positive tests.
Foster, in an interview just before his test, said he was one of many people from the Capitol who attended Sham Jam, a Saturday night benefit party at the Red Dog Saloon organized by legislative staffers that some now see as a potential superspreader event. Before the session, Nikiski Republican Rep. Ben Carpenter confronted Stutes in the hallway outside the House chambers. He declined her efforts to pull him into her office for privacy and told her that “I am no threat.”
Stutes then followed through on her threat, ending the floor session after four minutes. In an interview afterward, she blamed Carpenter and two of his GOP minority colleagues for blocking what could have been a quick, masked meeting Monday to allow the outbreak to subside. “But that doesn’t mean that we’re not going to get some more people who test positive next week,” he said.
“I’d just as soon not wear my mask on the floor. But I also want us to conduct business and keep moving forward,” Fairbanks Republican Rep. Bart LeBon said in an interview. “If it means I wear a mask, I guess I’ll wear my mask. But I don’t want to.”
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Speaker: Alaska House dealing with COVID-19 outbreakAlaska House Speaker Louise Stutes says masks will be required in the House chambers until further notice, citing COVID-19 cases.
Read more »
Independent Al Gross to run for US House seat in Alaska - Alaska Public MediaIndependent Al Gross announced plans today to run for Alaska’s U.S. House seat following the death of Rep. Don Young.
Read more »
Hometown Alaska: Meeting vaccine hesitancy one client at a time - Alaska Public MediaCommunity Health Workers are relatively new to Alaska. They come from the communities they serve. They get specialized training in communication and health systems, and their mission is to help guide people toward the health care they need.
Read more »
Independent Al Gross announces run for Alaska US House seat after Don Young’s deathIndependent Al Gross announced plans Monday to run for Alaska’s U.S. House seat following the death this month of Rep. Don Young.
Read more »
Iditarod punishes 3 mushers for sheltering dogs in windstorm - Alaska Public MediaMille Porsild of Denmark, Michelle Phillips of Canada and Riley Dyche of Fairbanks were penalized for taking dogs inside shelter cabins to ride out the storm with winds so strong, they whipped up white-out conditions.
Read more »