Power companies aim to build Alaska's first community solar farms

Plus: 9 Democrats and 8 Republicans form bipartisan majority in Alaska Senate Email not displaying correctly? [View the web version]( [Anchorage Daily News]( Today's sponsor: [Today's sponsor: Northrim Bank]( Support independent reporting on what Alaskans care about most. [Subscribe today.]( Good afternoon. It’s Monday, November 28. In today's newsletter: - Two electric utilities are taking steps that could lead to construction of Alaska’s first community solar farms, which could open up solar panel investments to households that can't afford to install their own rooftop array. - All nine Democrats and eight of the 11 Republicans elected to the Alaska Senate are forming a bipartisan majority coalition, leaving three right-wing Republicans in the minority. - Nearly 200 communities in rural Alaska lack access to veterinary care, which AFN says is the only way to control human health disparities in places where diseases like rabies pose an ongoing threat. With Alaska seen as a canary in a coalmine for climate change in the U.S., there has been no shortage of high-profile climate messengers to visit the state to learn more and spread awareness. Among them was Alan Alda, the actor and PBS television host. Columnist Ned Rozell recounts how [in 2004, Alda traveled to the Last Frontier]( to interview scientists about the changing North. ☀️ Anchorage weather It's sunny but chilly today, with a high of 14 degrees. Sunshine will continue through Wednesday, before there's a chance of snow on Thursday. Temperatures will stay in the mid teens this week. Here’s what else is making headlines in Alaska today. — Megan Pacer, mpacer@adn.com [Alaska power companies look at building community solar farms that households can invest in]( [Alaska power companies look at building community solar farms that households can invest in]( Advocates say the moves by the Anchorage and Fairbanks utilities could lead to projects that allow any household to invest in solar panels to reap their benefits, including low-income residents who can’t afford to install their own rooftop array. [Read More]( [9 Democrats and 8 Republicans form bipartisan majority in Alaska Senate]( [9 Democrats and 8 Republicans form bipartisan majority in Alaska Senate]( Bipartisan coalitions — a rarity in other parts of the country — have become a staple of the Alaska Legislature in recent years with disagreements over the state fiscal policy dividing Republicans. [Read More]( [Much of rural Alaska lacks regular veterinary care. AFN says it’s a public health crisis.]( [Much of rural Alaska lacks regular veterinary care. AFN says it’s a public health crisis.]( The Alaska Federation of Natives wants the Indian Health Service to help alleviate widespread problems with diseases like rabies that are taking a human toll and pose an ongoing threat in rural communities. [Read More]( ADVERTISEMENT [At Anchorage’s Klatt Elementary, staff and parents worry about transition for low-income and special education students if school closes]( [At Anchorage’s Klatt Elementary, staff and parents worry about transition for low-income and special education students if school closes]( Community members say Klatt students are well-supported by staff who have been willing to work there long-term, and they expressed concerns about how a school transition would affect low-income and special education students. Klatt is one of six Anchorage School District elementary schools that could close due to a budget crunch. [Read More]( [Southeast Alaska village of Kake welcomes artifacts — some over 200 years old — back home]( [Southeast Alaska village of Kake welcomes artifacts — some over 200 years old — back home]( Alaska Native artifacts taken from Kake in the early 1900s were brought home from a university in Oregon this month. “When I looked at them, it was like looking at my past and my elders,” said Lincoln Bean, vice chairman for the Organized Village of Kake. (Via Juneau Empire) [Read More]( ADVERTISEMENT More from the ADN [Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano erupts for first time in almost 40 years]( [Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano erupts for first time in almost 40 years]( [Read More]( [Photos: Hundreds gather for Anchorage’s annual holiday tree lighting downtown]( [Photos: Hundreds gather for Anchorage’s annual holiday tree lighting downtown]( [Read More]( [Colder, sunny weather forecast for Southcentral Alaska before another warmup]( [Colder, sunny weather forecast for Southcentral Alaska before another warmup]( [Read More]( [Study tracks Arctic animals’ exposure to disease better known in Interior Alaska: Tularemia, or ‘rabbit fever’]( [Study tracks Arctic animals’ exposure to disease better known in Interior Alaska: Tularemia, or ‘rabbit fever’]( (Via Alaska Beacon) [Read More]( [Post-Thanksgiving travel deals are here, plentiful but sometimes fleeting]( [Post-Thanksgiving travel deals are here, plentiful but sometimes fleeting]( [Read More]( [After apparent approval of ranked choice voting in Seattle, advocates aim for rest of state]( [After apparent approval of ranked choice voting in Seattle, advocates aim for rest of state]( [Read More]( [Get digital access to the ADN for as low as $1.99 for the first month]( and help us cover the news that matters most here in Alaska. 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