Alaska Progress Report

2010 Trooper reports spotlight rural sex crimes, alcohol abuse

The 2010 Annual Report for the Alaska State Troopers is out, and the historical data for the period 2006-2010 shows offenses have increased over the past few years in almost all of the ten categories tracked. Yet in almost every category the number of offenses in 2010 are still fewer than the high point earlier in the period tracked.

In sheer numbers assault is the leader with 3,775 offenses in 2010, significantly higher than any other year 2006-2009. Theft is the only other category to set a high-water mark in that period. Criminal mischief is the only category to decline 2009 to 2010. More disturbing is the unequal distribution of crimes. The Anchorage Daily News reports that the C detachment, which covers Western and Southwestern Alaska from Kotzebue to Kodiak to the Aleutians, has an extremely disproportionate share of offenses, especially in the areas of sexual assault and sexual abuse of a minor: about half of all offenses in each category statewide are recorded in C detachment's area of operations.

Alcohol, not surprisingly, is often a contributing factor, as the 2010 annual report of the Alaska Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Enforcement makes clear: "Of all cases initiated by the Alaska State Troopers in 2010, 37% involved drugs and/or alcohol. Of all violent crime cases, 61.9% involved drugs and/or alcohol... Alaska’s criminal justice professionals recognize that alcohol is the primary substance of abuse in Alaska and is the leading cause of violent, suicidal, and accidental deaths, especially in rural areas."

Alaska is third fastest growing state population

From the Census Bureau, news that "the nation's overall growth rate is now at its lowest point since before the baby  boom." Good or bad? Hey, we just report, you decide...

"Among states and equivalents, the District of Columbia experienced the fastest growth between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, as its population climbed 2.7 percent. This marks the first time it led states and equivalents in growth since the early 1940s. D.C. ranked 35th in percent growth between the 2000 and 2010 censuses.

"Following D.C. in terms of percent increase between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, were Texas (2.1 percent), Utah (1.9 percent), Alaska (1.8 percent), Colorado (1.7 percent) and North Dakota (1.7 percent). North Dakota was 37th in percent growth between the 2000 and 2010 censuses.

"The only three states to lose population between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, were Rhode Island (1,300 or -0.12 percent), Michigan (7,400 or -0.08 percent) and Maine (200 or -0.01 percent)."

Alaska tied for second-lowest poverty rate

It must be true, I read it in the American Community Survey (as reported by the Alaska Dispatch): "According to the survey, 9.9 percent of Alaska households fell below their respective poverty thresholds in 2010, putting the state in an effective statistical tie for second-lowest with Connecticut, Maryland, and New Jersey. New Hampshire's rate was found lowest, at 8.3 percent. Mississippi's was highest, at 22.4 percent."

More on poverty from the Alaska Economic Overview: "Alaska is a high-cost place to live, which can be especially challenging for those who have the least. To accommodate these high costs, federal poverty guidelines are 25 percent higher in Alaska than in the Lower 48. (Hawaii also has special poverty guidelines.) The guidelines are used to determine eligibility for a number of federal programs.

"In Alaska in 2010, a person was considered to be living in poverty if he or she earned up to $13,600 annually, or up to $27,940 for a family of four. For comparison, the average annual wage in the state was $47,700, as shown in the chart below. According to the 2010 American Community Survey, 9.9 percent of all individuals and 7.2 percent of families in Alaska were living at or below the poverty line."

Alaska lands more than half of nation's seafood

From the November 2011 Alaska Economic Trends: "Alaska produces a massive amount of seafood each year. The most recent data from the National Marine Fisheries Service show that in 2010, 53 percent of domestic harvested poundage came from Alaska — 4.35 billion pounds of product worth $1.6 billion. Dutch Harbor/Unalaska led the nation that year for pounds harvested, and in dollar value was second only to New Bedford, Mass.

"Harvesting employment was distributed among the following fisheries in 2010: salmon (50.2 percent), halibut (20.1 percent), groundfish (8.1 percent), sablefish (7.4 percent), crab (5.4 percent), herring (4.9 percent), and miscellaneous shellfish (3.9 percent). Average monthly fish harvesting employment has declined nearly every year since 2005 and in 2010, hit its lowest level since the data series was created. In 2010, there were 6,915 harvesters working each month on average, a decline of 2.4 percent from the previous year and down 7.6 percent from 2005."

Alaska's per capita GDP highest in nation

The October 2011 Alaska Economic Trends looks at our gross state product, a.k.a state gross domestic product (GDP). Alaska's GDP represents the value of all goods and services produced in the state, is a rough estimate of our state's economic health because it is so all-inclusive. In 2010 that number was $49 billion, 25 percent of it from oil, followed by the public sector (federal, state and local government) at 19 percent of GDP:

"At $63,424, Alaska’s per capita GDP is highest in the nation. Although there is typically a correlation between per capita income — for which Alaska is an important difference. While income data are for Alaska residents only, GDP measures the market value of goods and services produced in the state without differentiating between residents and nonresidents.

"For example, wages and salaries paid to people working in Alaska are part of the state’s GDP, regardless of where the workers live. Similarly, the profi ts — or in GDP terms, the 'net operating surplus' — of companies operating in Alaska are part of the state’s GDP, whether or not these profi ts stay in Alaska. Alaska’s high per capita GDP numbers show the state’s economy is especially productive relative to its population, but much of that is tied to the high value in recent years of Alaska’s commodities, especially oil and minerals."

Value of Alaska's fisheries underestimated, claims UFA

The United Fishermen of Alaska believes that the total value of Alaska's fisheries are routinely underestimated, and they have published a series of fact sheets to correct the record. According to UFA president Arni Thomson:

“The most commonly quoted number to gauge fishery economics, is ex-vessel value, the price paid to fishermen at the docks prior to the finfish and shellfish being processed. Quite often this value represents only fifty percent of the product value after it is processed, boxed and frozen. The value added processing (manufacturing) function then results in “the first wholesale value”, which approximates the export value of the product. At this point, it does not include the value of additional jobs and income for transportation, distribution, and wholesale and retail sales and restaurant sales. Alaska’s seafood exports are valued at $2.35 billion in 2010. This is important to all Alaskans in terms of tax revenue contributions. In fiscal year 2009, the industry contributed $79 million in state taxes and fees in addition to local fish taxes”

Alaska salmon harvest 3rd most valuable since 1975

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports on the 2011 Alaska commercial salmon harvest: "At $603 million, the 2011 harvest currently ranks as the third most valuable harvest since 1975, behind the 1988 and 2010 harvests respectively. Analysts expect the 2011 harvest will surpass the 2010 harvest in value, after final price per pound information is received next spring from processors, buyers, and direct marketers.

"While the 176 million salmon harvested in 2011—ninth largest since 1960—fell short of the 203 million predicted, high prices for all species, especially pink and chum salmon, pushed the value of the harvest to an extraordinary level. The pink salmon harvest, valued at over $170 million, set an all time record; chum salmon fetched $93 million, the third highest value ever recorded; sockeye salmon were worth almost $296 million, a respectable sixth place among historic sockeye harvests. Chinook and coho harvests, at $20 and $23 million, fell more toward the middle of their historic ranges.

"Regionally, Southeast Alaska took first place with the most valuable salmon harvest in the state, worth over $203 million: $92 million from pink salmon and $65 million from chum salmon. Bristol Bay, usually the most valuable salmon fishery in the state, came in second with a harvest worth $137 million, and Prince William Sound took third with a harvest worth $101 million, mostly from pink and sockeye salmon. Chignik and Cook Inlet also had unusually valuable fisheries, resulting from strong sockeye returns to those areas."

Alaskan women earn 67 cents to a man's dollar

From the October 2011 Alaska Economic Trends: "On average, women in Alaska earn less than men, and that gap exists across all industries, age groups, geographic areas, and most occupations. In 2010, an Alaska woman earned 67 cents to a man’s dollar — a 5 cent increase from 1990.

"Nearly half of Alaska workers are female, but women here make less than 40 percent of total state earnings. This disparity translates into lower average annual earnings for women and a gap of $14,361 from men’s earnings in 2010. The average Alaska woman earned $29,323 — 67 percent of the average man’s $43,684.

"The discrepancy isn’t easy to explain. Within the same occupation, earning differences by gender may be a result of training and experience disparities, the number of hours worked in a year, or discrimination. This report doesn’t examine these variables, which are not measured by any currently available data source."

Alaska Mineral Industry 2010

From the latest Alaska Mineral Industry report published annually by the Department of Natural Resources: "Alaska’s mineral industry continues to grow in strength and size based in part on the great mineral potential of the state and its strategic location. Mineral exploration expenditures were up 47 percent from 2009 levels to $264.4 million in 2010. This marked the sixth consecutive year with exploration expenditures exceeding $100 million. Development expenditures in Alaska in 2010 declined by nearly 11 percent, to approximately $293.3 million, from $330.8 million in 2009. Despite the decline, this was the seventh consecutive year development expenditures exceeded $200 million. Mineral production volumes remained strong. The estimated gross wholesale (first market) value of mineral production in 2010 increased more than 27 percent, to $3,126.8 million, from $2,455.6 million in 2009.

"Mineral industry employment rose in 2010 to 3,872 full-time-equivalent jobs, an increase of 592 jobs (18 percent) from the 2009 total of 3,280. The largest change in employment from 2009 was a gain in mineral development jobs from 371 to 537, an almost 45 percent increase. Exploration jobs also increased from 422 jobs in 2009 to 520 in 2010, a 22 percent increase. Mineral production employment increased signifi cantly in 2010, with 2,815 jobs across all production sectors in 2010, compared with 2,487 jobs in 2009. The Alaska industry also created an estimated 2,000 indirect jobs.

"Estimated revenues in 2010 to the State of Alaska and municipalities from mineral-industry-specific fees, rent, sales, royalties, and taxes amounted to more than $86.5 million. State corporate income tax payments are unavailable for 2010 and could not be included in the revenue total."