Alaska Commissioners of Labor 1959 - Present

Question: What were the names and terms of the Commissioners of the Alaska Department of Labor since Statehood?

Answer: See below for names and terms of office. The Alaska Department of Labor changed its name to Department of Labor and Workforce Development in 1999 as a result of ch. 58, SLA 1999.

Commissioners of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, 1959 – Present

Compiled by Daniel Cornwall, Alaska State Library
August 2007 (Updated April 2015)

• Lewis M. Dischner (1959-1960); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1973, p. 48
• Bjorn “Gil” Johnson (1960-1966); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1973, p. 48
• Thomas J. Moore (1967-1970); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1973, p. 48
• Henry A. Benson (1970-1972); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1973, p. 48
• Robert A. Smith (1972 – December 1974(?)); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1973, p. 48, end date implied by Alaska Blue Book, 1981.
• Edmund Orbeck (January 1975 – November 28, 1982(?)); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1981, p. 15-16, includes small b&w photo. End date is implied by Alaska Blue Book 1985
• Jim Robison (November 29, 1982 – January 5, 1987(?)); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1985, p. 40, includes small b&w photo. End date is implied by Alaska Blue Book 1989-90
• Jim Sampson (January 6, 1987 - January 1, 1991(?)); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1989-90, p. 14, includes small b&w photo. End date is implied by Alaska Blue Book 1991-92.
• Nancy Bear Usera (January 2, 1991 – February 23(?), 1992); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1991-92, p. 14, includes small b&w photo. End date is implied by Alaska Blue Book 1993-94.
• Charles Mahlen (February 24, 1992 – February 12, 1995(?) ); Source: Alaska Blue Book 1993-94, p. 14, includes small b&w photo). End date is implied by Alaska House Journal 1995, p. 399.
• Tom Cashen (February 13, 1995 - December 1998 ); Sources: Alaska House Journal 1995, p. 399 and Governor’s Press Release 99-006 (for end date).
• Ed Flannagan (Appointed January 12, 1999 - 2002); Sources: Governor’s Press Release 99-006 and Internet Archive copies of Alaska Department of Labor at http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.labor.state.ak.us/commish/home.htm
• Greg O’Claray – 2003 – 2007; Source: Internet Archive copies of Alaska Department of Labor at http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.labor.state.ak.us/commish/home.htm
• Click Bishop – (Appointed January 11, 2007 - 2012); Source: http://wayback.archive-it.org/1200/20090706235146/http://www.gov.state.ak.us/archive.php?id=68&type=1, Governor News Release 07-008).
• Diane Blumer - (May 2012 - December 2015); Source: http://www.ktoo.org/2012/05/17/blumer-appointed-new-labor-commissioner/
• Heidi Drygas - Appointed December 19, 2014. Source: http://labor.state.ak.us/commish/

Alaskan Pictures

Question: How do I get Alaska Native photographs that are available for our presentation?

Answer: There are several places where you can find photos online that might be useful for your presentation. For historical photos (and other resources), you might want to try Alaska's Digital Archive, online at http://vilda.alaska.edu/. This includes digitized materials from several different Alaskan repositories, including the State Library and University of Alaska.

You can find additional resources at our website on royalty free and public domain materials, online at http://library.state.ak.us/is/free_images_sounds.html. I would recommend scrolling down the page to the Photos heading. In particular, you might try the first option, the Alaska Images Library.

Another good resource is the Alaska Photo Library from the Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development, online at https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/dcra/dcrarepoext/pages/photolibrary.aspx. Many of these photos are licensed, so be sure to check for the license agreement to make sure that your use is allowed.

If you don't find what you want online, there are also some wonderful repositories within the state. Many participate with Alaska's Digital Archive, but have additional collections at their locations. You can find a list of participants with links to their copy policies and contact information at http://vilda.alaska.edu/ui/custom/default/collection/default/resources/custompages/faqs/index.php#answer5. To access their photos, you may need to go to their location and there may be associated fees. If you still don't see what you want, check out the Alaska Library Directory http://akla.org/publications/alaska-library-directory/.

Accessing Older Alaska Newspapers

Question: I am looking for an article published in a February 1966 issue of The Frontiersman.
Answer: The Alaska State Library holds microfilm of issues of The Frontiersman published in 1966. Information about our collection of Alaska Newspapers on microfilm is available at http://library.state.ak.us/hist/newspaper/newspaper.html.

You can place an ILL request for an article in The Frontiersman or the microfilm through your local library. Your local library then contacts us and we transmit the article or ship the film to your library for your review. We can loan up to four reels of our newspapers on microfilm to any single library at any one time.

Repeat Criminals in Alaska

Question: Where I can find information on repeat offenders in Alaska?

Answer: Here are a couple of recent reports from the Alaska Judicial Council that cover repeat offenders in the State of Alaska:

Criminal Recidivism in Alaska (January 2007)
http://library.alaska.gov/asp/edocs/2007/03/ocm83977386.pdf

Recidivism in Alaska's Felony Therapeutic Courts (February 2007)
http://library.alaska.gov/asp/edocs/2007/03/ocm85815309.pdf

Questions to ask yourself that might lead to additional resources include:

1) Whom do you consider a repeat offender? Are you looking for a certain kind of offender?
2) Is there a particular type of crime that you are interested in?

I want crab. Just for me and mine.

Question: I want to fish for crab for my own use. Can I do that?

Answer: The Fish & Game department has a page specifically about Personal Use Fisheries at: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingPersonalUse.main. You can see 5 AAC 77.664. Personal use king crab fishery by opening the Codified Statewide Personal Use and Subsistence Fisheries Regulations on this page: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=PersonalUseRegulations.main.

As odd as it sounds, the personal use fisheries are regulated by the Division of Commercial fisheries, so it would be best to check with the local ComFish office about permits and possible fishing closures that may take place under the regulations linked above. ComFish office locations and phone numbers can be found at http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=contacts.main.