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Governor's Budget Plan Includes Funding For Y-K Delta Public Safety

Governor Bill Walker signs HB 141 at Bethel's Yuut Elitnaurviat surrounded by high school students from the Kuskokwim Learning Academy on August 29, 2017. Walker's proposed budget includes funding for Y-K Delta law enforcement.
Dean Swope/KYUK

A little more law and order could be coming to the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta if the legislature gives the nod to the Governor's budget. On Friday, Governor Bill Walker released a three-part budget plan that prioritizes public safety and includes funding for both an additional prosecutor and State Trooper investigator in Bethel.

Those positions are part of the $34 million increase in public safety spending that the Walker-Mallott Administration is proposing. In a press release on Friday, the governor’s office vowed to address the State’s rising crime rates and ongoing opioid epidemic.

The State legislature will not start debating the budget until their session begins on January 19.