Oppose Federal Control Of State Land & Water

The State of Alaska owns and has the right to manage submerged land and navigable water in the state, unless Congress has specifically limited the state's authority. However, due to federal action, Alaska is quickly losing one if its most valuable assets and Alaskans are losing the ability to access these resources.

Starting in 1996, the United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, began regulating public use of Alaska's navigable waterways. In the past 12 years, despite the state's continued protest and efforts to administratively address this problem, Alaskans' right to access and use Alaskan land has been eroded.

House Concurrent Resolution 10 reaffirms our sovereignty and asks for the governor to exercise all available legal options to protect our citizens from this inappropriate preemption of our state's rights. We must take action now to ensure that our right to manage our resources, as guaranteed by Alaska's Constitution, and both federal and state law, is protected.