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Local family advocate Anny Cochrane testified in the “people to be heard” portion of the meeting, saying that she’s sick of hearing about the Bethel Police Department being understaffed. “For years this is continuing on. We really can t allow our police departments to be so dramatically understaffed that they lose the ability to protect and serve the communities that need that,” said Cochrane.
“It really comes down to the basics. The Bethel police department has a responsibility to ensure that they maintain the public order and safety, enforcing law and preventing, detecting, and investigating the criminal activity,” Cochrane added, saying that because victims of rape really have no other agency to turn to in town, they need to be able to rely on the Bethel Police Department.
The City of Bethel has vacant seats on most of its committees and commissions. Some of them haven’t been able to meet in months, due to lack of a quorum.
When you get off the plane in Bethel, you can get a gift card for a local business and a shot at winning $1,000 in a raffle. The only catch? You have to take a COVID-19 test at the airport. The program lapsed briefly, but the city council just voted to start it back up on Jan. 12.
When the city began the incentive program back in June 2020, they hoped that it would up the airport testing rate for passengers arriving in Bethel to 100%. But the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation said that incentives or no, the testing rate has hovered between 50% and 75% of passengers since testing began.
Credit Matt Rourke / AP Photo
The controversial sugary beverage tax prompted hours of discussion by Bethel residents, advocacy organizations, and city council members in last night’s meeting. The council voted to introduce the ordinance, but tabled the public hearing and final vote until April 2021.
If adopted, the ordinance would add a 1-cent-per-ounce excise tax on sugary drinks. That would add $1.44 to the cost of a 12-pack of soda, to be paid by the distributor.
Residents who support the tax said that it could reduce the consumption of sugary beverages and the adverse health outcomes that come with it. Bethel Dentist Tucker Burnett cited a 2008 study that found that young children in the Y-K Delta have five times more tooth decay, fillings, and missing teeth than the national average. “And I m here to tell you that the number one cause, absolutely, is sugary drinks,” said Burnett in the meeting.