00HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 5                                                                                     
01 Relating to extension of the James Dalton Highway to the Arctic Ocean.                                                  
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                              
03  WHEREAS there is an immediate need for a public highway from the Yukon River                                         
04 to the Arctic Ocean; and                                                                                                
05  WHEREAS this highway will provide the first year-round, overland route to the Arctic                                 
06 Ocean and will result in the completion of a public highway from the Pacific Ocean to the                               
07 Arctic Ocean; and                                                                                                       
08  WHEREAS this highway is named the James Dalton Highway, popularly known as                                           
09 the Dalton Highway; and                                                                                                 
10  WHEREAS the Dalton Highway will provide North America's only highway link to                                         
11 the Arctic Ocean; and                                                                                                   
12  WHEREAS the Dalton Highway is the second northernmost highway in the world;                                          
13 and                                                                                                                     
14  WHEREAS the Dalton Highway was opened for unrestricted public access to and                                          

01 including the Deadhorse industrial area in 1994; and                                                                    
02  WHEREAS the Federal Highway Administration added the Dalton Highway to the                                           
03 National Highway System in 1995; and                                                                                    
04  WHEREAS highway traffic to Deadhorse has increased 34 percent since the Dalton                                       
05 Highway was opened to the public; and                                                                                   
06  WHEREAS the Dalton Highway offers unparalleled scenic beauty and access to the                                       
07 Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge, the                           
08 Kanuti National Wildlife Refuge, and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; and                                           
09  WHEREAS the Dalton Highway was designated a State Scenic Byway in 1998; and                                          
10  WHEREAS the Dalton Highway is under consideration as an All American Road                                            
11 eligible for additional federal funding; and                                                                            
12  WHEREAS the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities in                                             
13 cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, and other                                    
14 agencies are adding waysides, campgrounds, and other facilities for the increasing number of                            
15 travelers on the Dalton Highway; and                                                                                    
16  WHEREAS there is an increasing demand from these travelers for unrestricted private                                  
17 vehicle access to visit the Arctic Ocean; and                                                                           
18  WHEREAS the division of tourism's official state map and Alaska's National                                           
19 Highways map both show the Dalton Highway reaching the Arctic Ocean shores; and                                         
20  WHEREAS it is illogical to block a 500 mile long route just seven miles short of the                                 
21 Arctic Ocean, especially when the infrastructure is in place to accommodate beach access; and                           
22  WHEREAS the only public access to the Arctic Ocean is through a $20 payment to                                       
23 an oil company tour operator for a guided half hour on the beach; and                                                   
24  WHEREAS a report by the University of Alaska states, "A large number of visitors                                     
25 expressed disappointment in not being allowed ocean access without payment, others with                                 
26 large families could not afford the cost, and others were livid with the restriction"; and                              
27  WHEREAS AS 38.05.127(c) states "Nothing in this section affects valid existing                                       
28 rights or limits in any way the constitutional right of the public to use and have free access                          
29 to the navigable or public waters of the state"; and                                                                    
30  WHEREAS an existing seven mile road, designed to state highway secondary                                             
31 standards, skirts industry headquarters and most other facilities and offers a short, safe route                        

01 to East Dock on the ocean shores; and                                                                                   
02  WHEREAS the East Dock gravel pad is vacant except for some storage and offers an                                     
03 ideal site for a visitor wayside; and                                                                                   
04  WHEREAS in an era of declining oil revenues, Alaska's tourism industry will benefit                                  
05 from travelers' desires for unrestricted access to the Arctic Ocean; and                                                
06  WHEREAS tourism is now the second largest employer in Alaska; and                                                    
07  WHEREAS state and federal regulatory agencies have offered assistance in working                                     
08 with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, the oil industry, and the                           
09 North Slope Borough in assuring that the opening of the East Dock Road would be safe for                                
10 industry, wildlife, and tourists; and                                                                                   
11  WHEREAS the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, by taking                                     
12 the lead in working with industry, regulatory agencies, and the North Slope Borough, can                                
13 resolve concerns that would allow citizens to journey to the Arctic Ocean without charge;                               
14  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports opening the last few                                       
15 miles of the Dalton Highway to provide unrestricted public access to the Arctic Ocean; and                              
16 be it                                                                                                                   
17  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests                                             
18 Governor Tony Knowles to direct the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities to                               
19 move expeditiously in providing visitor access to one of America's most incomparable                                    
20 destinations, the shores of the Arctic Ocean, for the 1999 tourist season.