Anchorage Police Need Community Oversight, Not Just An Advisory Commission
Send the Anchorage Assembly an email now to let them know that we need strong community oversight of APD, not just an advisory commission.
What has been happening in Anchorage?
The Anchorage Police Department (APD) shot thirteen people from May 2024 to May 2025. Eight of those people were killed. Officer involved shootings are reviewed by the state Office of Special Prosecutions (OSP). The OSP has investigated more than 150 shootings in Alaska since 2009 and they have never charged any officers with a crime.
In April 2025, the Anchorage assembly passed a resolution establishing a community task force to reimagine the former Public Safety Advisory Commission (PSAC). The Task Force's Final Report recommends a higher level of authority than what has existed in the past. The majority of community members voted in favor of authority that would include community oversight of APD.
What happens next?
Anchorage assembly members Anna Brawley, Felix Rivera, and Kameron Perez-Verdia introduced an ordinance, AO 2026-62, to reestablish a Public Safety Advisory Commission. An advisory commission is only the first step, our communities ultimately need strong oversight of APD.
The next Regular Assembly Meeting is Tuesday, May 26, 2026. Make your voice heard! Testify in person, on the phone, through written comment, or email. See below for more information.
Take Action: Make your voice heard at the next Regular Assembly Meeting on May 26, 2026:
The public hearing on AO 2026-62 is scheduled to open at the Regular Assembly Meeting on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. There are four ways to testify:
- Provide testimony during the May 26 Regular Assembly Meeting at the Loussac Library Assembly Chambers
- Sign up by 5pm on May 25 to provide testimony during the meeting by phone: https://moaonlineforms.formstack.com/forms/assemblyphonetestimony
- Submit written testimony: https://moaonlineforms.formstack.com/forms/assemblyphonetestimony
- Email all Assembly Members: assembly@anchorageak.gov
Take Action: Contact your Assembly!
Our assembly members need to hear from you! Send the Anchorage Assembly an email now to let them know that we need strong community oversight of APD, not just an advisory commission.
The Alaska Coalition for Justice (ACJ), a statewide group that has been working to transform public safety since June 2020, supports the formation of local community oversight boards as an important step for increasing community safety.
ACJ will support an ordinance only if it includes strong oversight of APD. ACJ does not support a commission with only an advisory role. Anchorage residents deserve a real seat at the table when it comes to how we are policed as a community.