Hundreds of fishermen across Bristol Bay offload their catch at local processors in Dillingham—the main hub for the busy Nushagak district. But of all the ports across the bay, Dillingham’s holds something unique: for the past 12 years, the city has not enforced any raw fish sales tax whatsoever, missing out on millions of dollars. KDLG’s Ryan Berkoski sat down with Alice Ruby, the mayor of Dillingham, and Chris Maines, the city planner, to talk about what caused this tax hiatus and why it’s back now.

This winter, the Alaska Board of Fisheries passed several new regulations for Bristol Bay’s salmon fishery, including measures in response to declining king salmon populations. That species was first designated as a stock of concern in the Nushagak district in 2022, but the regulations won’t go into effect until mid-July, when the king season is mostly over.