Agency proposes more lands for selection by Native Vietnam veterans

JUNEAU (AP) — The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has proposed an expansion of lands available for selection by Alaska Native Vietnam War-era veterans who are entitled to allotments.

Tom Heinlein, acting state director for the land agency in Alaska, last Thursday recommended opening about 27 million acres of land for allotment selections by eligible veterans. Currently, about 1.2 million acres are available, and concerns have been raised that some of the currently available lands are difficult to access or outside veterans’ cultural homelands.

Heinlein said the next step is to provide detailed...