Alaska pay transparency law: no range rule yet, HB 156 and SB 78, and Washington next door (2026)

Alaska has no law that requires employers to put a pay range in job postings, as of November 2026, and no law that bars them from asking about salary history. Two identical bills in the 34th Legislature would have done both: House Bill 156 and Senate Bill 78, each titled "Disclosure of Wage Information." Both cleared a first committee and then stalled. What applies instead is AS 18.80.220, which bars pay discrimination between the sexes, a written pay notice at hire under AS 23.05.160, federal equal pay law, and Washington's posting law for roles that reach Washington.

Does Alaska require a salary range in job postings?

No. We found nothing in the Alaska Statutes that tells an employer what a job notice or advertisement must say about pay, and no rule requiring a range on request or after an interview. An Anchorage, Fairbanks or Juneau employer can post without a range and, under state law, can ask what a candidate earns now. We also found no Anchorage ordinance requiring pay ranges. The rest of Alaska's hiring rules are in our guide to hiring employees in Alaska.

Other Alaska screening rules have their own pages: background checks, criminal history questions and E-Verify.

What would HB 156 and SB 78 have required?

Both bills carry the same title, "An Act relating to disclosure of information regarding employee compensation by employers, employees, and applicants for employment," and would have added a new Article 9 to AS 23.10. The committee substitute, CSHB 156(L&C), and SB 78 as introduced both say:

• an employer "who publishes a notice, advertisement, or other solicitation for employment shall include in the notice, advertisement, or other solicitation a description of the compensation, including the salary or range of salaries, for the position";
• an employer may not prohibit an employee or applicant from disclosing or discussing compensation, or "ask an applicant for employment about compensation the applicant may have received from another employer";
• an applicant may still volunteer pay information, and the employer may then consider it;
• retaliation is barred, with a civil claim for damages filed within three years, and employers must post a summary approved by the labor commissioner.

The definition of employer would have reached the state, the University of Alaska, the Alaska Railroad Corporation, political subdivisions "and a person who employs one or more employees," so there was no small-business exemption. SB 78 adds a fine of $100 to $2,000 per violation, as determined by the commissioner, with each day a possible separate violation; the House committee substitute dropped the fine section.

Where did the bills stop?

Neither bill reached a floor vote in the 34th Legislature (2025–2026). A bill that does not pass in a Legislature has to be filed again in the next one, so any posting rule would start over in the 35th Legislature, which convenes in January 2027.

What Alaska law already covers pay?

Two statutes matter when you set and communicate an offer.

The Human Rights Law. AS 18.80.220(a)(5) makes it unlawful for an employer "to discriminate in the payment of wages as between the sexes, or to employ a female in an occupation in this state at a salary or wage rate less than that paid to a male employee for work of comparable character or work in the same operation, business, or type of work in the same locality." "Comparable character" is broader wording than the federal Act's "equal work." Paragraph (a)(1) separately bars discrimination "in compensation" because of race, religion, color, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, sex, marital status, changes in marital status, pregnancy or parenthood. Under AS 18.80.300(5) an employer is anyone "who has one or more employees in the state," including the state and its political subdivisions, with exceptions for nonprofit social clubs and fraternal, charitable, educational and religious organizations.

The pay notice at hire. AS 23.05.160 says an employer "shall notify an employee in writing at the time of hiring of the day and place of payment, and the rate of pay," and of any change on the payday before it takes effect, either individually or by a posted statement at the workplace. It is not a posting rule, but it means every Alaska hire gets their rate in writing on day one.

Which federal rules apply to Alaska employers?

• Equal Pay Act and Title VII. The EEOC's equal pay page says the Equal Pay Act covers virtually all employers and requires equal pay for "substantially equal" jobs; Title VII and the ADA add pay claims at 15 or more employees.
• Prior pay in the Ninth Circuit. Alaska is in the Ninth Circuit, whose en banc court held in Rizo v. Yovino (2020) that "an employee's prior pay cannot serve as an affirmative defense to a prima facie showing of an EPA violation," alone or combined with other factors. The court added that the Act does not stop employers from discussing prior pay while negotiating, but a gap must be justified by job-related factors. That makes a documented range more useful in Alaska than in many states.
• Pay discussions. The NLRB lists "talking with one or more co-workers about your wages and benefits" as protected concerted activity.
• Federal contractors. OFCCP's pay transparency provision, 41 CFR 60-1.35, is gone: Executive Order 14173 revoked Executive Order 11246 on January 21, 2025, and the Labor Department's final rule rescinded part 60-1 effective October 26, 2026 (91 FR 54444). See job posting requirements for federal contractors.

When do Washington or British Columbia rules reach an Alaska job?

Alaska employers that recruit in the Seattle area or in Canada meet posting rules there:

Washington also restricts salary history questions; see the Washington salary history ban. For the full list of posting states, see pay transparency laws by state.

What should recruiters and staffing agencies hiring in Alaska do?

1. Check where the hire will work. Rotational and remote roles can attract Washington and other out-of-state candidates; if the posting reaches Washington, include the range and benefits.
2. Keep a range ready for every Alaska req. HB 156 and SB 78 show the direction a future bill is likely to take, and the range is what you will write into the AS 23.05.160 hire notice anyway.
3. Ask about expectations, not history. It works in Alaska and in Washington; see salary expectation questions.
4. Agencies: get the client's range and benefits in writing before posting. Alaska's agency rules are in staffing agency license in Alaska.
5. Document job-related reasons for every offer. In the Ninth Circuit, prior pay will not defend a gap.

Example only: an Anchorage health system posts "Travel respiratory therapist, Anchorage, $46 to $58 an hour, relocation stipend, medical, retirement plan." Alaska does not require the range, but the same ad meets Washington's rule if it runs on a Seattle job board, and the hourly rate goes into the written notice at hire.

Alaska pay rules at a glance

An Alaska posting checklist

ALASKA POSTING CHECKLIST (as of November 2026)

[ ] Alaska-only role: range optional under state law; have one ready
[ ] Ad runs in Washington or the role can be done from there?
    Range (or fixed wage) + general description of benefits
[ ] Job in British Columbia? Expected wage or range; no pay history
[ ] Remote role: check each state the ad is open to
[ ] Screen asks about expectations, not current pay
[ ] Written pay notice ready for day one (AS 23.05.160)
[ ] Offer reason written down in job-related terms
[ ] No pay-secrecy language; agency has the client's range in writing