Alaska oil group hires former Interior staffer as new leader

By Heather Richards | 10/30/2025 04:04 PM EDT

Steve Wackowski served in the first Trump administration and is a former congressional staffer.

A view of the Trans-Alaska pipeline and pump station north of Fairbanks, Alaska.

A view of the Trans-Alaska pipeline and pump station north of Fairbanks, Alaska. Al Grillo/AP

An alum of the first Trump administration’s Interior Department has been named the new president and CEO of the Alaska Oil & Gas Association.

Steve Wackowski, who served as Interior’s senior adviser for Alaska affairs from 2017 to 2020, joins AOGA after nearly two years with Santos, a prominent oil and gas driller in Alaska.

He replaces Kara Moriarty, the previous AOGA president who joined the Trump administration earlier this year as senior adviser for Alaskan affairs at Interior.

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Wackowski begins his new role Friday.

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