Alaska leaders try to agree on budget plan; oil prices hurt The collapse in oil prices has left oil-reliant Alaska with a multibillion-dollar budget deficit and few palatable options for digging its way out. Alaska Governor Bill Walker (NGP File Photo) Photo Courtesy: Caelus Alaska Public Media.     North Slope oil producer Caelus Energy announced Friday it will lay off 25 percent of its 80-person work force and suspend drilling at the Oooguruk oil field, potentially affecting hundreds more contractor jobs. In a sharply-worded [...]