Alaska Stat. § 34.03. § 34.03.280

Recovery of possession limited

In Force
Verified 10/28/2026 · Next check 11/4/2026
AlaskaLockouts & Self-Help

Operative Text

Alaska Stat. § 34.03. § 34.03.280
A landlord may not recover or take possession of the dwelling unit by action or otherwise, including wilful diminution of services to the tenant by interrupting or causing the interruption of electricity, gas, water, sanitary, or other essential services to the tenant, except in case of abandonment, surrender, circumstances beyond the control of the landlord due to energy conditions, or as permitted in this chapter.
Source: Legislative text reproduced verbatim
Plain English

Alaska Statute AS 34.03 § 34.03.280 limits the ways a landlord can reclaim a rental unit. Specifically, it prohibits landlords from using self-help tactics — such as cutting off electricity, gas, water, or other essential services — to force a tenant out. The only recognized exceptions are abandonment, surrender by the tenant, energy-related circumstances beyond the landlord's control, or methods explicitly authorized elsewhere in the chapter.

Written by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6 · Reviewed on October 28, 2026

Plain English — not legal advice.

For Property Managers

Under AS 34.03 § 34.03.280, compliant property owners in Alaska rely solely on lawful, court-supervised processes when seeking to regain possession of a rental unit. Operators generally avoid any action that interrupts essential services — such as electricity, gas, water, or sanitation — as a means of pressuring a tenant to vacate, since such conduct is explicitly prohibited. The narrow exceptions recognized by this section (abandonment, surrender, or qualifying energy-related emergencies) do not substitute for proper legal proceedings in ordinary circumstances.

General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.

For Tenants

AS 34.03 § 34.03.280 gives Alaska tenants protection against so-called 'self-help' eviction tactics, including deliberate shutoffs of utilities like gas, water, or electricity intended to force them out. If a landlord engages in such conduct, a tenant may have grounds to raise a violation of this provision as a defense in court or pursue a complaint through appropriate channels. Tenant-rights organizations in Alaska can help explain the range of options available when this section may have been violated.

General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.

Generated October 28, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.

Effective Timeline

Click on timeline segments to view historical versions.

References Out

No outbound references recorded yet for this provision.

References In

Rules and statutes that cite this regulation

AS 34.03.220
AS 34.03.120
AS 34.03.310
AS 34.03.225
AS 34.03.290
AS 34.03.360
AS 34.03.220
AS 34.03.310
AS 34.03.360
AS 34.03.360
AS 34.03.020
AS 34.03.100
AS 34.03.120
AS 34.03.290
AS 34.03.100
AS 34.03.290
AS 34.03.020
AS 34.03.070
AS 34.03.070
AS 34.03.020
AS 34.03.070
AS 34.03.230
AS 34.03.100
AS 34.03.070
AS 34.03.090
AS 34.03.100
AS 34.03.160
AS 34.03.070
AS 34.03.070
AS 34.03.120
AS 34.03.130
AS 34.03.150
AS 34.03.140
AS 34.03.020
AS 34.03.080
AS 34.03.150
AS 34.03.100
AS 34.03.210
AS 34.03.160
AS 34.03.080
AS 34.03.130
AS 34.03.360
AS 34.03.130

Related Rules

§ 27
Jurisdiction of courts to restrain violation of Secs. 23 to 26; applicability of other laws to requests to change locks
§ 18
Entry into land; legal proceedings required to recover possession of land or tenements; jurisdiction
§ 5-3-12-1
LOCKOUTS PROHIBITED

Source Information

Snapshot SHA:
Fetched:Oct 28, 2026, 10:33 AM UTC