00 Enrolled SCR 14 01 Relating to the Advisory Commission on Local Government. 02 _______________ 03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:  04 WHEREAS the Constitution of the State of Alaska provides that the Alaska State 05 Legislature serves as the assembly for the unorganized borough; and 06 WHEREAS the Alaska State Legislature exercises that responsibility to support the 07 future economic stability of Alaska; and 08 WHEREAS the rural economy of the state is a significant contributor to urban 09 economics; and 10 WHEREAS, in the past few years, many local communities in Alaska have either shut 11 down, entered deeply into debt, or ceased providing basic local services as a result of lower 12 local revenue; and 13 WHEREAS crafting legislative solutions that will efficaciously address both short- 14 term and long-term sustainability issues will be dependent upon conducting an appropriate 15 needs assessment to guide these efforts; 16 BE IT RESOLVED that, pursuant to the authority granted under art. II, sec. 11, 17 Constitution of the State of Alaska to establish interim committees, the Advisory Commission 01 on Local Government is established; and be it 02 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Advisory Commission on Local Government shall 03 consist of nine members, three senators appointed by the president of the senate, three 04 representatives appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, and three public 05 members appointed jointly by the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of 06 representatives; and be it 07 FURTHER RESOLVED that the president of the senate and the speaker of the house 08 of representatives shall jointly appoint the chair and vice-chair of the commission; and be it 09 FURTHER RESOLVED that the public members may not receive compensation, per 10 diem, or reimbursement for travel or other expenses incurred in serving on the Advisory 11 Commission on Local Government; and be it 12 FURTHER RESOLVED that the House and Senate Community and Regional 13 Affairs Committees shall assign committee staff to provide support services for the 14 commission; and be it 15 FURTHER RESOLVED that the duties of the Advisory Commission on Local 16 Government include 17 (1) studying the specific reasons for the hardships that communities in Alaska 18 have experienced and developing proposals to continue the evolution of local government; 19 (2) defining the role of state government in the financing of local public 20 services; 21 (3) recommending specific means by which local governments, when desired, 22 can move towards borough formation; and 23 (4) reviewing findings of previous local government studies and incorporating 24 useful information in its report; and be it 25 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Advisory Commission on Local Government shall 26 develop recommendations for Alaska's cities within the unorganized borough as a critical 27 element of the state's economic future; and be it 28 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Advisory Commission on Local Government shall 29 deliver a report of its findings to the legislature by January 15, 2006, together with appropriate 30 legislative proposals for consideration during the Second Regular Session of the Twenty- 31 Fourth Alaska Legislature; and be it 01 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Advisory Commission on Local Government may 02 meet during and between legislative sessions and that the commission is terminated on 03 February 1, 2006.