00                              HOUSE BILL NO. 44                                                                          
01 "An Act requiring a legislator to abstain from taking or withholding official action or                                 
02 exerting official influence that could benefit or harm an employer or to request to be                                  
03 excused from voting in an instance where the legislator may have a financial conflict of                                
04 interest; and providing for an effective date."                                                                         
05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
06    * Section 1. AS 24.60.030(e) is amended to read:                                                                   
07            (e)  A legislator may not directly, or by authorizing another to act on the                                  
08       legislator's behalf,                                                                                              
09                 (1)  agree to, threaten to, or state or imply that the legislator will take or                          
10 withhold a legislative, administrative, or political action, including support for or                               
11 opposition to a bill, employment, nominations, and appointments, as a result of a                                       
12 person's decision to provide or not provide a political contribution, donate or not                                     
13 donate to a cause favored by the legislator, or provide or not provide a thing of value;                                
14 (2)  state or imply that the legislator will perform or refrain from                                                    
01 performing a lawful constituent service as a result of a person's decision to provide or                                
02 not provide a political contribution, donate or not donate to a cause favored by the                                    
03       legislator, or provide or not provide a thing of value; or                                                        
04 (3)  [UNLESS REQUIRED BY THE UNIFORM RULES OF THE                                                                       
05 ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE,] take or withhold official action or exert official                                           
06 influence that could substantially benefit or harm the financial interest of another                                    
07 person by [WITH] whom the legislator is employed, with whom the legislator is                                   
08 negotiating for employment, or from whom the legislator has received more than                                      
09       $10,000 of income within the immediately preceding 12-month period, except                                    
10                      (A)  as provided in (g) of this section;                                                       
11 (B)  as required by the Uniform Rules of the Alaska State                                                           
12            Legislature; or                                                                                          
13                      (C)  while participating in a public discussion or debate.                                     
14    * Sec. 2. AS 24.60.030(g) is amended to read:                                                                      
15 (g)  Unless required by the Uniform Rules of the Alaska State Legislature, a                                            
16 legislator may not vote on a question before a committee of the legislature, and                                    
17 shall request to be excused from voting on a question before a house of the                                         
18 legislature, if the legislator or a member of the legislator's immediate family has a                       
19 financial [AN EQUITY OR OWNERSHIP] interest in a business, investment, real                                         
20 property, lease, or other enterprise if the interest is substantial and the effect on that                              
21 interest of the action to be voted on is greater than the effect on a substantial class of                              
22 persons to which the legislator or the family member who has the financial interest                                 
23 belongs as a member of a profession, occupation, industry, or region. However,                                      
24 notwithstanding (e)(3) of this section and the limitations of this subsection, a                                    
25 legislator may vote on an appropriation bill that meets the requirements of                                         
26       AS 37.07.020(a) or 37.07.100 (Executive Budget Act).                                                          
27    * Sec. 3. AS 24.60.030(j) is amended to read:                                                                      
28            (j)  In this section,                                                                                        
29 (1)  "administrative hearing" means a quasi-judicial hearing before an                                              
30 agency; "administrative hearing" does not include an informal conference or review                                      
31 held by an agency before a final decision is issued or a rate-making proceeding or                                      
01       other nonadjudicative public hearing;                                                                         
02 (2)  "substantially benefit or harm" means the effect on the                                                        
03 person's financial interest is greater than the effect on the financial interest of a                               
04 substantial class of persons to which the person belongs as a member of a                                           
05       profession, occupation, industry, or region.                                                                  
06    * Sec. 4. AS 24.60.990(a) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read:                                          
07 (17)  "financial interest" means ownership of an interest or an                                                         
08 involvement in a business, including a property ownership, or a professional or private                                 
09 relationship, that is a source of income, or from which, or as a result of which, a                                     
10       person has received or expects to receive a financial benefit.                                                    
11    * Sec. 5. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to                          
12 read:                                                                                                                   
13 CONDITIONAL EFFECT. This Act takes effect only if the Thirtieth Alaska State                                            
14 Legislature passes a resolution that amends Rule 34(b), Uniform Rules of the Alaska State                               
15 Legislature, to require a member to request to be excused from voting on a question before a                            
16 house of the legislature when the member has a conflict of interest that is reasonably likely to                        
17 influence the member's vote on the question, and allow a member's abstention to be approved                             
18 or disapproved by a majority vote.                                                                                      
19    * Sec. 6. If, under sec. 5 of this Act, this Act takes effect, it takes effect on the later of the                 
20 effective date of the amendment made to Rule 34(b), Uniform Rules of the Alaska State                                   
21 Legislature, as described in sec. 5 of this Act or on the date described in AS 01.10.070(c).