00 SENATE BILL NO. 18 01 "An Act relating to third class boroughs." 02 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 03  * Section 1. AS 14.08.011(a) is amended to read: 04 (a) It is the purpose of this chapter to provide for public education in the 05 unorganized borough, third class boroughs, and the military reservations in the state. 06  * Sec. 2. AS 14.08.031(a) is amended to read: 07 (a) The Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development, 08 in consultation with the Department of Education and Early Development and local 09 communities, shall divide the area comprising the unorganized borough and third  10 class boroughs into educational service areas using the boundaries or sub-boundaries 11 of the regional corporations established under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 12 Act, unless by referendum a community votes to merge with another community 13 contiguous to it but within the boundaries or sub-boundaries of another regional 14 corporation. 15  * Sec. 3. AS 14.08.031(b) is amended to read: 01 (b) An educational service area established in the area comprising the 02 unorganized borough and third class boroughs under (a) of this section constitutes a 03 regional educational attendance area. As far as practicable, each regional educational 04 attendance area shall contain an integrated socio-economic, linguistically and 05 culturally homogeneous area. In the formation of the regional educational attendance 06 areas, consideration shall be given to the transportation and communication network to 07 facilitate the administration of education and communication between communities 08 that comprise the area. Whenever possible, municipalities, other governmental or 09 regional corporate entities, drainage basins, and other identifiable geographic features 10 shall be used in describing the boundaries of the regional school attendance areas. 11  * Sec. 4. AS 14.08.071(a) is amended to read: 12 (a) In each regional educational attendance area in the area comprising the 13 unorganized borough and third class boroughs, the lieutenant governor, within not 14 less than 60, nor more than 90, days after the establishment of the regional educational 15 attendance area, shall provide for the election of a regional school board. 16  * Sec. 5. AS 14.12.010 is amended to read: 17 Sec. 14.12.010. Districts of state public school system. The districts of the 18 state public school system are as follows: 19 (1) each home rule and first class city in the unorganized borough or  20 in a third class borough is a city school district; 21 (2) each first class, second class, or home rule [ORGANIZED] 22 borough is a borough school district; 23 (3) the area outside first class, second class, or home rule 24 [ORGANIZED] boroughs and outside home rule and first class cities is divided into 25 regional educational attendance areas. 26  * Sec. 6. AS 14.12.110 is amended to read: 27 Sec. 14.12.110. Single body as assembly and school board. Notwithstanding 28 the provisions of this chapter or other law, a single body may serve as both the 29 assembly and school board in the manner provided under (b) of this section [FOR 30 THIRD CLASS BOROUGHS UNDER AS 29.20.300(b)], if 31 (1) an ordinance for that purpose is approved by the assembly and 01 ratified by a referendum of a majority of the qualified borough voters voting on the 02 question at a regular or special election; and 03 (2) the public school population within the borough is 500 pupils or 04 less. 05  * Sec. 7. AS 14.12.110 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 06 (b) When a single body serves as both the assembly and the school board, the 07 mayor is the presiding officer of the assembly and president of the school board. 08 However, the mayor may not veto an action of the school board. 09  * Sec. 8. AS 14.60.010(7) is amended to read: 10 (7) "regional educational attendance area" means an educational 11 service area in the area comprising the unorganized borough and third class  12 boroughs, which may [OR MAY NOT] include a military reservation, and that 13 contains one or more public schools with one or more grade levels of [GRADE 14 LEVELS] K-12 [OR ANY PORTION OF THOSE GRADE LEVELS THAT ARE TO 15 BE] operated under the management and control of a single regional school board; 16  * Sec. 9. AS 23.40.250(8) is amended to read: 17 (8) "regional educational attendance area" means an educational 18 service area in the area comprising the unorganized borough and third class  19 boroughs, which [THAT] may [OR MAY NOT] include a military reservation, and 20 that contains one or more public schools with one or more grade levels of [GRADE 21 LEVELS] K - 12 [OR ANY PORTION OF THOSE GRADE LEVELS THAT ARE 22 TO BE] operated under the management and control of a single regional school board; 23  * Sec. 10. AS 29.04.060(a) is amended to read: 24 (a) A third class borough may reclassify as a first or second class borough in 25 the manner provided by AS 29.35.320 - 29.35.330 for the addition of an areawide 26 power by a first or second class borough, except the petition or proposal requests 27 reclassification instead of requesting addition of a power. [AT THE TIME OF 28 VOTING ON RECLASSIFICATION OF A THIRD CLASS BOROUGH TO FIRST 29 OR SECOND CLASS STATUS, VOTERS SHALL VOTE ALSO ON WHETHER 30 THE BOROUGH SHALL, ON RECLASSIFICATION, RETAIN A COMBINED 31 ASSEMBLY AND SCHOOL BOARD OR ELECT A SEPARATE ASSEMBLY 01 AND BOARD AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR FIRST AND SECOND CLASS 02 BOROUGHS.]  03  * Sec. 11. AS 29.05.031(a) is amended to read: 04 (a) An area that meets the following standards may incorporate as a home rule, 05 first class, [OR] second class, or third class borough, or as a unified municipality: 06 (1) the population of the area is interrelated and integrated as to its 07 social, cultural, and economic activities, and is large and stable enough to support 08 borough government; 09 (2) the boundaries of the proposed borough or unified municipality 10 conform generally to natural geography and include all areas necessary for full 11 development of municipal services; 12 (3) the economy of the area includes the human and financial resources 13 capable of providing municipal services; evaluation of an area's economy includes 14 land use, property values, total economic base, total personal income, resource and 15 commercial development, anticipated functions, expenses, and income of the proposed 16 borough or unified municipality; 17 (4) land, water, and air transportation facilities allow the 18 communication and exchange necessary for the development of integrated borough 19 government. 20  * Sec. 12. AS 29.05.190(c) is amended to read: 21 (c) This [EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN (d) OF THIS SECTION, THIS] 22 section does not apply to a borough incorporated by consolidation or to a unified 23 municipality that occupies the area formerly occupied by a borough. 24  * Sec. 13. AS 29.06.090(a) is amended to read: 25 (a) Two or more municipalities may merge or consolidate to form a single 26 general law or home rule municipality [, EXCEPT A THIRD CLASS BOROUGH 27 MAY NOT BE FORMED THROUGH MERGER OR CONSOLIDATION]. 28  * Sec. 14. AS 29.06.470(a) is amended to read: 29 (a) Except as provided in (b) of this section, voters of a municipality may 30 petition for dissolution when the municipality is free of debt, or, if in debt, each of its 31 creditors is satisfied with a method of repayment and 01 (1) the municipality no longer meets the minimum standards 02 prescribed for incorporation by AS 29.05 [, OR FORMER AS 29.18.030 IF IT IS A 03 THIRD CLASS BOROUGH]; 04 (2) the municipality ceases to use each of its mandatory powers; or 05 (3) the dissolution petition filed under AS 29.06.460 is signed by a 06 number of voters of the municipality proposed to be dissolved greater than 50 percent 07 of the number of votes cast in the last regular election in that municipality. 08  * Sec. 15. AS 29.20.300(a) is amended to read: 09 (a) Each municipal school district has a school board. Members [EXCEPT 10 AS PROVIDED IN (b) OF THIS SECTION, MEMBERS] of a school board are 11 elected at the regular election for three-year terms and until their successors take 12 office. Members are elected at large unless a different method of election has been 13 approved by the voters in a regular election. 14  * Sec. 16. AS 29.35.160(a) is amended to read: 15 (a) Each first class, second class, and home rule borough constitutes a 16 borough school district and establishes, maintains, and operates a system of public 17 schools on an areawide basis as provided in AS 14.14.060. A military reservation in a 18 borough is not part of the borough school district until the military mission is 19 terminated or until inclusion in the borough school district is approved by the 20 Department of Education and Early Development. However, operation of the military 21 reservation schools by the borough school district may be required by the Department 22 of Education and Early Development under AS 14.14.110. If the military mission of a 23 military reservation terminates or continued management and control by a regional 24 educational attendance area is disapproved by the Department of Education and Early 25 Development, operation, management, and control of schools on the military 26 reservation transfers to the borough school district in which the military reservation is 27 located. 28  * Sec. 17. AS 29.35.220 is repealed and reenacted to read: 29 AS 29.35.220. Third class borough powers. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision 30 of law, a third class borough has only the following powers:  31 (1) to levy a property tax and impose a lien for its enforcement as 01 provided in AS 29.45.020 - 29.45.500; 02 (2) to enter into an agreement with a taxpayer for the taxpayer to make 03 a payment to the borough in lieu of taxes; 04 (3) to issue bonds to finance an energy infrastructure project in the 05 borough; the borough may only borrow money and issue evidence of indebtedness for 06 this purpose; 07 (4) to enact and enforce an ordinance necessary to carry out its powers 08 under this subsection and to prescribe a civil penalty for violation of an ordinance. 09 (b) The legislative power of a third class borough shall be vested in the 10 assembly under AS 29.20.050 - 29.20.180. The assembly shall enact and enforce 11 ordinances under AS 29.25.010 - 29.25.075, except that a third class borough may not 12 prescribe or enforce a penalty of imprisonment for violation of an ordinance. 13 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a third class borough may not 14 acquire or exercise any power not listed under (a) of this section. 15  * Sec. 18. AS 38.05.037(a) is amended to read: 16 (a) In areas of the state outside first or [,] second [, OR THIRD] class 17 boroughs where there is no municipality with a zoning power, the division of lands 18 shall exercise the zoning power by adopting zoning regulations. 19  * Sec. 19. AS 46.14.400(a) is amended to read: 20 (a) With the approval of the department, a municipality may establish and 21 administer within its jurisdiction a local air quality control program that operates in 22 lieu of and is consistent with all or part of the department's air quality program as 23 established under this chapter. A first or second class borough may administer an air 24 quality control program approved by the department under this subsection on an 25 areawide basis and is not subject to the restrictions for acquiring additional areawide 26 powers specified in AS 29.35.300 - 29.35.350. [A THIRD CLASS BOROUGH MAY 27 ADMINISTER A LOCAL AIR QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM APPROVED BY 28 THE DEPARTMENT UNDER THIS SUBSECTION ONLY IN A SERVICE AREA 29 FORMED UNDER AS 29.35.490(b) OR (c).] 30  * Sec. 20. AS 14.12.110; AS 29.04.060(b), 29.04.060(c); AS 29.05.031(b), 29.05.190(d); 31 AS 29.10.080(b); and AS 29.20.300(b) are repealed.