CSHB 193(JUD): "An Act increasing the amount of money certain lobbyists may spend on food and beverage for immediate consumption by a legislator, legislative employee, or a spouse or domestic partner of a legislator or legislative employee without disclosure to the Alaska Public Offices Commission; prohibiting public members of the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics from disclosing information that is confidential under the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to representation by a legislator or legislative employee of another person in an administrative hearing; relating to prohibitions on the use of state resources under the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to charity events under the Legislative Ethics Act; requiring compensation of public members of the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics; exempting certain information from disclosure requirements of the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to the selection of alternate members and the participation of members and alternate members in formal proceedings of the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics and its subcommittees; and defining 'constituent,' 'constituent service,' 'legislative purpose,' 'nonlegislative purpose,' and 'private benefit' for the purposes of the Legislative Ethics Act."
00 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 193(JUD) 01 "An Act increasing the amount of money certain lobbyists may spend on food and 02 beverage for immediate consumption by a legislator, legislative employee, or a spouse or 03 domestic partner of a legislator or legislative employee without disclosure to the Alaska 04 Public Offices Commission; prohibiting public members of the Select Committee on 05 Legislative Ethics from disclosing information that is confidential under the Legislative 06 Ethics Act; relating to representation by a legislator or legislative employee of another 07 person in an administrative hearing; relating to prohibitions on the use of state 08 resources under the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to charity events under the 09 Legislative Ethics Act; requiring compensation of public members of the Select 10 Committee on Legislative Ethics; exempting certain information from disclosure 11 requirements of the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to the selection of alternate members 12 and the participation of members and alternate members in formal proceedings of the
01 Select Committee on Legislative Ethics and its subcommittees; and defining 02 'constituent,' 'constituent service,' 'legislative purpose,' 'nonlegislative purpose,' and 03 'private benefit' for the purposes of the Legislative Ethics Act." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. AS 24.45.051(b) is amended to read: 06 (b) A lobbyist required to report to the commission under (a) of this section, 07 who provides or pays for food or beverage for immediate consumption by a legislator 08 or legislative employee or a spouse or domestic partner of a legislator or legislative 09 employee shall report the date the food or beverage was provided or paid for and the 10 recipient's name and relationship to the legislator or legislative employee, unless the 11 food and beverage 12 (1) cost $50 [$15] or less; or 13 (2) are provided as part of an event that is open to all legislators or 14 legislative employees. 15 * Sec. 2. AS 24.60.030(a) is amended to read: 16 (a) A legislator or legislative employee may not 17 (1) solicit, agree to accept, or accept a benefit other than official 18 compensation for the performance of public duties; this paragraph may not be 19 construed to prohibit lawful solicitation for and acceptance of campaign contributions, 20 solicitation or acceptance of contributions for a charity event, as defined in 21 AS 24.60.080(a)(2)(B), or the acceptance of a gift [LAWFUL GRATUITY] under 22 AS 24.60.075 or 24.60.080 [AS 24.60.080]; 23 (2) use public funds, facilities, equipment, services, or another 24 government asset or resource for a nonlegislative purpose, for involvement in or 25 support of or opposition to partisan political activity, or for the private benefit of 26 [EITHER] the legislator, legislative employee, or another person; this paragraph does 27 not prohibit 28 (A) limited use of state property and resources for personal 29 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 30 either the cost or value related to the use is nominal or the legislator or
01 legislative employee reimburses the state for the cost of the use; 02 (B) the use of a legislator's legislative mailing list for 03 campaign purposes, or the use of mailing lists, computer data, or other 04 information lawfully obtained from a government agency and available to the 05 general public for nonlegislative purposes; 06 (C) the legislative council, notwithstanding AS 24.05.190, from 07 designating a public facility for use by legislators and legislative employees for 08 health or fitness purposes; when the council designates a facility to be used by 09 legislators and legislative employees for health or fitness purposes, it shall 10 adopt guidelines governing access to and use of the facility; the guidelines may 11 establish times in which use of the facility is limited to specific groups; 12 (D) a legislator from using the legislator's private office in the 13 capital city during a legislative session, and for the 10 days immediately before 14 and the 10 days immediately after a legislative session, for nonlegislative 15 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 16 if there is no cost to the state for the use of the space and equipment, other than 17 utility costs and minimal wear and tear, or the legislator promptly reimburses 18 the state for the cost; an office is considered a legislator's private office under 19 this subparagraph if it is the primary space in the capital city reserved for use 20 by the legislator, whether or not it is shared with others; 21 (E) a legislator from use of legislative employees to prepare 22 and send out seasonal greeting cards; 23 (F) a legislator from using state resources to transport 24 computers or other office equipment owned by the legislator but primarily used 25 for a state function; 26 (G) use by a legislator of photographs of that legislator; 27 (H) reasonable use of the Internet by a legislator or a legislative 28 employee except if the use is for election campaign purposes; 29 (I) a legislator or legislative employee from soliciting, 30 accepting, or receiving a gift on behalf of a recognized, nonpolitical charitable 31 organization in a state facility;
01 (J) a legislator from sending any communication in the form of 02 a newsletter to the legislator's constituents, except a communication expressly 03 advocating the election or defeat of a candidate or a newsletter or material in a 04 newsletter that is clearly only for the private benefit of a legislator or a 05 legislative employee; or 06 (K) full participation in a charity event approved in advance by 07 the Alaska Legislative Council; 08 (3) knowingly seek, accept, use, allocate, grant, or award public funds 09 for a purpose other than that approved by law, or make a false statement in connection 10 with a claim, request, or application for compensation, reimbursement, or travel 11 allowances from public funds; 12 (4) require a legislative employee to perform services for the private 13 benefit of the legislator or employee at any time, or allow a legislative employee to 14 perform services for the private benefit of a legislator or employee on government 15 time; it is not a violation of this paragraph if the services were performed in an 16 unusual or infrequent situation and the person's services were reasonably necessary to 17 permit the legislator or legislative employee to perform official duties; 18 (5) use or authorize the use of state funds, facilities, equipment, 19 services, or another government asset or resource for the purpose of political fund 20 raising or campaigning; this paragraph does not prohibit 21 (A) limited use of state property and resources for personal 22 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 23 either the cost or value related to the use is nominal or the legislator or 24 legislative employee reimburses the state for the cost of the use; 25 (B) the use of a legislator's legislative mailing list, or the use 26 of mailing lists, computer data, or other information lawfully obtained from a 27 government agency and available to the general public for nonlegislative 28 purposes; 29 (C) storing or maintaining, consistent with (b) of this section, 30 election campaign records in a legislator's office; 31 (D) a legislator from using the legislator's private office in the
01 capital city during a legislative session, and for the 10 days immediately before 02 and the 10 days immediately after a legislative session, for nonlegislative 03 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 04 if there is no cost to the state for the use of the space and equipment, other than 05 utility costs and minimal wear and tear, or the legislator promptly reimburses 06 the state for the cost; an office is considered a legislator's private office under 07 this subparagraph if it is the primary space in the capital city reserved for use 08 by the legislator, whether or not it is shared with others; or 09 (E) use by a legislator of photographs of that legislator. 10 * Sec. 3. AS 24.60.030(i) is amended to read: 11 (i) Except when representing another person for compensation subject to 12 AS 24.60.100 and as a professional who is licensed in the state [FOR SUPPLYING 13 INFORMATION REQUESTED BY THE HEARING OFFICER OR THE 14 INDIVIDUAL, BOARD, OR COMMISSION WITH AUTHORITY TO MAKE THE 15 FINAL DECISION IN THE CASE, OR WHEN RESPONDING TO CONTACTS 16 INITIATED BY THE HEARING OFFICER OR THE INDIVIDUAL, BOARD, OR 17 COMMISSION WITH AUTHORITY TO MAKE THE FINAL DECISION IN THE 18 CASE], a legislator or legislative employee may not attempt to influence the outcome 19 of an administrative hearing by directly or indirectly contacting or attempting to 20 contact the hearing officer assigned to the hearing or the individual, board, or 21 commission with authority to make the final decision in the matter [CASE] unless 22 [THE] 23 (1) the contact is made in the presence of all parties to the hearing or 24 the parties' representatives while the legislator or legislative employee is acting as a 25 party or a witness in the matter or responding to a question asked of the 26 legislator or legislative employee by the hearing officer, individual, board, or 27 commission and the contact is made a part of the record; or 28 (2) the contact is inadvertent and ex parte and the fact and 29 substance of the contact are [IS] promptly disclosed by the legislator or legislative 30 employee to all parties to the hearing and [THE CONTACT IS] made a part of the 31 record.
01 * Sec. 4. AS 24.60.060(a) is amended to read: 02 (a) A legislator, [OR] legislative employee, or public member of the 03 committee may not knowingly make an unauthorized disclosure of information that is 04 made confidential by law and that the person acquired in the course of official duties. 05 A person who violates this section is subject to a proceeding under AS 24.60.170 and 06 may be subject to prosecution under AS 11.56.860 or another law. 07 * Sec. 5. AS 24.60.080(a) is amended to read: 08 (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a legislator or legislative 09 employee may not 10 (1) solicit, accept, or receive, directly or indirectly, a gift worth $250 11 or more, whether in the form of money, services, a loan, travel, entertainment, 12 hospitality, promise, or other form, or gifts from the same person worth less than $250 13 that in a calendar year aggregate to $250 or more in value; 14 (2) solicit, accept, or receive a gift with any monetary value from a 15 lobbyist, an immediate family member of a lobbyist, or a person acting on behalf of a 16 lobbyist, except 17 (A) food or beverage for immediate consumption; 18 (B) a contribution to a charity event, [FROM ANY PERSON 19 AT ANY TIME, AND] tickets to [FOR] a charity event, and [AT ANY TIME, 20 EXCEPT THAT TICKETS TO OR] gifts received in connection with [AT] a 21 charity event; however, tickets to a charity event and gifts received in 22 connection with a charity event that are not included in the price of the 23 ticket [UNDER THIS SUBPARAGRAPH] are subject to the calendar year 24 limit on the value of gifts received by a legislator or legislative employee in (1) 25 of this subsection; in this subparagraph, "charity event" means an event the 26 proceeds of which go to a charitable organization with tax-free status under 26 27 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) and that the Alaska Legislative Council has approved in 28 advance; the tickets may entitle the bearer to admission to the event, to 29 entertainment, to food or beverages, or to other gifts or services in connection 30 with [INVOLVED IN] the charity event; 31 (C) a gift that is unconnected with the recipient's legislative
01 status and is from a member of the legislator's or legislative employee's 02 immediate family; 03 (D) a gift delivered on the premises of a state facility and 04 accepted on behalf of a recognized nonpolitical charitable organization; or 05 (E) a compassionate gift under AS 24.60.075. 06 * Sec. 6. AS 24.60.080(c) is amended to read: 07 (c) Notwithstanding (a)(1) of this section, it is not a violation of this section 08 for a person who is a legislator or legislative employee to accept 09 (1) hospitality, other than hospitality described in (4) of this 10 subsection, 11 (A) with incidental transportation at the residence of a person; 12 however, a vacation home located outside the state is not considered a 13 residence for the purposes of this subparagraph; or 14 (B) at a social event or meal; 15 (2) discounts that are available 16 (A) generally to the public or to a large class of persons to 17 which the person belongs; or 18 (B) when on official state business, but only if receipt of the 19 discount benefits the state; 20 (3) food or foodstuffs indigenous to the state that are shared generally 21 as a cultural or social norm; 22 (4) travel and hospitality primarily for the purpose of obtaining 23 information on matters of legislative concern; 24 (5) gifts from the immediate family of the person; in this paragraph, 25 "immediate family" means 26 (A) the spouse of the person; 27 (B) the person's domestic partner; 28 (C) a child, including a stepchild and an adoptive child, of the 29 person or of the person's domestic partner; 30 (D) a parent, sibling, grandparent, aunt, or uncle of the person; 31 (E) a parent, sibling, grandparent, aunt, or uncle of the person's
01 spouse or the person's domestic partner; and 02 (F) a stepparent, stepsister, stepbrother, step-grandparent, step- 03 aunt, or step-uncle of the person, the person's spouse, or the person's domestic 04 partner; 05 (6) gifts that are not connected with the recipient's legislative status; 06 (7) a discount for all or part of a legislative session, including time 07 immediately preceding or following the session, or other gift to welcome a legislator 08 or legislative employee who is employed on the personal staff of a legislator or by a 09 standing or special committee to the capital city or in recognition of the beginning of a 10 legislative session if the gift or discount is available generally to all legislators and the 11 personal staff of legislators and staff of standing and special committees; this 12 paragraph does not apply to legislative employees who are employed by the 13 Legislative Affairs Agency, the office of the chief clerk, the office of the senate 14 secretary, the legislative budget and audit committee, the office of victims' rights, or 15 the office of the ombudsman; 16 (8) a gift of legal services in a matter of legislative concern and a gift 17 of other services related to the provision of legal services in a matter of legislative 18 concern; 19 (9) a gift of transportation from a legislator or a legislative employee to 20 a legislator or a legislative employee if the transportation takes place in the state on or 21 in an aircraft, boat, motor vehicle, or other means of transport owned or under the 22 control of the donor; this paragraph does not apply to travel described in (4) of this 23 subsection or travel for political campaign purposes; or 24 (10) a contribution to a charity event from any person at any time, or a 25 ticket to a charity event from a person who is not a lobbyist, an immediate family 26 member of a lobbyist, or acting on behalf of a lobbyist; in this paragraph, "charity 27 event" has the meaning given in (a)(2)(B) of this section. 28 * Sec. 7. AS 24.60.080(d) is amended to read: 29 (d) A legislator or legislative employee who accepts a gift under (c)(4) of this 30 section that has a value of $250 or more or a ticket to a charity event under 31 (c)(10) of this section that has a value of $250 or more shall disclose to the committee,
01 within 30 days after receipt of the gift, the name and occupation of the donor and the 02 approximate value of the gift. A legislator or legislative employee who accepts a gift 03 under (c)(8) of this section that the recipient expects will have a value of $250 or more 04 in the calendar year shall disclose to the committee, within 30 days after receipt of the 05 gift, the name and occupation of the donor, a general description of the matter of 06 legislative concern with respect to which the gift is made, and the approximate value 07 of the gift. The committee shall maintain a public record of the disclosures it receives 08 relating to gifts under (c)(4), (c)(8), (c)(10), and (i) of this section and shall forward 09 the disclosures to the appropriate house for inclusion in the journal. The committee 10 shall forward to the Alaska Public Offices Commission copies of the disclosures 11 concerning gifts under (c)(4), (c)(8), (c)(10), and (i) of this section that it receives 12 from legislators and legislative directors. A legislator or legislative employee who 13 accepts a gift under (c)(6) of this section that has a value of $250 or more shall, within 14 30 days after receiving the gift, disclose to the committee the name and occupation of 15 the donor and a description of the gift. The committee shall maintain disclosures 16 relating to gifts under (c)(6) of this section as confidential records and may only use, 17 or permit a committee employee or contractor to use, a disclosure under (c)(6) of this 18 section in the investigation of a possible violation of this section or in a proceeding 19 under AS 24.60.170. If the disclosure under (c)(6) of this section becomes part of the 20 record of a proceeding under AS 24.60.170, the confidentiality provisions of that 21 section apply to the disclosure. 22 * Sec. 8. AS 24.60.105 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 23 (d) A person may submit a written request to refrain from making a disclosure 24 that is required by this chapter if making the disclosure would violate the United 25 States Constitution, the Constitution of the State of Alaska, or other state or federal 26 law. The committee shall approve or deny the request, or require further justification 27 from the person making the request. At the request of the committee or a person 28 authorized to act on behalf of the committee, a person who seeks to refrain from 29 making a disclosure under this subsection shall provide the committee with 30 justification in writing, and the committee may review the written justification to 31 determine whether it is sufficient.
01 * Sec. 9. AS 24.60.130(f) is amended to read: 02 (f) The committee may contract for professional services and may employ 03 staff as it considers necessary. A committee employee, including a person who 04 provides personal services under a contract with the committee, may not be a 05 legislator, an elected or appointed official of a state or local governmental entity, an 06 officer of a political party, a candidate for public office, or a registered lobbyist. The 07 legislative council shall provide office space, equipment, and additional staff support 08 for the committee. The committee shall submit a budget for each fiscal year to the 09 finance committees of the legislature and shall annually submit an estimated budget to 10 the governor for information purposes in preparation of the state operating budget. 11 Public members of the committee shall receive [SERVE WITHOUT] compensation 12 of $150 a day while attending committee meetings and [FOR THEIR SERVICES, 13 BUT] are entitled to per diem and travel expenses authorized for boards and 14 commissions under AS 39.20.180. 15 * Sec. 10. AS 24.60.130(n) is amended to read: 16 (n) A member who participates at the commencement of a proceeding 17 under AS 24.60.170 shall participate for the duration of the proceeding unless 18 disqualified or unable to continue participating for any reason; however, 19 provision shall be made for service by alternate members on the committee or on 20 a subcommittee, as follows: 21 (1) when [WHEN] appointing members of the legislature to serve on 22 the committee, the speaker of the house or the president of the senate, as appropriate, 23 shall appoint an alternate member for each regular member; an [. AN] alternate must 24 have the same qualifications as the regular member for whom the alternate stands as 25 alternate and is subject to confirmation as required for the regular member; 26 (2) when selecting public members to serve on the committee, the 27 Chief Justice of the Alaska Supreme Court shall also select one alternate public 28 member; the alternate public member's selection is subject to ratification as 29 required for selection of the regular public members; 30 (3) if, except as to a proceeding under AS 24.60.170, [. IF] a regular 31 [LEGISLATIVE] member of the committee or a subcommittee is unable to
01 participate in [ATTEND] a meeting, the chair of the committee or a subcommittee 02 shall designate the regular member's alternate to participate [SERVE] in place of the 03 regular member at the meeting, and the designated alternate, unless for any reason 04 unable to participate, shall participate for the duration of that meeting; if 05 [SERVE UNLESS UNABLE TO SERVE FOR ANY REASON. IF] a regular 06 [LEGISLATIVE] member of the committee or a subcommittee is disqualified under 07 (h) of this section from participating in [SERVING ON THE COMMITTEE OR 08 THE SUBCOMMITTEE CONCERNING] a proceeding under AS 24.60.170 or if the 09 regular member is unable to participate [ATTEND], the chair of the committee or a 10 subcommittee shall designate the regular member's alternate to participate [SERVE] 11 in place of the regular member for the duration of [IN] the proceeding unless the 12 alternate is [ALSO] disqualified or is for any reason unable to participate; the 13 [FROM SERVING. THE] designation shall be treated as confidential to the same 14 extent that the identity of the subject of a complaint is required to be kept confidential. 15 * Sec. 11. AS 24.60.990(a) is amended by adding new paragraphs to read: 16 (17) "constituent" means a person to whom a legislator owes a duty of 17 representation under the Constitution of the State of Alaska; 18 (18) "constituent service" means assistance, including representation 19 other than legal representation and advice other than legal advice, that is provided by a 20 legislator or a legislator's staff to a constituent; 21 (19) "legislative purpose" means legislative action or providing 22 constituent service; 23 (20) "nonlegislative purpose" means a purpose other than a legislative 24 purpose; 25 (21) "private benefit" means a benefit that is conferred on a person 26 with a purpose that is mainly a nonlegislative purpose.