Legislature(2013 - 2014)BARNES 124
01/29/2013 11:15 AM House ECON. DEV., TRADE & TOURISM
Audio | Topic |
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Start | |
Overviews (s): Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute Overview and Seafood Marketing Efforts | |
HCR1 | |
Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
*+ | HCR 1 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | TELECONFERENCED | ||
HCR 1-STATE FOOD RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT GROUP 11:48:05 AM CHAIR HUGHES announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 1, Relating to the establishment and operation of a state food resource development working group. 11:48:42 AM REPRESENTATIVE BILL STOLTZE, Alaska State Legislature, informed the committee he is introducing HCR 1 in order to integrate the resources within existing departments and agencies thereby improving support for agriculture - and food policy in general - through better coordination of services. The resolution pinpoints the departments, agencies, and groups that have a role in agriculture from the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) which administers Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) food and nutrition programs, to the Department of Corrections (DOC), which makes many agricultural purchases. In fact, efforts by Representative Stoltze, other legislators, farmers, and wholesalers have been successful in increasing DOC's purchases of local agricultural products from $32,000 in FY 08 to $113,000 in FY 11. House Concurrent Resolution 1 seeks for all departments, agencies and the University of Alaska (UA) to be more proactive in promoting and utilizing agriculture in Alaska. Last year's capital budget included an appropriation for the Department of Commerce, Community & Economic Development (DCCED) to approve Alaska Grown, Alaska Wild Seafood, and Alaska Husbandry products. He noted two previously successful programs: the promotion of vegetables and the salmon supplied to the Galena City School District by Kaltag Fisheries. Representative Stoltze advised the resolution has wide support. 11:52:56 AM CHAIR HUGHES asked how the resolution will "fill a gap that the [Alaska] Food Policy Council isn't currently filling?" REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE said the council is a private group which agrees that Alaska needs a better food policy. Although the resolution is as inclusive as possible, the administration will have to invite participants. In further response to Chair Hughes' question on the membership of the group, he expressed his belief that for the resolution to be successful, the administration will have to agree [to the membership], therefore, for the resolution to set out the membership of the group would have been counterproductive. REPRESENTATIVE HUGHES noted the resolution brings eight departments and UA together so it will potentially have impact across the state. REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE stated he was open to incorporating good ideas into HCR 1. 11:56:04 AM REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND stated her interest in the resolution, noting her urban district includes "enormously successful" farmers markets stocked with products from other districts. She has heard that Alaska produces less than 5 percent of the food that is consumed in the state, and said she supports any way to increase that. CHAIR HUGHES recalled in the 1950s Alaska produced 50 percent of the food consumed. REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE surmised that Alaska has been a victim of efficiencies and better transportation. REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND observed the Anchorage School District has a large food service facility that serves 20,000 students each school day. She opined school food service facilities should be utilized each non-school day to process food and support community and state programs such as WIC. CHAIR HUGHES expressed her belief that part of what the working group authorized by HCR 1 will address is recommendations regarding similar opportunities. 11:59:27 AM REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE agreed. CHAIR HUGHES reminded the committee that the nutritional value of food declines with time after harvest. She invited public testimony. 12:00:15 PM KEVIN BRENNAN, Executive Director, Kodiak Regional Aquaculture Association, stated his support for the resolution, saying that it is a good move for the state. The Kodiak Regional Aquaculture Association is one of seven regional corporations that run salmon hatcheries and perform salmon enhancement projects across the state along with many non-regional, private, nonprofit salmon hatchery systems. He advised that hatchery production salmon account for about 30 percent of the statewide salmon harvest. The association seeks to encourage action by the state to help with food security and food resources. Unfortunately, many view salmon hatchery systems as commercial fishery-driven and profit based; however, hatcheries have expanded their roles to support food security. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has identified fish as a single food that can be used to address all aspects of world malnutrition. Hatcheries produce fish for the commercial fishery, subsistence, personal-use, and sport fisheries as well. Mr. Brennan gave an example of a hatchery that stocked sockeye into a barren lake and provided a source of food for the local community. Sport fish programs along the road system produce for local use and support tourism. The association board of directors passed a resolution in 2012 that read in part: We acknowledge our role as a food producer and commit to working in a collaborative multi-disciplinary manner to address the issues and challenges of food security at a local, regional, and global level ... 12:05:37 PM BRYCE WRIGLEY, President, Alaska Farm Bureau, encouraged the adoption and implementation of HCR 1. He cautioned that food security in Alaska is subject to disruptions of its transportation system such as the closure of the highway last summer; the only way for Alaska to become more food secure is to produce a greater amount of food within the state. Mr. Wrigley expressed his appreciation that the resolution brings many diverse agencies together in order to resolve the problem of food security. 12:07:54 PM REX WRIGLEY agreed with the previous speaker and expressed his support of HCR 1. 12:08:24 PM DEAN HAMBURG, Chair, Public Policy & Legislation, Alaska School Nutrition Association, and the administrator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture National School Meal Program, Kenai School District, expressed the association's support of HCR 1 because it is a step toward improved food security for Alaska families. Efforts to support locally sourced and processed foods are best for kids and adults. Those responsible for providing school meals to the 43 percent of Alaskan families who qualify for free and reduced school meals are challenged by the need to source foods from outside Alaska, and welcome HCR 1 as a positive step towards bringing quality foods and increased quantities of Alaska foods to the Alaskan children served by school meal programs. 12:10:52 PM KATE VEH, speaking on her own behalf, expressed her support of HCR 1. She said her community is excited about local foods and the government should support the public. 12:11:49 PM KYRA WAGNER, speaking on her own behalf, informed the committee she is involved with the cooperative extension state advisory board, the local food workgroup of the Alaska Food Policy Council, the Homer farmers market, and growers who are using the USDA High Tunnel Grants for Organic Farmers. Her community is networking to identify local food systems and it is apparent there is a need to expand small scale production and distribution. Ms. Wagner said the resolution creates a point of contact for information and an infrastructure for collaboration between state agencies. 12:14:23 PM LARRY DEVILBISS, Mayor, Matanuska-Susitna (Mat-Su) Borough, said he is a farmer and the former director of the Division of Agriculture, Department of Natural Resources, who has been involved in the farming industry since childhood. He recognizes the frustration felt by Alaska farmers who cannot market their products; for example, Alaska has long held the capacity to saturate the potato market, yet farmers are unable to market to state agencies such as the Department of Corrections - even after the passage of Alaska-preference legislation. Although the marketing of carrots has been successful for 15 years, "the state agencies are the hardest ones to get products into." As mayor, Mr. Devilbiss seeks to increase the percentage of locally-produced foods because the creation of ready markets will encourage the next generation of farmers. 12:18:27 PM TAFFINA KATKUS said she was a consultant representing agriculture for the Mat-Su Borough and a raspberry farmer. She expressed her support for HCR 1, pointing out the importance of working together to make Alaska self-reliant. Farmers are unsung heroes - without whom we could not get by - because they provide food. From her experience she has learned that solutions and answers come from many people and she has high expectations that the working group created by the resolution will look at the environmental impacts that are a major factor in economic expansion, and that the legislature will study policies affecting entrepreneurs. Ms. Katkus stated that farmers in the borough are producing more than one-half of the state's local production of crops and meat and repeated her support for the resolution. 12:22:41 PM DELENA JOHNSON, Mayor, City of Palmer, expressed her support for HCR 1 which holds a vision to address the needs of all Alaskans. The issue of food is universal and nonpartisan thus this subject deserves the collaborative effort requested by the resolution. Palmer has a 100-year history of agriculture in the region, but agriculture has had a place in Sitka and Kodiak even longer; this is a statewide issue and applies to everyone throughout the state. Ms. Johnson stressed that farmers are hardworking and government should work as hard. In fact, federal, state, and local governments put up a lot of hurdles to farming and legislation can help. She encouraged the governor to study this issue closely, and pointed out that tourists are also interested in Alaska farming. 12:26:43 PM DANNY CONSENSTEIN, State Executive Director, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farm Service Agency for Alaska, and a member of the governing board, Alaska Food Policy Council, said he is in strong support of HCR 1. He agreed that importing 95 percent of the food consumed in Alaska creates vulnerabilities; however, there is also a health issue when citizens do not have access to local and fresh food leading to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. The broken food system also limits economic opportunities for local workers because of "hemorrhaging all of our food dollars to the Lower 48." Mr. Consenstein pointed out the resolution recognizes the problem and proposes that the first step toward a solution is the coordination of state agencies. Federal and local jurisdictions such as USDA are also trying to improve by the coordination of their agencies. He relayed that the food policy council will be forwarding policy recommendations to the legislature regarding improvements the state can make in infrastructure, training opportunities, procurement, and marketing. 12:31:19 PM MARY SULLIVAN, Director, Department of Advocacy and Agency, Anchorage Food Bank of Alaska, stated her organization's strong support for HCR 1, saying improved coordination is a necessary and viable answer to hunger problems and food security issues in the state. She informed the committee that the food bank and other anti-hunger advocates agree that this is a good resolution. 12:32:24 PM JOE BALASH, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Commissioner, Department of Natural Resources (DNR), stated that DNR - as one of the named agencies in the resolution - offers its support for HCR 1 and looks forward to working for this effort. 12:33:02 PM DARREN SNYDER, 4-H Youth & Development and Agriculture/Horticulture Agent, Southeast District, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Fairbanks, University of Alaska, and a governing board member of the Alaska Food Policy Council, expressed his strong support for HCR 1. He said the resolution recognizes the importance to all Alaskans of developing a strong and secure food system that provides jobs, healthy communities, food for the hungry, and a secure food supply chain. Over 130 representatives have joined the Alaska Food Policy Council because of challenges such as food dollars that could stay in Alaska and create jobs; health concerns for disease and contaminated food; and the high cost of food. The vision of the council is for a healthy and secure food system that feeds all Alaskans, and its mission is to improve the food system for the benefit of all Alaskans. Initiated in 2010, the council is an independent organization that is open to anyone and is working to connect people from different areas of the food system, focus attention on the problems of the food system, and elevate policy to strengthen the food system. Members work to strengthen the local agriculture and fisheries product preference statute and to increase state agencies' purchase of Alaska agricultural and fish products, and have collaborated to pilot-test the Alaska Farmers' Market-Quest Card program. Goals of the council's 2012-2015 strategic plan are: all Alaskans have access to affordable, healthy, local foods; Alaska's food- related industries have a strong workforce; the food is safe and supplies are secure; the food system is sustainable; and that Alaskans are engaged in their food system. Mr. Snyder expressed the council's appreciation for the legislature's support and encouraged the governor to establish a state food resource development working group. 12:37:13 PM JIM SACKETT, CEO and President, Toghotthele Corporation, informed the committee Toghotthele Corporation is the Alaska Native village corporation of Nenana. He expressed the corporation's support of HCR 1 and requested an amendment which read: Following the words, "to work collaboratively with Alaska Native regional corporations" insert "and village corporations" MR. SACKETT explained that the regional corporations own the sub-surface estate, but village corporations own the surface estate where the food is actually grown. He noted that the rising cost of energy will affect the cost of transportation and growing food locally will become even more important. He pointed out that Nenana is geographically located in the center of the state with a highway, railroad, and barge system to move food to the western cities. 12:38:55 PM MIKE O'HARE, Deputy Director, Division of Homeland Security/Emergency Management, Department of Military & Veterans' Affairs stated that his division is one of the named agencies in the resolution that would be required to coordinate with others to provide food reassurance and the utilization of domestically grown and harvested food. He assured the committee the division does incorporate locally grown and harvested food resources in its catastrophic food assurance plan. 12:40:06 PM CHAIR HUGHES closed public testimony. 12:40:21 PM REPRESENTATIVE HERRON moved Conceptual Amendment 1 which read: On page 5, line 9, following "Alaska Native regional" insert "and village" 12:40:44 PM CHAIR HUGHES objected for the purpose of discussion. 12:41:03 PM REPRESENTATIVE HERRON observed that village corporations have the surface rights in their respective jurisdictions and this is an appropriate amendment to the resolution. 12:41:09 PM REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE spoke in support of the amendment. 12:42:14 PM CHAIR HUGHES removed her objection. There being no further objection, Conceptual Amendment 1 was adopted. 12:43:09 PM [HCR 1 was held over.]
Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
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HCR 1 Sponsor Statement Jan29.pdf |
HEDT 1/29/2013 11:15:00 AM |
HCR 1 |
ASMI - EDTT.pdf |
HEDT 1/29/2013 11:15:00 AM |
|
HCR1 Support Letters Jan 29.pdf |
HEDT 1/29/2013 11:15:00 AM |
HCR 1 |
HCR 1 Support letters (2) Jan 29.pdf |
HEDT 1/29/2013 11:15:00 AM |
HCR 1 |