Legislature(2005 - 2006)BUTROVICH 205
03/27/2006 01:30 PM Senate HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HCR5 | |
| HJR31 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 281 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HJR 31 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HCR 5 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HCR 5-FLUORIDATION
1:33:48 PM
CHAIR DYSON announced HCR 5 to be up for consideration.
REPRESENTATIVE PAUL SEATON, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor,
paraphrased the sponsor statement, which read:
HCR 5 encourages Alaskan communities to incorporate
fluoride in their public water systems.
Fluoridating water has been shown to dramatically
reduce dental cavities especially in children.
Fluoride is one of the most efficient ways of
providing cost-effective preventative dental health
care. Every dollar spent on fluoridation saves $37 in
future dental expenses. Currently, all cities in
Alaska with a population exceeding 30,000 have access
to fluoridated water. The benefits of fluoridated
water should be extended to all Alaskans.
HCR 5 requests that all new community water systems be
engineered with the capacity for incorporating
fluoride.
Tooth decay is a serious problem in Alaska,
particularly in rural areas where access to dentists
is not easily available. Poor dental health also puts
a major burden upon Medicaid/Medicare programs.
Fluoridating community water systems is an investment
in Alaska's public health that would provide returns
both in dental health and to the pocketbook. HCR 5
makes it clear that the state supports communities in
taking this step to improve the dental health of their
residents.
He emphasized that HCR 5 leaves up to local communities the
decision whether to fluoridate.
SENATOR OLSON arrived at 1:36:08 PM.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON referred to a study by the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration (FDA), brought attention to numerous Alaskan
organizations in support and noted that 69 world health
organizations support community fluoridation. In response to
Chair Dyson, he mentioned the zero fiscal note from the
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) as well as a
figure of $2,500 for engineering to add this ability.
CHAIR DYSON suggested costs would vary, depending on the plant.
1:38:55 PM
SENATOR OLSON asked how often a wrong concentration has been put
into a water supply.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON noted there'd been one very serious
problem in Alaska. He pointed out that monitoring equipment has
vastly improved over time. He said he didn't know the number of
times an individual plant had been involved in such an incident.
SENATOR WILKEN arrived at 1:40:09 PM.
[Audio recording begins.]
1:41:45 PM
SENATOR ELTON began discussion of what became Conceptual
Amendment 1. He said he had no problem with the resolution, but
suggested clarification was needed on page 2, line 17, perhaps
to say "to allow easy later incorporation of fluoridation". He
added that he needed to think about it further.
1:42:16 PM
SENATOR GREEN highlighted the same wording, but a different
concern: since communities don't design or pay for these
systems, she questioned whether they really have a choice
regarding what is incorporated into a system.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON indicated someone from "Village Safe
Water" was on teleconference. He then specified the intent:
the State of Alaska, when it goes through the design criteria
and designs water systems, will incorporate into those systems
the necessary connections. The choice of whether to fluoridate
the water is up to the community, however. He pointed out that
the state doesn't want to have to re-engineer a system. He said
he wasn't opposed to clarifying the language.
1:44:52 PM
SENATOR GREEN asked, if this requires DEC to take action,
whether a resolution is the proper vehicle and whether perhaps
it should be a bill instead.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON agreed that if the desire is to mandate
that DEC do it, there'd be a bill. He indicated the intent is
that this be included in the request for proposals (RFP) for
design, as one design criterion.
1:46:18 PM
SENATOR GREEN said she believes it goes beyond a resolution,
since if the community desires it and requests it, then DEC will
be responsible for making it available.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON suggested the Village Safe Water person
could say whether that is normally included in designs anyway.
He stated his intention to let DEC know that the legislature
would appreciate it if DEC designed the taps into all future
facilities so that communities could select the option at a
future time without great cost.
1:47:11 PM
CHAIR DYSON offered his experience that a resolution is one way
for the legislature to declare its intention. He said he sees
no harm in making this statement. If DEC concurs, it will
probably happen if the administration doesn't disagree.
1:47:57 PM
CHAIR DYSON proposed amending page 2, line 17, to say, "all new
public water systems incorporate engineering designed to
facilitate incorporation of fluoridation if the community so
desires at a [later] time."
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said he had no problem with that.
1:49:15 PM
SENATOR ELTON remarked that he was comfortable with the language
proposed by Chair Dyson, but asked whether Representative Seaton
intended this to include all new water systems.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON replied, "The intent here is the ones that
we fund, and so we're funding public water systems and Village
Safe Water systems."
1:49:46 PM
CHAIR DYSON pointed out that some public water systems might not
have a state component in their funding. He surmised that
Representative Seaton meant to imply the ones under the
jurisdiction of the state inspectors, regardless of whether
state money is involved. He requested confirmation.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON nodded and replied, "Thank you."
1:50:14 PM
SENATOR GREEN interpreted the foregoing to mean this includes a
private builder, and again said she doesn't see how this can be
done by resolution.
CHAIR DYSON clarified that he intends to ensure it doesn't
include a private builder. He pointed out that the original
language referred to all new systems. He said he didn't want
private individuals, with their own wells, to suddenly have to
deal with this.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said he appreciated the clarification.
1:51:24 PM
CHAIR DYSON moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1, page 2,
line 17, to read: "Further Resolved that all new public water
systems incorporate engineering design to facilitate
incorporation of fluoridation if the community so desires at a
later time." Suggesting it was a bit awkward, Chair Dyson
slightly reworded it to say "at a later time if the community so
desires it."
1:52:17 PM
SENATOR ELTON said he liked the second approach, but would be
comfortable leaving it to the drafter.
CHAIR DYSON asked whether there was any objection. No objection
was stated, and Conceptual Amendment 1 was adopted. He announced
that the wording would be left to the drafter.
1:52:40 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON noted that on teleconference was Troy
Ritter of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, which
works with fluoridated water systems and Village Safe Water.
CHAIR DYSON asked whether Mr. Ritter had any information that he
believed members needed to know before moving the bill.
1:52:58 PM
TROY RITTER, Environmental Health Specialist, Alaska Native
Tribal Health Consortium, offered some clarification. Reporting
that he sits on the Indian Health Services sanitation (indisc.),
he said this system provides about $20 million a year for
village water and (indisc.) in Alaska. The state's Village Safe
Water program is kind of a partner funding organization. "We
work together to build pretty much all Alaskan water and sewer
infrastructure," he said. Mr. Ritter reported that, from a
practical standpoint, this ability to add fluoridation later is
already being incorporated - at least it is supposed to work
that way, although a couple of times it wasn't done because of
an oversight or an engineer's opinion.
1:54:16 PM
SENATOR GREEN asked whether anyone from DEC was available.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said no. He noted that Mr. Ritter works
with DEC in designing water systems.
1:54:46 PM
SENATOR ELTON moved to report HCR 5, as amended, from committee
with individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes.
Without objection, SCS HCR 5(HES) was reported from the Senate
Health, Education and Social Services Standing Committee.
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