02/09/2012 09:00 AM Senate STATE AFFAIRS

         SB 179-MISSING VULNERABLE ADULT RESPONSE PLAN                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI announced the consideration of SB 179.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
10:04:18 AM                                                                                                                   
SENATOR BETTYE DAVIS, sponsor of  SB 179, said the legislation is                                                               
similar to the Amber Alert,  but is for vulnerable missing adults                                                               
rather  than children.  About 20  states  currently have  similar                                                               
legislation. The bill has a zero fiscal note.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
10:06:17 AM                                                                                                                   
CELESTE HODGE, staff, Senator  Bettye Davis, provided information                                                               
on SB 179  on behalf of the sponsor. She  read from the following                                                               
sponsor statement:                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
     SB 179 creates a new statewide alert system to help                                                                        
     find vulnerable missing adults. The system, which is                                                                       
     similar to the nationwide Amber Alert program, would                                                                       
     help local law enforcement notify the public when                                                                          
     a mentally or physically impaired Alaskan goes                                                                             
     missing. According to the Alaska Commission on Aging,                                                                      
     there were approximately 7,785 Alaskans suffering from                                                                     
     Alzheimer's Disease and related dementia in 2010, and                                                                      
     that number is expected to grow to more than 17,000 by                                                                     
     2030. Alaska has the fastest growing senior population                                                                     
     in the nation.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
     Recently, in Fairbanks, a 63-year-old woman suffering                                                                      
     from Alzheimer's Disease froze to death after she                                                                          
     became disoriented while driving, ran out of gas, and                                                                      
     tried walking several miles to seek help. This                                                                             
     incident and several others like it demonstrate the                                                                        
     need for an alert system to assist in the search for                                                                       
     missing vulnerable adults. When a vulnerable adult                                                                         
     goes missing, his or her best chance of survival is if                                                                     
     someone finds them within 24 to 48 hours.                                                                                  
     The bill calls for the Department of Military Affairs                                                                      
     to coordinate with Department of Public Safety to                                                                          
     create and implement prompt response and notification                                                                      
     plans that would use a voluntary network of                                                                                
     statewide and local newspapers as well as radio and                                                                        
     television stations to rapidly alert the public that a                                                                     
     vulnerable adult is missing. The bill also calls for                                                                       
     both departments to establish standards on what                                                                            
     triggers an alert and when a vulnerable adult is                                                                           
     officially considered missing. This legislation would                                                                      
     ensure the search for Alaska's most vulnerable                                                                             
     citizens happens a lot faster. Currently, there are 28                                                                     
     states that have implemented or will implement Silver                                                                      
     Alert programs, an increase in 10 states since the                                                                         
     National Association of States for Aging and                                                                               
     Disabilities last report.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MS.  HODGES stated  that the  fiscal  note has  zero impact.  She                                                               
urged support of the bill.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI said there were  ten people waiting to testify                                                               
on the bill.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR GIESSEL asked if the alert system currently exists.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MS. HODGE said it did not.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
10:10:00 AM                                                                                                                   
MICHAEL O'HARE, Deputy Director,  Homeland Security and Emergency                                                               
Management  Department of  Military  and Veterans  Administration                                                               
(DMVA) Fort Richardson, Alaska,  pointed out that there currently                                                               
is an  Amber Alert system in  place in Alaska. It  is a statewide                                                               
relay system activated by the Department of Public Safety (DPS).                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR. O'HARE  related that DMVA has  no problem with the  bill. The                                                               
bill  requires that  DMVA cooperate  with DPS  to put  together a                                                               
Silver Alert  plan. Both departments  are on the  Emergency Alert                                                               
System (EAS)  committee. The EAS  is antiquated and may  not work                                                               
in  remote areas;  however,  a new  system  is forthcoming  which                                                               
would allow for a regional alert approach.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR KOOKESH asked if DMVA supports the bill.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR. O'HARE said absolutely.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
10:13:39 AM                                                                                                                   
MARIE DARLIN, AARP,  Juneau, Alaska, spoke in support  of SB 179.                                                               
She voiced  concern about educating  family caregivers  about how                                                               
to respond when an elderly person is missing.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
10:15:30 AM                                                                                                                   
LESLIE THOMPSON,  Planner I, Alaska Commission  on Aging, Juneau,                                                               
Alaska, testified in support of SB  179. She said that the number                                                               
one concern  of caregivers is  what to  do if a  vulnerable adult                                                               
goes  missing. She  noted  that people  with  Alzheimer's are  at                                                               
great risk because they do wander.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
LT. RODNEY DIAL, Alaska State  Troopers, Ketchikan, Alaska, spoke                                                               
in support of SB 179.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
10:18:22 AM                                                                                                                   
PATRICK CUNNINGHAM,  Professor, University of  Alaska, Anchorage,                                                               
testified  in  support  of  SB  179. He  spoke  of  the  benefits                                                               
provided in the bill for  adults with cognitive disorders, mental                                                               
disabilities, and brain injuries.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
NANCY BURKE,  Trust Program Officer,  Alaska Mental  Health Trust                                                               
Authority (AMHTA), Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in support of SB
. She spoke  of her organization's efforts  to keep vulnerable                                                               
adults who wander, safe.                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
10:20:34 AM                                                                                                                   
RANDI CHAPMAN,  Director of  State Affairs,  National Alzheimer's                                                               
Association, Washington,  D.C., testified  in support of  SB 179.                                                               
She emphasized the importance of local searching techniques.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
DULCE NOBRE, Executive Director,  Alzheimer's Resource of Alaska,                                                               
Palmer, Alaska, testified in support of  SB 179. She spoke of the                                                               
dangers   of  wandering   behavior.  The   organization  provides                                                               
education  and  strategies  for family  care  givers,  but  needs                                                               
assistance with these situations.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
10:23:26 AM                                                                                                                   
KATHRYN  MONFREDA,  Chief,   Criminal  Records  &  Identification                                                               
Bureau, Department of Public Safety,  offered to answer questions                                                               
about the zero fiscal note for SB 179.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR GIESSEL noted  the broadness of the bill with  use of the                                                               
language "vulnerable adults."                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI said a definition exists in statute.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MS. HODGE read the definition  of vulnerable adult: "A vulnerable                                                               
adult is classified  under state law as a person  who is at least                                                               
18 years  old, and, because  of a physical or  mental impairment,                                                               
is unable to meet the person's  own needs or to seek help without                                                               
assistance."                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI stated he would hold SB 179 in committee.