Legislature(2023 - 2024)DAVIS 106
03/23/2023 03:00 PM House HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s): Department of Health, Commissioner | |
| HB112 | |
| HB60 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | HB 112 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 60 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
HB 60-RUNAWAYS; DFCS/DOH: DUTIES/LICENSING/INFO
4:49:07 PM
CHAIR PRAX announced that the final order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 60, "An Act relating to the licensing of runaway
shelters; relating to advisors to the board of trustees of the
Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority; relating to the sharing of
confidential health information between the Department of Health
and the Department of Family and Community Services; relating to
the duties of the Department of Health and the Department of
Family and Community Services; and providing for an effective
date."
4:49:54 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to adopt the proposed committee
substitute (CS) for HB 60, 33-GH1343\S, Bergerud, 3/21/23, as
the working document.
4:50:14 PM
CHAIR PRAX objected for purpose of discussion.
4:50:37 PM
RILEY NYE, Staff, Representative Mike Prax, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of the bill sponsor, House Rules, by
request of the governor, explained that HB 60 was introduced to
support the reorganization of the Department of Health and
Social Services in to the Department of Family and Community
Services and the Department of Health under Executive Order 121.
Version S amends the original version to reflect new fixes and
missions to support the reorganization, which include adding the
Department of Family and Community Services to the definition of
"department" in A.S. 18.65 Section 2, giving clarification of
the role of each department as it relates to shelters for
runaways. He requested the invited speakers to testify.
4:52:32 PM
HEATHER CARPENTER, Deputy Director, Office of the Commissioner,
Department of Health, paraphrased the explanation of changes to
HB 60 proposed in Version S [included in committee packet],
which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
Section 1 This language is unchanged from section 1 of
version A.
Section 2 Version S includes the newly identified need
to include the Department of Family and Community
Services in the definition of department.
Section 3 This language is unchanged from section 2 of
version A.
Section 4 This language is unchanged from section 3 of
version A.
Sections 5-9 and 11-14 Version S updates these
sections to further clarify the duties of each
department related to programs for runaways.
Section 10 Version S updates the bill to include a
necessary clarification related to the confidentiality
of records related to shelters for runaways.
Section 15 This language is unchanged from section 10
of version A.
Section 16 Version S amends this section to replace
the term "authorizing" with "applicable" from section
11 of version A. This change reflects the removal of
the definition for the term "authorizing" in section
20 below.
Sections 17-18 This language is unchanged from
sections 12-13 of version A.
Section 19 This language is unchanged from section 14
of version A.
Section 20 Version S amends Section 15 from version A
to remove the new definition for "authorizing
department" to avoid potential confusion with the
duplicate definition of "applicable department."
Section 21 Version S moves the repeal of this language
related to the licensure of shelters for runaways from
Section 9 in version A. AS 47.32.010 was repealed and
reenacted under Executive Order 121, section 79.
Section 22 This language is unchanged from section 16
of version A.
4:55:50 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER pointed out that the date of the CS is
labeled March 21, and that there is a legal opinion by Margaret
Bergerud, Legislative Legal Counsel, about potential single
subject law violations, which is also dated March 21. He asked
if the legal opinion applies to the CS before the committee.
4:56:18 PM
STACIE KRALY, Director, Civil Division, Department of Law,
answered yes, in that, the memo relates to the CS and the
overall framework of HB 60.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked Ms. Kraly to comment on the
validity of the allegation that the bill may likely violate the
single subject provisions of the state constitution.
MS. KRALY answered that she disagrees with Legislative Legal
Service's assessment that there is a single subject issue with
the CS. She pointed to the title, which shows there are a
number of different issues being addressed, and looking at the
underlying theme, the bill deals with all of the powers and
duties for the Department of Health and the Department of Family
and Community Services. She relayed that a concern raised was
in regard to the mental health trust authority; the change in
the CS articulates that there was an issue with who was going to
be on the advisory council for the trust authority. She
explained that, at the advice of Legislative Legal Services last
year, the department had picked a particular commissioner
because it said a member cannot be added to the advisory board
because that would be a subject change in nature, which is not
allowed under executive order rule; further, the commissioner
was picked for that purpose, with an understanding that they
would need to come back this year and introduce a bill to
articulate how the two departments interact with the mental
health trust authority. She explained that there are no
substantive changes to trust statutes in the bill, rather, it
articulates that both departments need to be involved as
advisory members to the board. She elaborated that every
provision in the bill relates to the operations of the two
departments and how they meet their statutory duties. She
stressed that she does not see any problems with the bill as it
is drafted.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER advised that it'd be better to get these
issues resolved on the front-end, and that he hopes there will
be a meeting to hash out the legal issues.
5:00:20 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SUMNER read from Section 13 of the Alaska State
Constitution, which read as follows:
Every bill shall be confined to one subject unless it
is an appropriation bill or one codifying, revising,
or rearranging existing laws.
REPRESENTATIVE SUMNER offered his understanding that, through
the executive order, the two departments are separated and now
the legislature is codifying that.
5:01:18 PM
MS. KRALY stated that the power to split the department is
authorized by the constitution. She explained that it was
conveyed last year that there would some minor technical changes
this year because one cannot amend an executive order during the
process, and that HB 60 is a clean-up bill.
5:02:23 PM
CHAIR PRAX withdrew his objection. There being no further
objection, the CS, Version S, was before the committee as a
working document.
5:03:05 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to report CSHB 60, Version 33-
GH1343\S, Bergerud, 3/21/23, out of committee with individual
recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being
no objection, CSHB 60(HSS) was reported out of the House Health
and Social Services Standing Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 112 Sectional Analysis .pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 112 |
| HB 112 Sponsor Statement Version B.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 112 |
| HB0112A.PDF |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 112 |
| Heidi Hedberg Resume 2023.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
|
| HB112 HSS Hearing slides 3.23.23.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 112 |
| HB 60 CS Version S.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 60 |
| HB 60 Sectional Analysis (Version S) 3-23-23.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 60 |
| HB 60 Explanation of Changes Version A to Verson S (3-23-23).pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 60 |
| HB 112 Support as of 3_21 Redacted.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 112 |
| HB 112 Fiscal Note DCCED.pdf |
HHSS 3/23/2023 3:00:00 PM |
HB 112 |