Legislature(2013 - 2014)CAPITOL 120
04/08/2014 05:00 PM House RULES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB383 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 383 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HB 383-AK GASLINE DEVELOPMENT CORP. MEMBERSHIP
5:02:29 PM
CHAIR JOHNSON announced that the only order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 383, "An Act relating to the membership of the
board of the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation; and
providing for an effective date."
5:02:51 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CHENAULT informed the committee that HB 383 was
sponsored by the House Rules Standing Committee per his request.
The legislation amends AGDC [Alaska Gasline Development
Corporation] statute in order to allow for out-of-state board
appointments. He opined that AGDC statute should be amended to
fix a technical oversight and reflect the intent of the
legislature, which was clear in testimony [regarding HB 4] last
year. That intent last year was to provide the governor with
the ultimate discretion in appointing the most qualified people
to serve on the AGDC Board and develop projects that move gas to
Alaskans. Furthermore, the Framers of the Alaska State
Constitution amended Section 26 to replace the state residency
requirement with the U.S. [residency] requirement. In fact, on
page 2239 of the Alaska Constitutional Convention proceedings,
Delegate Hellenthal and Delegate McNees were quoted as saying,
respectively:
I have faith in the executive, I have faith in the
legislative, and I am sure that they will pick
qualified men. It might be that those qualified men
would be men of residence elsewhere and recent
arrivals or they might even be sought out elsewhere.
I would be worried if such a restrictive provision
limiting board appointments to residents of the state
were included in the constitution.
An executive should not be limited in reaching out and
picking the best available man, irrespective as to
where that might be.
REPRESENTATIVE CHENAULT then informed the committee that the
AGDC Board is currently comprised of two commissioners and five
public members appointed by the governor. The governor, he
highlighted, is encouraged to appoint individuals with specific
qualifications and expertise in pipeline construction, large
project management, and etcetera. By statute, AGDC's mission
requires the board and the corporation to act in the best
interest of Alaskans. Currently, the AGDC Board is comprised of
all Alaskans, save one appointee. House Bill 4 was complex
legislation that specifically laid out a structure for AGDC as a
corporation and defined what the legislature wanted in terms of
board appointments, which is generally addressed in AS 39.05
relating to public officers and employees. Alaska Statute
39.05.100 requires board appointments to be Alaskans unless
otherwise specified. House Bill 4 addressed board requirements
without specifically stating whether members had to be Alaskans.
Legal guidance at the time and testimony related that HB 4
allowed for individuals from out-of-state as well as Alaskans to
serve. The legislation, however, failed to specifically exempt
AGDC from AS 39.05.100, which he characterized as an oversight.
Therefore, HB 383 addresses that oversight.
5:06:50 PM
REPRESENTATIVE OLSON moved that the committee adopt Amendment 1,
28-LS1656\A.1, Martin, 4/7/14, which read:
Page 1, following line 14:
Insert a new bill section to read:
"* Sec. 2. The uncodified law of the State of
Alaska is amended by adding a new section to read:
RETROACTIVITY. Section 1 of this Act is
retroactive to September 1, 2013."
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
CHAIR JOHNSON objected for discussion purposes.
5:07:07 PM
TOM WRIGHT, Staff, House Majority Office, Alaska State
Legislature, explained that after discussions with
Representative Gruenberg, [the sponsor] he felt it was important
to check with Legislative Legal Services regarding whether the
legislation should be retroactive. Legislative Legal Services
felt an amendment specifying retroactivity would clarify that
the legislation applies back to September 1, 2013, when the
governor made his appointments. Therefore, there would be no
question as to whether the appointments [to the AGDC Board]
would be lost on a technicality.
5:08:10 PM
CHAIR JOHNSON withdrew his objection. There being no further
objection, Amendment 1 was adopted.
5:08:56 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG moved Amendment 2, 28-LS1656\A.3,
Martin, 4/8/14, which read:
Page 1, line 14, following "state.":
Insert "If the governor appoints a public member
to the board who is not a registered voter in the
state or a resident of the state, the governor shall
send a written statement to the legislature with the
notice of appointment explaining the governor's
reasons for making the appointment."
Page 1, following line 14:
Insert a new bill section to read:
"* Sec. 2. The uncodified law of the State of
Alaska is amended by adding a new section to read:
APPLICABILITY. The requirement in
AS 31.23.020(b), amended by sec. 1 of this Act, that
the governor send a written statement explaining an
appointment of a person to the board of the Alaska
Gasline Development Corporation who is not a
registered voter in the state or a resident of the
state applies to a person appointed on or after the
effective date of this Act."
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
CHAIR JOHNSON objected for discussion purposes.
5:09:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG explained that Amendment 2 simply
requires that if the governor appoints a member to the board who
isn't an Alaska registered voter nor a resident of the state,
the governor must submit a statement to the legislature
regarding why he/she is doing so. He likened this statement to
that required with a veto by the governor. Because Mr. Rabinow
has already been appointed, the applicability section was
necessary to include so that wouldn't apply to him,
Representative Gruenberg explained. The requirement of the
statement will be 90 days after the governor signs it.
5:10:31 PM
MR. WRIGHT stated that he has no objection to Amendment 2, but
highlighted that the legislature has a confirmation hearing
process during which an appointee's residency can be determined
and whether the appointee is fit for the appointment. He then
inquired as to whether the applicability clause of Amendment 2
has a typo such that the statutory reference to "AS
31.23.020(b)" should be replaced with "AS 31.25.020(b)".
5:11:28 PM
HILARY MARTIN, Attorney, Legislative Legal Services, Legislative
Affairs Agency, confirmed that Mr. Wright is correct in that the
reference to "AS 31.23.020(b)" in the applicability clause
should be replaced with "AS 31.25.020(b)".
5:11:51 PM
MR. WRIGHT said he wanted to be sure that the retroactive date
doesn't apply to these sections.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG related his intent that the
retroactivity does not to apply [to those sections]. He then
related his understanding that if Amendment 2 is adopted, the
retroactivity clause won't apply to the message that would be
sent more than 90 days after the governor signs it.
MS. MARTIN clarified that [the retroactivity clause] would apply
after the effective date of the act, which has an immediate
effective date. Therefore, it does not apply retroactively.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG acknowledged that it would apply after
the effective date.
5:12:57 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER expressed the need to ensure that although
there is an immediate effective date, the retroactivity clause
embodied in Amendment 1 will not conflict with the statements
made in Amendment 2 and somehow disqualify the individual
appointed in September [2013].
MS. MARTIN clarified that the effective date and retroactive
date are two different things. Therefore, [the statement
required of the governor] as laid out in Amendment 2 doesn't
apply retroactively.
5:14:03 PM
CHAIR JOHNSON questioned whether the governor's letter
specifying that he has appointed the most qualified person would
be the same [as the requirement in Amendment 2] regardless of
residency. Therefore, the governor wouldn't have to specify the
residency of the appointee.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG pointed out that all of the transmittal
letters for the governor's appointees state the individuals'
[residency].
CHAIR JOHNSON asked then if the transmittal letter would suffice
for the letter [specified in Amendment 2].
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG replied yes, but like the veto messages
would include a sentence or two. He clarified that he wanted
[the letter] to place members on notice regarding the
appointee's [residency].
5:15:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG moved Conceptual Amendment 1 to
Amendment 2 such that the reference to "AS 31.23.020(b)" is
deleted and replaced with "AS 31.25.020(b)". There being no
objection, Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 2 was adopted.
5:16:10 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON asked whether Amendment 2, as amended, is
necessary.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG opined that it's helpful to ensure that
everything is disclosed, the process is preserved, and the
matter can be addressed on its merits.
5:17:05 PM
CHAIR JOHNSON withdrew his objection. There being no further
objection, Amendment 2, as amended, was adopted.
5:17:47 PM
CHAIR JOHNSON opened public testimony.
5:18:16 PM
MR. WRIGHT pointed out that the testimony of Mr. Burns and Mr.
Fauske during the April 3, 2014, House Rules Standing Committee
meeting is included in the committee packet.
5:18:49 PM
CHAIR JOHNSON, upon determining no one wished to testify, closed
public testimony.
5:19:41 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER noted that HB 383 is accompanied by zero
fiscal notes.
5:19:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG mentioned his appreciation for the
legislation as well as the addition of amendments as it cures a
problem.
5:20:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE OLSON moved to report HB 383, as amended, out of
committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying
zero fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 383(RLS) was
reported from the House Rules Standing Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 383 A.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| HB 383 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| AGDC Board of Directors.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| Art. 3, Section 26-AK Constitution.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| AS 31.25.020.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| AS 39.05.100.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| HRES Testimony on Qualifications.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| hrls 040314 Burns Fauske.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| Amendment 28-LS1656. A.1.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| Alaska Gasline Moves Forward with AGDC Board.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| 28-LS1656.A.3 Amendment 2.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |
| Information for Amendment 2.pdf |
HRLS 4/8/2014 5:00:00 PM |
HB 383 |