Legislature(2023 - 2024)GRUENBERG 120
03/30/2023 03:00 PM House STATE AFFAIRS
Note: the audio ![]()
and video ![]()
recordings are distinct records and are obtained from different sources. As such there may be key differences between the two. The audio recordings are captured by our records offices as the official record of the meeting and will have more accurate timestamps. Use the icons to switch between them.
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB140 | |
| HB129 | |
| HB130 | |
| HB131 | |
| HB132|| HB129|| HB130|| HB131 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 130 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 131 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 132 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | HB 140 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 129 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 130-ELECTION INTERFERENCE, FRAUD, MISCONDUCT
3:57:16 PM
CHAIR SHAW announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 130, "An Act relating to the crimes of unlawful
interference with an election, election fraud, and election
official misconduct; and providing for an effective date."
3:58:04 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SARAH VANCE, Alaska State Legislature, presented
HB 130, on behalf of the House Judiciary Standing Committee.
She provided the sponsor statement [included in the committee
packet], which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
HB 130 enhances election security by codifying the
crime of unlawful interference of an election for
anyone who intentionally tampers with ballots or
machinery, creates the crime of election fraud, and
adds to the crime of election official misconduct for
sharing confidential election information.
This bill intends to restore public confidence in our
elections by providing accountability of bad actors
who seek to jeopardize the integrity of our elections
from ballot to the tabulator.
CHAIR SHAW inquired about the fiscal note for HB 130.
4:01:37 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE stated that a zero fiscal note from the
Department of Public Safety (DPS) accompanied the bill.
4:02:13 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER asked whether poll watchers were
considered election officials.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE shared her understanding that a voluntary
poll watcher would not be considered an election official. She
deferred to DOE for confirmation.
4:02:51 PM
MICHAELA THOMPSON, Administrative Operations Manager, DOE,
confirmed that poll watchers were not election officials.
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER sought to confirm that poll watchers
would not fall under the statute, as they were not official
election workers.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE referred to Section 1 of HB 130,
speculating that a poll watcher may fall under AS 15.56.060
[Unlawful interference with an election].
4:05:30 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY referred to Section 3, paragraph (4) of the
bill and asked whether campaign workers would still be allowed
to request updated vote counts throughout the day if the bill
were to pass.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE answered yes, as the provision was
explicitly speaking to election results, returns, and
confidential election data.
REPRESENTATIVE STORY requested the definition of "confidential
election data."
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE deferred to DOE.
4:06:48 PM
MS. THOMPSON shared her understanding that confidential election
data included election results. She said in the context of HB
130, she was unsure what was encompassed by "confidential
election data."
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked whether HB 130 would prevent DOE from
sharing voter data with databases used to maintain the voter
registration list.
MS. THOMPSON did not know the answer.
REPRESENTATIVE STORY emphasized the importance of finding out
the answer.
MR. FLYNN indicated that "confidential election data" was not
defined in statute, adding that he was unsure what it would
entail. He observed that the language "before the polls close
on election day" in paragraph (4) was not time bound on the
close end and could be interpreted expansively.
4:09:31 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked why the bill increased the penalty
for election fraud from a class C felony to a class B felony.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE conveyed that committing election fraud
with the intent to change the outcome of the election could
impact the entire state; therefore, she believed that the
penalty should be heightened.
CHAIR SHAW announced that the bill was held over.
HB 132-ELECTIONS: BALLOT, VOTING, SECURITY
HB 129-VOTER REGISTRATION
HB 130-ELECTION INTERFERENCE, FRAUD, MISCONDUCT
HB 131-VOTING MACHINES AND VOTE TALLY SYSTEMS
4:37:44 PM
CHAIR SHAW announced that the final order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 132, "An Act relating to election security,
voting, and ballots; and providing for an effective date" and
HOUSE BILL NO. 129, "An Act relating to voter registration; and
providing for an effective date" and HOUSE BILL NO. 130, "An Act
relating to the crimes of unlawful interference with an
election, election fraud, and election official misconduct; and
providing for an effective date" and HOUSE BILL NO. 131 "An Act
relating to voting machines and vote tally systems; and
providing for an effective date."
4:38:23 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SARAH VANCE, Alaska State Legislature, presented
HB 132 on behalf of the House Judiciary Standing Committee. She
provided the sponsor statement [included in the committee
packet], which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
HB 132 has a voter focused approach that seeks to
increase public confidence in our elections with a
means to cure a ballot, enhance cybersecurity, and
implement an online multifactor authentication for
each voter to protect Alaskan's individual
information.
Protecting the foundation of our representative form
of government begins with protecting each ballot. This
bill establishes a strict chain of custody protocol
for ballots and tabulators from the printer to voter,
to disposal, complete with a unique security
identifier such as a barcode.
To help alleviate concerns of misconduct, this bill
enhances administrative procedure that brings
integrity to the process of handling ballots and
allows recruitment of a technical subject matter
expert to conduct a full forensic audit of voting
machines, tabulators, storage devices, and vote tally
systems.
HB 132 prioritizes Alaskan voters and the integrity of
their vote so every eligible vote counts!
4:39:47 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE directed attention to a PowerPoint
presentation, titled "HB 132 Elections; Ballot, Voting,
Security" [included in the committee packet]. She emphasized
the voter-focused aspects of the bill on slide 2, including:
ballot security, ballot chain of custody, ballot tracking
system, ballot curing, increased cybersecurity, and election
offense hotline.
4:40:08 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE addressed ballot security on slide 3, which
read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
• Security Identifier
• Paper Record
• Envelope-based Barcode
• Signed Ballot Chain-of-Custody Document
• Maintain Forensic Integrity of Ballots
4:40:42 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE continued to slide 4, titled "Ballot
Tracking System," which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
Online multi-factor authentication system like
used with your MyAlaska account.
• confirm the ballot was sent
• track ballot date of delivery
• confirm receipt of ballot
• determine review of voter's certificate
• determine if vote has been counted
• provide information to cure the ballot
• verify voter's identity
• indicate the process to cure a ballot or reason
• the vote was not counted
4:42:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE turned to slide 5, titled "Increased
Cybersecurity," which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
Develop a cybersecurity program to defend voter
registration records and provide cybersecurity
training for election officials.
4:42:24 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE detailed the election offense hotline on
slide 6, which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
The director shall establish a toll free election
offense hotline to receive calls reporting election
offenses.
• Continuously staffed during absentee voting
hours, early voting, and 24 hours after polls
open.
• Election official available to respond to calls
• Offense hotline number placed in conspicuous
places.
4:43:11 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE concluded on slide 7, titled "Forensic
Audits," which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
Grants the Legislative Council the power to contract
with and appoint technical subject matter experts to
conduct full forensic audits of election data,
algorithms, software, and equipment, including
precinct tabulators, storage devices, voting machines,
and vote tally systems.
4:44:13 PM
CHAIR SHAW requested a brief explanation of the fiscal note from
DOE.
4:44:24 PM
CAROL BEECHER, Director, DOE, stated that the fiscal note
reflected the estimated costs incurred, such as non-permanent
election clerks; ballot printing; professional services for IT
consulting; software maintenance; forensic auditing; and ballot
tracking software.
4:45:22 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY requested the definition of a "full
forensic audit."
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE clarified that that the bill would grant
Legislative Council with the authority to find someone to
conduct the forensic audits pending further definition from the
legislature. She defined a forensic audit as "looking more at
any potential fraud and activity that would deal with a criminal
nature."
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked whether DOE could define "forensic
audit."
MS. BEECHER deferred to Mr. Flynn.
4:46:52 PM
THOMAS FLYNN, Assistant Attorney General, DOL, said he was not
aware of a statutory definition of "forensic audit."
REPRESENTATIVE STORY inquired about the credentials or
qualifications for those conducting a "forensic audit."
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE indicated that the legislature could
determine the subject matter expert for any activity deemed as
deserving of more insight.
4:47:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER shared his understanding that the
institutional knowledge of a "full forensic audit" was lacking
because the state had never conducted on before. He recommended
defining the parameters of a full "forensic audit" in statute.
4:49:31 PM
REPRESENTATIVE C. JOHNSON inquired about the cost of ballot
printing.
MS. BEECHER deferred to Ms. Thompson.
MICHAELA THOMPSON, Administrative Operations Manager, DOE,
shared her understanding that adding a watermark would require
additional types of ballot printing paper.
REPRESENTATIVE C. JOHNSON asked whether the fiscal note
reflected an estimate of costs or whether a request for
information (RFI) or request for proposal (RFP) had been issued.
MS. THOMPSON believed that the election program manager received
an estimate from the current ballot printer.
REPRESENTATIVE C. JOHNSON expressed his interest in looking into
the accuracy of fiscal notes and how they're derived.
4:51:09 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked how the chain of custody proposed in
HB 132 would differ from existing chain of custody protocols.
MS. BEECHER deferred to Ms. Thompson.
MS. THOMPSON acknowledged that the division followed chain of
custody procedures in all aspects of the election process. She
further noted that the division had an existing portal that
allowed voters to track the receival of their ballot in addition
to processes for sending unused ballots back to the division and
tracking spoiled ballots used in the precinct.
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked how the chain of [custody] worked
with the United States Postal Service (USPS).
MS. THOMPSON described the chain of custody.
4:54:32 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER requested an assessment from DOE
comparing existing chain of custody procedures to the ones
proposed in Section 2 HB 132. He suggested that existing chain
of custody procedures could stand to be updated.
4:55:23 PM
CHAIR SHAW opened public testimony on HB 132, HB 129, HB 130,
and HB 131.
4:55:38 PM
KAREN LEWIS, urged the legislature to return to a hand count
system, opining that all machines could be manipulated. She
read from a prepared statement.
4:59:10 PM
PAMELA SAMASH, Concerned Conservatives of Alaska, opined that
fair and honest elections were critical for a free society,
opining that these bills were an important step towards making
that possible. She urged the committee's support for HB 129, HB
130, HB 131, and HB 132.
5:00:26 PM
JOHN MILLER expressed his support for the bills presented during
the hearing "except for the machines." He offered several
suggestions for election security. He opined that the bills
were fundamental to ensuring that the people's voice was heard.
5:02:20 PM
GERALD VOSS expressed his support for HB 129, HB 130, HB 131,
and HB 132 and offered several suggestions for election
security.
5:04:13 PM
JOHN LETTOW expressed his support for the election bills
presented during the hearing, stating his support for
transitioning to a hand count.
5:05:43 PM
MIKE COONS, President, Concerned Conservatives of Alaska,
expressed support for HB 129, HB 130, HB 131, and HB 132 with
"one caveat."
5:07:27 PM
CHAIR SHAW stated that public testimony would be left open. He
announced that HB 132 was held over.