04/29/2004 04:12 PM Senate STA

          CSHB 467(FIN)-COMMEMORATIVE QUARTERS COMMISSION                                                                   
                                                                                                                              
CHAIR   GARY  STEVENS   announced  CSHB   467(STA)  to   be  up   for                                                           
consideration.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
JIM SHINE,  staff to Representative  Tom Anderson, introduced  HB 467                                                           
for the sponsor and paraphrased the sponsor statement:                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
     House   Bill   467   follows    the   federal   authorizing                                                                
     legislation,  the  "50 States  Commemorative  Coin  Program                                                                
     Act", and  establishes the  11-member Alaska  Commemorative                                                                
     Coin Commission.  Over a ten-year period from  1999 through                                                                
     2008, the  United States has  and will annually  issue five                                                                
     quarter dollar  coins with  state designs displayed  on the                                                                
     reverse side  of the coins.  Each state has  an opportunity                                                                
     to develop and submit designs  representative of the state.                                                                
     A quarter honoring the Alaska is  scheduled to be issued in                                                                
     2008.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
     Of  the 11-member  commission,  10 members  will be  public                                                                
     members appointed  by the governor. One shall  be appointed                                                                
     from  a list  prepared and  submitted by  the Alaska  State                                                                
     Council on  the Arts; one  member shall  be a student  in a                                                                
     public, private or home secondary  school in the state; and                                                                
     two  shall  be members  appointed  from  each of  the  four                                                                
     judicial  districts  in  the   state.  The  governor  or  a                                                                
     governor designee will occupy the 11th seat.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
     The Office of  the Governor will initiate  a public process                                                                
     to  solicit  narrative  design   concepts  for  the  Alaska                                                                
     quarter.  The  commission  shall review  and  consider  all                                                                
     narrative designs it  receives and will submit  to the U.S.                                                                
     Mint  no less  than three,  but  no more  than five  design                                                                
     concepts. When the  U.S. Mint provides the  State of Alaska                                                                
     with  its final  designs, the  commission  will review  the                                                                
     designs and make final recommendations to the governor.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR   BERT  STEDMAN   remarked   that   Alaska  school   children                                                           
participated  in a contest  to design  the state  flag, which  worked                                                           
very  well and  he  wondered why  that  same  procedure shouldn't  be                                                           
followed for the commemorative quarter.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. SHINE  said that  establishing the  commission wouldn't  preclude                                                           
offering a similar contest.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  GARY STEVENS  noted Representative  Weyhrauch's letter  urging                                                           
the commission to consider a student design contest.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR STEDMAN motioned to report  CSHB 467(FIN) from committee with                                                           
individual recommendations  and attached,  questionable,  zero fiscal                                                           
note. There being no objection, it was so ordered.