Legislature(2015 - 2016)BARNES 124

04/14/2016 07:30 AM House LEGISLATIVE BUDGET & AUDIT

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Audio Topic
07:37:01 AM Start
07:38:17 AM Approval of the Minutes
07:38:49 AM Executive Session
08:41:06 AM Interim Report: Status of Board of Certified Direct-entry Midwives Audit Recommendations
08:44:48 AM Other Committee Business
08:46:28 AM Adjourn
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
-- Location Change --
EXECUTIVE SESSION - Audits
- Statewide Single Audit FY15 - Final
- Commercial Passenger Vessel Tax Special
Audit - Final
Interim Report
- Status of Direct Entry Midwives Audit
Recommendations
Other Committee Business
-- Testimony <Invitation Only> --
                    ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE                                                                                  
             LEGISLATIVE BUDGET AND AUDIT COMMITTEE                                                                           
                         April 14, 2016                                                                                         
                           7:37 a.m.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS PRESENT                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Representative Kurt Olson                                                                                                       
Representative Lance Pruitt                                                                                                     
Representative Steve Thompson                                                                                                   
Representative Sam Kito                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
Senator Anna MacKinnon, Vice Chair                                                                                              
Senator Cathy Giessel                                                                                                           
Senator Bert Stedman                                                                                                            
Senator Click Bishop                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS ABSENT                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Representative Mike Hawker, Chair                                                                                               
Senator Lyman Hoffman                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
Representative Mark Neuman (alternate)                                                                                          
Senator Pete Kelly (alternate)                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENT                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
Representative Dan Ortiz                                                                                                        
Representative Lora Reinbold                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
COMMITTEE CALENDAR                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES                                                                                                         
EXECUTIVE SESSION                                                                                                               
INTERIM REPORT:  STATUS OF BOARD OF CERTIFIED DIRECT-ENTRY                                                                      
MIDWIVES AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS                                                                                                  
OTHER COMMITTEE BUSINESS                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
No previous action to record                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
WITNESS REGISTER                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
KRISTIN CURTIS                                                                                                                  
Legislative Auditor                                                                                                             
Division of Legislative Audit                                                                                                   
Alaska State Legislature                                                                                                        
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT:   Provided information on  the interim report                                                             
for the status of the audit.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ACTION NARRATIVE                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
7:37:01 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE  CHAIR  ANNA MACKINNON  called  the  Legislative Budget  and                                                             
Audit  Committee  meeting  to  order   at  7:37  a.m.    Senators                                                               
MacKinnon,   Giessel,  and   Bishop  and   Representatives  Kito,                                                               
Thompson,  and  Olson   were  present  at  the   call  to  order.                                                               
Representative Pruitt and Senator  Stedman arrived as the meeting                                                               
was in progress.   Also in attendance  were Representatives Ortiz                                                               
and Reinbold.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
^Approval of the Minutes                                                                                                      
                    Approval of the Minutes                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
7:38:17 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR MACKINNON  announced that the first  order of business                                                               
would be approval of the minutes.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE THOMPSON made  a motion to approve  the minutes of                                                               
the Legislative Budget  and Audit Committee from  March 18, 2016.                                                               
There being no  objection, the minutes from the  meeting of March                                                               
18, 2016, were approved.                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
^Executive Session                                                                                                            
                       Executive Session                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
7:38:49 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR  MACKINNON announced that  the next order  of business                                                               
would be to move into executive session.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE THOMPSON  made a motion  under Uniform Rule  22 to                                                               
move  to   executive  session  for  the   purpose  of  discussing                                                               
confidential audit  reports under AS  24.20.301.  There  being no                                                               
objection,  the committee  went  into executive  session at  7:39                                                               
a.m.                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
8:39:50 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR MACKINNON brought the  committee back to order at 8:39                                                               
a.m.    Representatives Kito,  Pruitt,  Olson,  and Thompson  and                                                               
Senators MacKinnon, Stedman, Bishop,  and Giessel were present at                                                               
the  call  to  order.     Representative  Reinbold  was  also  in                                                               
attendance  and Representative  Ortiz had  been present  during a                                                               
portion of the Executive Session.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
8:40:10 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  THOMPSON made  a motion  for the  following final                                                               
audits for the  Statewide Single Audit for the  fiscal year ended                                                               
June 30,  2015, and the  Commercial Passenger Vessel  Tax Special                                                               
Audit to be released to the  public for response.  There being no                                                               
objection, it was so ordered.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR MACKINNON stated that  these audits would be posted on                                                               
the legislative website:  legaudit.akleg.gov                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
^Interim  Report:   Status  of  Board  of Certified  Direct-Entry                                                             
Midwives Audit Recommendations                                                                                                
   Interim Report:  Status of Board of Certified Direct-Entry                                                               
                 Midwives Audit Recommendations                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
8:41:06 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR  MACKINNON announced that  the next order  of business                                                               
would  be an  interim  report  for the  status  of  the Board  of                                                               
Certified  Direct-Entry  Midwives  audit  recommendations.    She                                                               
reported  that House  Bill 26  had included  a provision  for the                                                               
Division of Legislative Audit to  submit an interim report to the                                                               
Alaska State  Legislature concerning the board's  compliance with                                                               
audit recommendations and the status of the board's deficit.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
8:41:39 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
KRISTIN  CURTIS,  Legislative  Auditor, Division  of  Legislative                                                               
Audit, Alaska  State Legislature, reported that  her division had                                                               
conducted a review to determine  the current status of those four                                                               
prior  audit  recommendations.   She  shared  that the  Board  of                                                               
Certified  Direct-Entry  Midwives  had  been  given  a  two  year                                                               
extension  to   their  termination  date  and   the  Division  of                                                               
Legislative  Audit  had been  instructed  to  review those  audit                                                               
recommendations.      She  reported   that   two   of  the   four                                                               
recommendations had  been resolved, one  had been found to  be in                                                               
progress, and  the last was  found to not  yet be resolved.   She                                                               
directed attention  to page  two of  the memorandum  [Included in                                                               
members'  packets] which  reviewed each  of the  recommendations.                                                               
She  stated that  the first  recommendation, investigations  that                                                               
impact  public  safety were  not  moving  forward, was  the  most                                                               
significant as it was putting the  public safety at risk, and had                                                               
led to  the shortened termination  date.  She relayed  that there                                                               
were four cases, involving two  individuals, which had been moved                                                               
to  the Department  of  Law in  August, 2014.    She shared  that                                                               
staffing  issues in  that  department had  caused  a delay  until                                                               
August, 2015,  when consent agreements  were drafted for  the two                                                               
individuals, which were signed by  one individual, and dealt with                                                               
at the  February, 2016 board  meeting.  The other  individual did                                                               
not sign although  the terms were being  actively negotiated, and                                                               
she offered  her belief  that currently  this was  being actively                                                               
worked on.   She reported  that the deficit was  still considered                                                               
open and  not resolved, and,  although the fees for  direct entry                                                               
midwives  and apprentices  had been  increased,  the deficit  had                                                               
continued to  grow to $158,000  at the end  of FY15.   She shared                                                               
that this  was still  considered to be  unresolved.   She offered                                                               
the recommendation that the  board should communicate certificate                                                               
requirements  to  continuing  education providers  to  facilitate                                                               
compliance  with licensing  regulations.   She reported  that the                                                               
board  had sent  out notices  and that  this was  resolved.   She                                                               
stated   that  the   board  should   approve  apprentice   permit                                                               
applications in accordance with statutes,  and that this was also                                                               
now resolved  with the board  approving the  permit applications.                                                               
She  pointed  out  that  the division  was  conducting  a  sunset                                                               
review,  with  the report  and  review  of  the board  ready  for                                                               
presentation  to the  Legislative Budget  and Audit  Committee in                                                               
the  next few  months, and  this  would contain  a more  detailed                                                               
review of the board.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
8:44:04 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE KITO asked if the  open recommendation for the fee                                                               
increase was per annum.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MS. CURTIS replied that it was bi-annual.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
8:44:25 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR MACKINNON asked how long the board extension was.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MS. CURTIS replied that it was for  two years, and was now set to                                                               
expire in 2017.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
^Other Committee Business                                                                                                     
                    Other Committee Business                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
8:44:48 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR MACKINNON  announced that the final  order of business                                                               
would be a  possible request for another interim  report from the                                                               
Division of Legislative  Audit for the Big  Game Board extension,                                                               
which had  been recommended for  a shorter period of  time, three                                                               
years.   She suggested that it  may be necessary for  language to                                                               
shorten the  extension, but  not perform a  huge audit  and asked                                                               
the Auditor  to work with  her on this  issue.  She  relayed that                                                               
there was  also a deficit of  almost $1 million in  the licensing                                                               
fees.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
8:45:51 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
The committee took a brief at-ease.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
8:46:16 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
VICE CHAIR MACKINNON relayed that  committee staff were deferring                                                               
the [scoping] work  on the review of the support  staff of Boards                                                               
and Commissions to post-session.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
8:46:28 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ADJOURNMENT                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
There  being  no  further  business  before  the  committee,  the                                                               
Legislative Budget  and Audit Committee meeting  was adjourned at                                                               
8:46 a.m.                                                                                                                       

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