Legislature(2017 - 2018)HOUSE FINANCE 519
11/09/2017 08:00 AM House LEGISLATIVE BUDGET & AUDIT
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Approval of Agenda | |
| Approval of Minutes | |
| Revised Program Legislative (rpls) | |
| Executive Session | |
| Preliminary and Final Audit Reports | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
LEGISLATIVE BUDGET AND AUDIT COMMITTEE
November 9, 2017
8:00 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Bert Stedman, Chair
Senator Anna MacKinnon
Senator Click Bishop
Senator Lyman Hoffman
Senator Natasha von Imhof (alternate)
Representative Andy Josephson, Vice Chair
Representative Scott Kawasaki
Representative Paul Seaton
Representative Ivy Spohnholz
Representative Jennifer Johnston
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Cathy Giessel
Representative Dan Ortiz (alternate)
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
REVISED PROGRAM LEGISLATIVE (RPLS)
EXECUTIVE SESSION
PRELIMINARY AND FINAL AUDIT REPORTS
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
DAVID TEAL, Legislative Fiscal Analyst
Legislative Finance Division
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information on RPLs to the Joint
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee.
SHAWNDA O'BRIEN, Assistant Commissioner
Central Office
Finance Management Services
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS)
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions during the Joint
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee discussion on RPLs.
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:00:46 AM
CHAIR BERT STEDMAN called the Legislative Budget and Audit
Committee meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. Senators MacKinnon,
Bishop, Hoffman, von Imhof (alternate), and Stedman and
Representatives Josephson, Kawasaki, Seaton, Spohnholz, and
Johnston were present at the call to order.
^APPROVAL OF AGENDA
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
8:01:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON made a motion that the Legislative
Budget and Audit Committee approve the agenda. There being no
objection, the agenda was approved.
^APPROVAL OF MINUTES
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
8:01:32 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON made a motion to approve the minutes of
the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee meeting of September
7, 2017. There being no objection, the minutes from the meeting
of September 7, 2017, were approved.
8:02:33 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON made a motion to approve the minutes of
the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee of October 26, 2017.
There being no objection, the minutes from the meeting of
October 26, 2017, were approved.
^REVISED PROGRAM LEGISLATIVE (RPLs)
REVISED PROGRAM LEGISLATIVE (RPLs)
8:02:47 AM
CHAIR STEDMAN announced that the next order of business would be
revised program legislative (RPLs).
8:03:09 AM
DAVID TEAL, Legislative Fiscal Analyst, Legislative Finance
Division, Alaska State Legislature, explained that in RPL 06-8-
0367, the Department of Health and Social Services requests $525
million in federal receipts for the Medical Assistance Program.
He said the money would be split between Indian Health Services
(IHS) expansion and non-expansion and Medicaid expansion and
non-expansion. He said expansion counts for about 80 percent of
the funds. He stated that the Legislative Finance Division does
not see any technical issues. Further, he said the request
comes as no surprise to the division, given a fiscal year 2017
(FY 17) supplemental appropriation of approximately $238.5
million and then an FY 18 increase of only $21.8 million. He
explained that the division expected a shortage of federal
funds. Mr. Teal proffered that there is information in the RPL,
which is not information that is not presently before the
committee, but which he interprets as an indication that the
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee might expect a
supplemental request for general funds somewhere between $63 and
$100 million. He clarified that at present, the only amount
being requested is $525 million.
8:05:05 AM
CHAIR STEDMAN asked what the impact of declining the request
would be.
MR. TEAL answered that the department would probably run out of
federal authority, which may mean that providers do not get
paid. He said a delay in payment would most likely result in
the committee receiving the same request in the supplemental.
He said it is a matter of timing: "They need the money sooner
rather than later."
8:05:54 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON asked for confirmation that under the
RPL, approximately $400 million of the $525 million are
expansion dollars that would, presumably, make people healthier
and pay providers, and "those dollars come into the state."
MR. TEAL answered that's correct.
8:06:24 AM
SENATOR MACKINNON asked Mr. Teal to confirm whether there is an
authorized system - a Medicaid system that has already been
approved.
MR. TEAL offered his understanding that that process is over.
He said, "That's kind of a two-year-old problem, with new
[information technology] (IT) systems and approval by the
[federal government] ("feds") of reimbursements, and I believe
all that's cleared up." He deferred to the department for a
more definitive answer.
SENATOR MACKINNON said she would like to hear from the
department, because "that was not certified at the beginning of
this year, and we were still under review with federal
auditing."
8:07:20 AM
SHAWNDA O'BRIEN, Assistant Commissioner, Central Office, Finance
Management Services, Department of Health and Social Services
(DHSS), said the department has been working for quite some time
with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to get
the certification of the Medicaid Management Information System
(MMIS). She said the department believed it would have the
certification by early FY 18; however, because of changes in
leadership, the department has been given a corrective action
plan, which must be completed by December. She said the
department believes the certification will be done by the end of
December.
SENATOR MACKINNON remarked that the auditors would have concerns
if they cannot audit the system. She recollected that the
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee had been told that the
system would be certified last summer, and then it had been told
that certification would be completed by January 2017. She
stated that she does not want to vote against providing services
to Alaskans, but she cautioned that the necessary funds could
increase. She emphasized that the auditors cannot conduct a
compliance check until the system is certified.
CHAIR STEDMAN advised that the Legislative Budget and Audit
Committee should move forward with the RPL and bring the issue
discussed by Senator Mackinnon into the Senate Finance Committee
and House Finance Committee for discussion of the legislative
budget process.
8:09:41 AM
SENATOR VON IMHOF asked if the audit would look at Medicaid
eligibility, processing speed, and backlog.
8:10:06 AM
The committee took a brief at-ease at 8:10 a.m.
8:10:31 AM
SENATOR VON IMHOF allowed that the question she had asked prior
to the at-ease had been premature and could be taken up later.
8:10:48 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SPOHNHOLZ asked Ms. O'Brien if there were new
standards or questions raised when the administration changed
that may have extended the deadline.
MS. O'BRIEN offered her understanding that the issues with
certification were not related to the change in administration.
She continued:
But there's new leadership in CMS, and I believe that
they had an opportunity to review some things and
maybe had a few more requirements that they wanted to
address. But we've been given communication that
indicates that they don't believe that there's going
to be any problem with us demonstrating that we've met
those requirements; it's just a timing issue. And so,
we've been working pretty regularly in communicating
very frequently with CMS on the certification;
particularly we had some communication early in the
summer that indicated that we would have certification
by August, but ... it was delayed.
8:12:18 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee approve RPL 06-8-0367, Department of Health and
Social Services, Medical Assistance Program, $525 million in
federal receipts, fund code 1002, as a supplemental FY 18
operating budget item. There being no objection, it was so
ordered.
8:13:07 AM
MR. TEAL next discussed RPL 09-8-0106, which was submitted by
the Department of Military & Veterans' Affairs to request
authority to receive and spend $1 million in federal receipts to
reimburse costs associated with deploying 60 Alaska National
Guard members to the Virgin Islands to help with the aftermath
of Hurricane Irma. He said the deployment already occurred, and
the urgency in this case is that the money is needed to ensure
personnel are paid in a timely manner.
CHAIR STEDMAN commented that this would be a federal
disbursement.
MR. TEAL answered that's correct.
8:13:59 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee approve RPL 09-8-0106, Department of Military &
Veterans' Affairs, State Active Duty, $1 million statutory
designated program receipts, fund code 1008, as a supplemental
FY 18 operating budget item. There being no objection, it was
so ordered.
8:14:29 AM
MR. TEAL next explained RPL 12-8-3016, in which the Department
of Public Safety (DPS) requests $2 million in federal grant
receipts for domestic violence programs. He said the grants are
complicated by the fact that they come from four primary sources
in amounts that change from year to year. Further, they are
often multi-year grants that overlap, which makes it difficult
to determine how much money is available for a particular year.
He stated that DPS intends to improve service by better managing
the grants. He explained, "The primary issue here is that they
can't spend the grants they have without an increase in
authorization, which is what this RPL is asking for." He said
DPS anticipates requesting an increase of approximately $4
million in federal receipt authority in the FY 19 governor's
request. He said no additional general funds are associated
with this additional grant money.
8:15:51 AM
SENATOR MACKINNON stated that when the administration changed
Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (CDVSA)
leadership last year, it said there would be a plan for
combatting domestic violence and sexual assault in Alaska. She
said she has not seen such a plan. She relayed that she had
spoken briefly with the new administrator and director of CDVSA.
She emphasized how big an issue this is. She said there is a
national conversation going on, particularly in regard to the
treatment of women, who are 90 percent more likely to be the
victim of violence or sexual assault, although she said violence
is also perpetrated against males. She explained that she is
making the point that the administration owes the Legislative
Budget and Audit Committee the plan and although she supports
the RPL, she would like additional details from the
administration.
CHAIR STEDMAN suggested that this may be a topic of immense
public interest that could warrant meetings in both bodies, at
which time the department could provide information.
8:17:54 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee approve RPL 12-8-3016, Department of Public
Safety, Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault,
$2,004,750 in federal receipts, fund code 1002, as a
supplemental FY 18 operating budget item. There being no
objection, it was so ordered.
8:18:24 AM
MR. TEAL explained RPL 12-8-3013 was submitted by DPS to request
$1 million to allow the agency to spend a portion of a federal
grant to improve the criminal record system in Alaska, which
would bring the state into compliance with Federal Borough of
Investigation (FBI) requirements. He said the same amount would
be requested in the FY 19 budget and "presumably later than
that, since the deadline for compliance is January of 2021." He
said there are no new positions and there is no general fund
associated with this, and the Legislative Finance Division sees
no technical issues with this RPL.
8:19:21 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee approve RPL 12-8-3013, Department of Public
Safety, Statewide Information Technology Services, $1 million in
federal receipts, fund code 1002, as a supplemental FY 18
operating budget item. There being no objection, it was so
ordered.
^EXECUTIVE SESSION
EXECUTIVE SESSION
8:19:51 AM
CHAIR STEDMAN announced that the next order of business would be
to move into executive session.
8:20:02 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee go into executive session under Uniform Rule 22
for the purpose of discussing confidential audit reports under
AS 24.20.301. He asked that the following individuals remain in
the room or on line: Kris Curtis, necessary committee staff,
any legislators not on the Legislative Budget and Audit
Committee, and any legislative staff working for committee
members. There being no objection, the committee went into
executive session at 8:20 a.m.
8:20:31 AM
The committee took an at-ease from 8:20 a.m. to 8:58 a.m.
8:58:26 AM
CHAIR STEDMAN called the committee back to order at 8:58 a.m.
Senators MacKinnon, Bishop, von Imhof (alternate), and Stedman
and Representatives Josephson, Kawasaki, Seaton, Spohnholz, and
Johnston were present at the call back to order.
^PRELIMINARY AND FINAL AUDIT REPORTS
PRELIMINARY AND FINAL AUDIT REPORTS
8:59:13 AM
CHAIR STEDMAN announced that the final order of business would
be the preliminary and final audit reports discussed during
executive session.
8:59:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee release the following preliminary audits to the
appropriate agencies for response: Department of Commerce,
Community & Economic Development, Board of Psychologists and
Psychological Examiners; Department of Commerce, Community &
Economic Development, Board of Massage Therapists; and
Department of Commerce, Community & Economic Development,
Marijuana Control Board. There being no objection, it was so
ordered.
8:59:47 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOSEPHSON moved that the Legislative Budget and
Audit Committee release the following final audit: Department
of Commerce, Community & Economic Development, Board of
Certified Real Estate Appraisers. There being no objection, it
was so ordered.
9:00:03 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee meeting was adjourned at
9:00 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| DRAFT AGENDA 11.9.17.pdf |
JBUD 11/9/2017 8:00:00 AM |
LBA Agenda for 11.9.17 |
| jbud 090717 0203 PM.pdf |
JBUD 11/9/2017 8:00:00 AM |
Draft Meeting Minutes for 9.7.17 |
| jbud 102617 0905 AM.pdf |
JBUD 11/9/2017 8:00:00 AM |
Draft Meeting Minutes for 10.26.17 |
| November 9 2017 Complete RPL Packet.pdf |
JBUD 11/9/2017 8:00:00 AM |
Complete RPL Packet |