Legislature(1995 - 1996)
02/15/1996 01:10 PM House CRA
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HOUSE COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS
STANDING COMMITTEE
February 15, 1996
1:10 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Ivan Ivan, Co-Chair
Representative Kim Elton
Representative Al Vezey
Representative Pete Kott
Representative Irene Nicholia
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Alan Austerman, Co-Chair
Representative Jerry Mackie
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
DRAFT FEDERAL FISCAL YEAR 1996 COMMUNITY SERVICES BLOCK GRANT STATE
PLAN BRIEFING
ALASKA NATIVE HEALTH BOARD BRIEFING
PREVIOUS ACTION
None.
WITNESS REGISTER
JO COOPER, Block Grants Administrator
Division of Community and Regional Development
Department of Community and Regional Affairs
209 Forty Mile Avenue
Fairbanks, Alaska 99701-3110
Telephone: (907) 452-4468
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented draft FFY 1996 Community Services
Block Grant State Plan.
JEANINE KENNEDY, Executive Director
Rural Alaska Community Action Program (RurAL CAP)
P.O. Box 200908
Anchorage, Alaska 99520
Telephone: (907) 279-2511
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on draft FFY 1996 Community Services
Block Grant State Plan.
BARRY WALLIS, Executive Director
Fort Yukon Tribal Council
P.O. Box 126
Fort Yukon, Alaska 99740
Telephone: (907) 662-2581
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on draft FFY 1996 Community Services
Block Grant State Plan.
LINCOLN BEAN, SR., Chairman
Alaska Native Health Board;
Chairman, Southeast Alaska Regional
Health Consortium; and Vice Chairman,
National Indian Health Board
1345 Rudakof Circle, Suite 206
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Telephone: (907) 337-0028
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented briefing by Alaska Native Health
Board.
CINDY THOMAS, Coordinator
Rural Alaska Sanitation Coalition
Alaska Native Health Board
1345 Rudakof Circle, Suite 206
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Telephone: (907) 337-0028
POSITION STATEMENT: Discussed Alaska Native Health Board
legislative priorities for FY 1997.
ANNE M. WALKER, Executive Director
Alaska Native Health Board
1345 Rudakof Circle, Suite 206
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Telephone: (907) 337-0028
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding Alaska Native
Health Board.
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 96-13, SIDE A
Number 0001
CO-CHAIR IVAN IVAN called the House Community and Regional Affairs
Committee meeting to order at 1:10 p.m. Members present at the
call to order were Representatives Ivan and Vezey. Members absent
were Representatives Austerman, Mackie, Elton, Kott and Nicholia.
Co-Chair Ivan noted that a quorum was not yet present.
DRAFT FEDERAL FISCAL YEAR 1996 COMMUNITY SERVICES BLOCK GRANT STATE
PLAN BRIEFING
Number 0091
CO-CHAIR IVAN mentioned that Jo Cooper was on teleconference to
present the briefing on the draft FFY 1996 Community Services Block
Grant State Plan ("State Plan"), which he understood to be required
by federal law.
REPRESENTATIVE KIM ELTON and REPRESENTATIVE PETE KOTT joined the
meeting at 1:11 p.m. and 1:13 p.m., respectively.
Number 0152
JO E. COOPER, Block Grants Administrator, Division of Community and
Regional Development, Department of Community and Regional Affairs
(DCRA), discussed the State Plan via teleconference from Fairbanks,
noting that the purpose of the current hearing was to accept public
comments on the draft plan. She stated that the Community Services
Block Grant (CSBG) program existed "to help impact the causes and
conditions of poverty." The State Plan explained how DCRA
administered the program and what activities would be focused on
during the upcoming year.
Number 0224
MS. COOPER said that by federal regulation, a minimum of 90 percent
of the funds received annually, which would probably be
approximately $1.5 million for 1996, were passed through to the
only community action agency in the state, the Rural Alaska
Community Action Program (RurAL CAP). Ms. Cooper said DCRA was
authorized to keep 5 percent of the funds to cover state
administrative expenses, with the remaining 5 percent being
available for discretionary grants.
Number 286
MS. COOPER acknowledged the State Plan was lengthy and said it
outlined in detail how the funds were supposed to be used by RurAL
CAP. She listed seven components supported by the funds: child
care, child development, community development, planning
development and evaluation; program support; subsistence; and
village participation.
Number 0366
JEANINE KENNEDY, Executive Director, Rural Alaska Community Action
Program (RurAL CAP), testified via teleconference from Anchorage
that RurAL CAP was one of 980 community action agencies in the
United States. Although funds used to come directly from the
federal government to those agencies, since 1981, the funds had
been put into block grants. Ms. Kennedy pointed out there was only
one community action program (CAP) in Alaska because of the small
population; in some states, there were as many as 36, concentrated
in areas of high poverty. Ms. Kennedy said RurAL CAP focused on
poverty issues, as well as Head Start, child development and child
care, alcohol abuse prevention and other issues that supported
families and communities.
Number 0511
MS. KENNEDY emphasized that the block grant was "basically for poor
people," who often had no voice in decisions. RurAL CAP provided
the opportunity for these people to meet and come up with
productive ideas. She concluded by saying she supported the plan.
Number 0591
CO-CHAIR IVAN asked Jo Cooper whether RurAL CAP was the only agency
that had applied for the grants.
MS. COOPER affirmed that was correct. According to federal
statutes, RurAL CAP received 90 percent of the funds that came into
the state through the Community Services Block Grant program.
Number 0639
CO-CHAIR IVAN asked if other agencies besides RurAL CAP were
eligible to apply.
MS. COOPER replied no. The only eligible recipients of the funds
were community action agencies, she said, and RurAL CAP was the
only recognized community action agency in the state.
Number 0675
CO-CHAIR IVAN noted that teleconference sites on line included
Anchorage, Bethel, Fairbanks, Kenai, Kotzebue, Mat-Su, Nome, Sitka,
Fort Yukon and Klawock.
Number 0740
BARRY WALLIS, Executive Director, Fort Yukon Tribal Council,
testified via teleconference, saying he was "speaking in support of
the RurAL CAP application," which outlined purposes that were
important to community development of villages such as Fort Yukon.
He thought significant issues included subsistence and community
development. Mr. Wallis noted that RurAL CAP sponsored the yearly
Village Participation Conference, which provided the opportunity to
visit with legislators and learn about the legislative process in
Juneau. With that conference coming up in March, they looked
forward to meeting with legislators. He expressed concern that
DCRA and programs for rural Alaska seemed to be routinely targeted
by politicians. He spoke in favor of RurAL CAP, saying it had a
good track record in the villages. "This particular grant is very
critical to helping villages become more self-sufficient and more
empowered to deal with the problems on a local level," he added.
Number 0920
CO-CHAIR IVAN asked if any other people wished to testify. As
there were none, he concluded the hearing on the draft State Plan.
ALASKA NATIVE HEALTH BOARD BRIEFING
Number 0989
CO-CHAIR IVAN noted the next item of business was a briefing by the
Alaska Native Health Board. He invited Lincoln Bean to present the
opening remarks.
Number 1014
LINCOLN BEAN, SR., Chairman, Alaska Native Health Board; Chairman,
Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium; and Vice Chairman,
National Indian Health Board, said health issues were critical to
100,000 indigenous people in the state. He explained that Alaska
Native Health Board ("Board") staff would discuss sewer, water and
sanitation and present requests for funding. The Board's goal was
providing sewer and water to all clinics and homes by the year
2002. He saw no reason why clinics providing health care should
not have water and toilets. As a Board member and an Alaska
Native, he said, he was asking for support, with respect to all 12
Native regions. He mentioned that Board representatives had met
with members of the House Health and Social Services Committee in
support of taxation on tobacco.
Number 1169
CINDY THOMAS, Coordinator, Rural Alaska Sanitation Coalition,
explained the coalition was a technical advisor to the Alaska
Native Health Board. She indicated that the Board's packet,
entitled "State Legislative Priorities for Fiscal Year 1997," had
been distributed to other committees, as well.
Number 1190
MS. THOMAS explained the reason for prioritizing rural sanitation
was not just a public health issue, but an economic and social
issue as well. Water and sewer were part of the basic
infrastructure for any community. She cited the possibility of
sickness in tourists in rural Alaska and the economic effects that
could have. Referring to the legislative packet, she said there
were four funding priorities, the most critical of which, for the
current committee, was the role of DCRA in the Rural Utility
Business Advisors (RUBA) program. There had been sustained funding
for the past four years, which they wished to see continue. Ms.
Thomas added that Senator Stevens had been successful in obtaining
authorization language for five years of federal funding.
REPRESENTATIVE IRENE NICHOLIA joined the meeting at 1:30 p.m.
Number 1277
MS. THOMAS said there was still more than $1 billion in unmet need.
"We're pecking away at it, little by little," she added, "and
consistent, adequate funding is critical." She stated that was the
first funding priority.
Number 1299
MS. THOMAS indicated the second priority stemmed from the
realization that facilities could not be built without the capacity
to operate them. That was where the RUBA program came in, as well
as the Remote Maintenance Worker (RMW) program and technical
training. The Alaska Native Health Board was therefore asking for
support for technical assistance and operation of maintenance
programs.
Number 1310
MS. THOMAS referred to Mr. Bean's discussion and said there were
still 36 communities operating health clinics without water or
sewer. She mentioned a four-year-old boy who had died from a
mosquito bite and questioned whether having water and sewer in that
community might not have prevented the infection. She spoke about
trying to broaden statewide awareness of the effects of poor
sanitation. She also mentioned work with the Alaska Municipal
League and the State Chamber of Commerce in Anchorage in
recognizing the critical role of rural Alaska. She then provided
the committee with a resolution from the Alaska Municipal League
that supported technical assistance and sustained funding for rural
sanitation.
Number 1397
MS. THOMAS discussed SB 20 and noted that the Alaska Native Health
Board planned to submit testimony on that bill. The Board was
concerned because some revenue sharing communities received as
little as $7,500 per year, whereas incorporated communities
received a minimum of $40,000. However, the communities were
providing the same level of service. Ms. Thomas suggested the need
to look at what inequities and "threats to citizens" were being
created, depending on where people lived.
Number 1446
CO-CHAIR IVAN asked if the Alaska Native Health Board was
represented on the Rural Sanitation Task Force.
MS. THOMAS replied yes, they had one seat. She explained the
Alaska Native Health Board had a seat on the Governor's Council on
Rural Sanitation, as did the Rural Alaska Sanitation Coalition.
"We both have seats on the council and we participate in
recommendations," she said.
Number 1476
CO-CHAIR IVAN asked whether the board had presented their position
statements through that task force and whether the task force had
considered the board's priorities.
Number 1488
MS. THOMAS said that the Governor's Council on Rural Sanitation had
only been up and running for three-quarters of a year. "And a lot
of that has been organization," she said, "getting to know each
other, finding out how we're going to operate." As a body, they
were just starting to get to the position where key issues could be
heard, prioritized and advanced. "Even though there's been
dialogue, I don't see it completely as the effective body. It will
be," she added, "but we're still getting organized."
Number 1510
REPRESENTATIVE AL VEZEY asked whether the goal was having safe
water facilities in all communities by the year 2002.
MS. THOMAS affirmed that was correct.
REPRESENTATIVE VEZEY noted that was six years from now. He asked
about the amount of $30 million per year.
Number 1531
MS. THOMAS replied, "The total estimates I've seen have been 60 to
80, because there are so many different federal sources. Federal
match to state match is at 30, but then we also have Indian Health
Service money, we have some HUD money and a few special projects."
She added, "I've never felt a trust in the 80 number."
REPRESENTATIVE VEZEY responded, "I've never seen the 60 number.
You've said that there was over a billion dollars of recognized
need, but I've seen figures indicating it's pushing closer to two
billion."
Number 1566
MS. THOMAS added, "in six years." She acknowledged it was a vision
and said Representative Vezey had brought up a good point. She
suggested the need to be a little more realistic. "It's not going
to happen at the current funding levels, that's true," she said.
"But I think what we're all saying is we have to keep going. Even
maintaining funding at the level that is present is better than
saying, `well, we can't do it, so let's just forget it.'"
Number 1592
REPRESENTATIVE IRENE NICHOLIA pointed out that she was a member of
the Governor's Council on Rural Sanitation. She said she served on
the same council as Ms. Thomas, who she commended for her
presentation. Representative Nicholia expressed the desire to
resolve the problems in question by the year 2002. She
acknowledged the complexities of providing services to rural
Alaska, where there were problems such as permafrost, for example.
Number 1657
CO-CHAIR IVAN referred to the $1 billion to $2 billion in unmet
need for water and sewer in rural Alaska and said, "we're looking
at 200 plus villages in the state." He mentioned that he
represented an area that needed safe water and sewer projects.
Residents were looking at other avenues besides state and federal
funding. Co-Chair Ivan described the area as the least developed
in the state. Residents there hoped to relax some exploration
regulations or provide tax incentives for small gas exploration
businesses that might develop a small pocket of gas that probably
existed there. He suggested that being able to heat homes there
with gas, which would enable the villages to get away from
dependency on diesel fuel, would have a positive impact on the
rural water and sewer situation.
Number 1745
REPRESENTATIVE NICHOLIA noted that due to the high number of
communities without running water or good sanitation facilities,
there was also a high number of hepatitis and tuberculosis cases.
Number 1786
MS. THOMAS referred to earlier comments about having a goal in six
years and such a high unmet need. She said she had neglected to
note that in "the farm bill, the addition of that authorization
language that Stevens got in at the last minute, was a last-minute
shuffle. However, the Governor's office and Stevens, Young and
Murkowski are working on getting authorization both in the Clean
Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act. And in the farm bill
authorization, it would still be there, also. So we are looking at
the federal government doubling and increasing their contribution."
Both the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act asked for
state contributions, Ms. Thomas added.
Number 1818
MS. THOMAS pointed out that the legislative packet listed current
unmet needs for all Alaskan villages. Some of the cities and
larger communities in rural Alaska were not included, she said.
One could see where that billion dollars was needed and how it
would be used in some of those communities.
Number 1840
REPRESENTATIVE KIM ELTON expressed appreciation for the
presentation. He asked Ms. Thomas to clarify the goal for the year
2002, which he understood to be providing water and sewer to all of
the clinics, but not necessarily completion of water and sewer
projects for all the villages.
Number 1860
ANNE M. WALKER, Executive Director, Alaska Native Health Board,
responded that the Board's vision was to have both safe water and
sewer in all the villages. "Now, that doesn't mean piped water and
sewer in all the villages," she said. She indicated new
technologies were available in other circumpolar countries. She
believed those could be used in rural Alaska. "What our vision is,
is actually to have piped water and sewer in all clinics by 2002,"
she clarified. "And we believe that that is a realistic goal."
She added that even in third world countries, there was generally
piped water and sewer in clinics and hospitals. In rural Alaska,
there were 37 clinics that still used honey buckets and hand-
carried water.
Number 1917
REPRESENTATIVE ELTON thanked the board for their presentation and
for their support of the tobacco tax.
MS. THOMAS noted that in the Governor's budget, there was money for
health clinic hook-ups. "We didn't see money in '95 and '96, and
we had seen money in '93 and '94, of $500,000," she said. "We see
the commitment of the Administration to get those clinics hooked
up." She voiced that the Rural Utility Business Advisors program
was also critical. "We pair the RUBAs with the RMWs to help
communities set up books and prepare to operate and maintain
facilities," she explained. "All systems have to be maintained and
we're finding that the RUBAs provide that technical assistance
that's vital."
Number 1976
CO-CHAIR IVAN informed the committee that the next meeting would
address HB 401 and HB 400.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to conduct, CO-CHAIR IVAN adjourned
the House Community and Regional Affairs Committee meeting at 1:46
p.m.
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