Legislature(2019 - 2020)ADAMS ROOM 519

03/29/2019 01:30 PM House FINANCE

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Audio Topic
01:30:02 PM Start
01:30:40 PM Consideration of Governor's Appointees:
01:33:16 PM Ken Mccarty, Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, Board of Trustees
01:40:28 PM Dan Sullivan, Regulatory Commission of Alaska
01:44:31 PM Adjourn
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ Consideration of Governor's Appointees: TELECONFERENCED
- Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority
- Regulatory Commission of Alaska
+ Bills Previously Heard/Scheduled TELECONFERENCED
                  HOUSE FINANCE COMMITTEE                                                                                       
                      March 29, 2019                                                                                            
                         1:30 p.m.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:30:02 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CALL TO ORDER                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Wilson called the House Finance Committee meeting                                                                      
to order at 1:30 p.m.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS PRESENT                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Representative Neal Foster, Co-Chair                                                                                            
Representative Tammie Wilson, Co-Chair                                                                                          
Representative Jennifer Johnston, Vice-Chair                                                                                    
Representative Dan Ortiz, Vice-Chair                                                                                            
Representative Ben Carpenter                                                                                                    
Representative Andy Josephson                                                                                                   
Representative Gary Knopp                                                                                                       
Representative Kelly Merrick                                                                                                    
Representative Cathy Tilton                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS ABSENT                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Representative Bart LeBon                                                                                                       
Representative Colleen Sullivan-Leonard                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
PRESENT VIA TELECONFERENCE                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Ken McCarty, Appointee, Alaska Mental Health Authority,                                                                         
Board of Trustees; Dan Sullivan, Appointee, Regulatory                                                                          
Commission of Alaska.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
SUMMARY                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
^CONSIDERATION of GOVERNOR'S APPOINTEES:                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     KEN MCCARTY, ALASKA MENTAL HEALTH TRUST AUTHORITY,                                                                         
     BOARD OF TRUSTEES                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
     DAN SULLIVAN, REGULATORY COMMISSION OF ALASKA                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
1:30:40 PM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:32:55 PM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
^KEN MCCARTY,  ALASKA MENTAL  HEALTH TRUST  AUTHORITY, BOARD                                                                  
OF TRUSTEES                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:33:16 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
KEN  MCCARTY,  APPOINTEE,  ALASKA MENTAL  HEALTH  AUTHORITY,                                                                    
BOARD  OF  TRUSTEES   (via  teleconference),  discussed  his                                                                    
qualifications.  He  shared that  he  had  resided in  Eagle                                                                    
River for the  past seven years and had lived  in Kodiak for                                                                    
many years  prior to  that. He had  been involved  in mental                                                                    
health for  his entire career  in Alaska and was  a licensed                                                                    
marital  and  family  therapist.  He  was  the  director  of                                                                    
Discovery  Cove  Recovery  and Wellness  Center,  with  nine                                                                    
staff  including  seven   clinicians.  The  center  provided                                                                    
psychiatric  services,  psychotherapy, and  substance  abuse                                                                    
treatment.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Mr.  McCarty shared  that  he worked  with  people who  were                                                                    
addicted  to  opiates.  He had  been  involved  with  RADACT                                                                    
[Regional  Alcohol and  Drug Abuse  Counselor Training]  and                                                                    
had  spoken throughout  the state  on addiction  and helping                                                                    
substance use counselors with the  program. He had served on                                                                    
a regulatory  board for marriage  and family  therapists for                                                                    
six  years  and  was  the   past  president  of  the  Alaska                                                                    
Association  of  Marital  and   Family  Therapists.  He  saw                                                                    
clients in Eagle  River and throughout the  state. He shared                                                                    
that  he  was a  pilot  and  could  access remote  areas  to                                                                    
provide services. He added  that personal interests included                                                                    
flying, tennis, hunting, and fishing.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:35:09 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Representative Josephson asked for  the number of members on                                                                    
the Alaska  Mental Health Trust Authority  (AMHTA), Board of                                                                    
Trustees  and their  designations. He  asked if  Mr. McCarty                                                                    
was looking to fill a public seat on the board.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
Mr. McCarty replied  that he was an appointee  for a trustee                                                                    
position on  the AMHTA  board. The board  had a  meeting the                                                                    
previous day  and believed there  were seven members  on the                                                                    
board.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Wilson thanked  Mr. McCarty for calling  in and for                                                                    
his  interest  in the  board.  She  relayed that  the  House                                                                    
Finance  Committee had  reviewed the  qualifications of  the                                                                    
governor's appointee  and recommended the name  be forwarded                                                                    
to a joint session for  consideration.  She noted the action                                                                    
did not  reflect an  intent by  any House  Finance Committee                                                                    
member  to  vote for  or  against  the confirmation  of  the                                                                    
individual  during  any  further sessions.  There  being  NO                                                                    
OBJECTION, it was so ordered.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:36:45 PM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:40:01 PM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
^DAN SULLIVAN, REGULATORY COMMISSION OF ALASKA                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:40:28 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
DAN  SULLIVAN, APPOINTEE,  REGULATORY  COMMISSION OF  ALASKA                                                                    
(via   teleconference),   reviewed   his   experiences   and                                                                    
qualifications. He  shared that he  had been serving  on the                                                                    
Regulatory Commission  of Alaska  (RCA) for the  past month.                                                                    
He had  begun his career,  in terms of  relevant experience,                                                                    
in 1986 when his company  the Sullivan Group had represented                                                                    
Marathon Oil  and Phillips Petroleum;  much of the  work had                                                                    
been on statutory and regulatory  issues. He highlighted his                                                                    
term on  the Anchorage Assembly  from 1999 to 2008  where he                                                                    
had  interacted  with  the municipality's  two  utilities  -                                                                    
Anchorage  Water and  Wastewater Utility  and the  Municipal                                                                    
Light and Power - on a fairly regular basis.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Mr.  Sullivan  had  worked  with   the  two  utilities  more                                                                    
regularly during his tenure as  Anchorage mayor from 2009 to                                                                    
2015  on their  challenges  with  regulations and  statutory                                                                    
issues.  From 2003  to 2010  he had  served as  an appointee                                                                    
under three  different governors  to the Alaska  Natural Gas                                                                    
Development Authority  board of  directors. He  explained it                                                                    
was the  voter approved  gas pipeline project.  He discussed                                                                    
extensive  work during  the seven-year  period ranging  from                                                                    
everything  it  took  to  build  a  pipeline  to  making  it                                                                    
economical. He  believed he had  the relevant  experience to                                                                    
be  effective in  the  RCA's role  of  dealing with  utility                                                                    
rates and pipeline tariffs.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:42:19 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair Ortiz queried the duties of the RCA.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
Mr.  Sullivan  replied  that  the  RCA  primary  dealt  with                                                                    
utility  rates and  pipeline tariffs.  He detailed  the work                                                                    
included   utilities   statewide  and   numerous   pipelines                                                                    
including the sub-sea pipeline in  Cook Inlet and the Trans-                                                                    
Alaska Pipeline System  (TAPS). He stated that  what the RCA                                                                    
regulated was comprehensive. He  emphasized the value of the                                                                    
commission's  work. He  highlighted  the Regulatory  Affairs                                                                    
and Public Advocacy (RAPA) under  the Department of Law that                                                                    
ensured the public  was well served in  issues coming before                                                                    
the RCA.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Wilson relayed  that the  House Finance  Committee                                                                    
had reviewed the qualifications  of the governor's appointee                                                                    
and recommended  the name  be forwarded  to a  joint session                                                                    
for consideration.  She noted  the action did not reflect an                                                                    
intent by any House Finance  Committee member to vote for or                                                                    
against  the  confirmation  of  the  individual  during  any                                                                    
further  sessions.  There  being  NO OBJECTION,  it  was  so                                                                    
ordered.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Wilson  discussed  the agenda  for  the  following                                                                    
Monday. She also  noted that Joe Riggs had  removed his name                                                                    
from consideration for the AMHTA board of trustees.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
ADJOURNMENT                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:44:31 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
The meeting was adjourned at 1:44 p.m.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                

Document Name Date/Time Subjects
Dan Sullivan_Redacted.pdf HFIN 3/29/2019 1:30:00 PM
Confirmation
Joe Riggs_Redacted.pdf HFIN 3/29/2019 1:30:00 PM
Confirmation
Ken McCarty_Redacted.pdf HFIN 3/29/2019 1:30:00 PM
Confirmation
Joe Riggs Introduction Letter.txt HFIN 3/29/2019 1:30:00 PM
HFIN Consideration of Gov Appointees