Legislature(2021 - 2022)ADAMS 519
02/02/2022 09:00 AM House FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB54 | |
| HB90 | |
| HB111 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 54 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 90 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 111 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HOUSE FINANCE COMMITTEE
February 2, 2022
9:06 a.m.
9:06:00 AM
CALL TO ORDER
Co-Chair Foster called the House Finance Committee meeting
to order at 9:06 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Neal Foster, Co-Chair
Representative Kelly Merrick, Co-Chair
Representative Dan Ortiz, Vice-Chair
Representative Ben Carpenter via teleconference
Representative Bryce Edgmon
Representative Andy Josephson
Representative Bart LeBon via teleconference
Representative Steve Thompson
Representative Adam Wool
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative DeLena Johnson
Representative Sara Rasmussen
ALSO PRESENT
Representative Geran Tarr, Chair, House Fisheries
Committee; Representative Ivy Spohnholz, Sponsor.
PRESENT VIA TELECONFERENCE
Sara Chambers, Director, Division of Corporations, Business
and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce,
Community and Economic Development; Renee Gayhart,
Director, Health Care Services, Department of Health and
Social Services.
SUMMARY
HB 54 INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT
CSHB 54(FIN) was REPORTED out of committee with
four "do pass" recommendations and three "no
recommendation" recommendations and with a new
zero fiscal note by Gov/Combined and a new fiscal
impact note by the Department of Fish and Game.
HB 90 VEHICLE RENTALS & VEHICLE RENTAL NETWORKS
HB 90 was REPORTED out of committee with a "do
pass" recommendation and with a new zero fiscal
note by the Department of Administration and a
new fiscal impact note by the Department of
Revenue.
HB 111 DENTAL HYGIENIST ADVANCED PRAC PERMIT
CSHB 111(FIN) was REPORTED out of committee with
a "do pass" recommendation and with a new fiscal
impact note by the Department of Commerce,
Community and Economic Development and a new
fiscal impact note by the Department of Health
and Social Services.
Co-Chair Foster reviewed the agenda for the morning
meeting.
HOUSE BILL NO. 54
"An Act establishing the Alaska Invasive Species
Council in the Department of Fish and Game; relating
to management of invasive species; relating to
invasive species management decals; and providing for
an effective date."
9:07:13 AM
Co-Chair Foster indicated that the committee last heard HB
54 on May 18, 2021.
9:07:31 AM
REPRESENTATIVE GERAN TARR, CHAIR, HOUSE FISHERIES
COMMITTEE, briefly summarized the bill. She explained that
the bill created an Alaska Invasive Species Council housed
in the Department of Fish and Game (DFG). The bill
represented a culmination of 5 years of work that initially
centered on a rapid response to the problem. Overtime in
working with professionals across the state she had found
the state was well prepared to stay ahead of the problem.
She shared that the impacts of invasive species were costly
and included impacts to wastewater systems, tourism, and
salmon habitat. She detailed that the council envisioned a
partnership through multi-stakeholder engagement among
private sector professionals, government agencies, and
tribal agencies to develop efficient and effective
responses to the problem. The councils work would limit
the state's spending on invasive species due to the more
coordinated approach that would enhance prevention and
response efforts. She appreciated the time to reintroduce
the bill.
Co-Chair Foster relayed that there was a new updated zero
Statement of Fiscal Impact from the Department of
Environmental Conservation.
9:10:25 AM
Representative Carpenter MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 1 (copy
on file):
Page 5, following line 31:
Insert a new bill section to read:
"* Sec. 4. AS 16.20.800, 16.20.810, 16.20.820,
16.20.850, and AS 37.05.146(c)(80) are repealed July
1, 2027."
Renumber the following bill sections accordingly.
Representative Josephson OBJECTED.
Representative Carpenter reviewed the amendment. The
amendment created a 7-year [Stated in error, the amendment
was for 5 years.] sunset clause for the council.
Representative Wool MOVED to ADOPT Conceptual Amendment 1
to Amendment 1 to make the sunset a 7-year sunset in 2029,
rather than a 5-year sunset. He believed that it would give
the council a longer eradication process and was supported
by the sponsor.
Representative Carpenter OBJECTED.
Representative Carpenter clarified that he misspoke, and
the original amendment was a 5-year sunset clause. He would
not support a 7-year sunset.
Co-Chair Foster indicated that the committee would discuss
Conceptual Amendment 1.
Representative Josephson favored Conceptual Amendment 1.
Representative Thompson asked for a discussion of why
either 5 or 7 years was appropriate.
9:14:38 AM
Co-Chair Foster requested that the sponsor respond to the
conceptual amendment and Amendment 1.
Representative Tarr appreciated the notion of a sunset
date. She believed that a sunset offered a benchmark for
completing work and gave the legislature the opportunity
to assess whether the council should terminate or extend.
She referred to pages 5 and 6, of the bill that outlined
the timing for the appointment of the councils members.
She indicated that it would take one to two years for the
governor to complete the appointments. She determined that
the council would need 5 years after the appointments to
complete its work and favored a 7-year sunset.
Representative Carpenter thought a 7-year sunset was too
long and that it would not take up to 2 years to appoint
members. He supported a 5-year sunset.
Co-Chair Foster indicated that Representative Ortiz joined
the meeting.
Representative Carpenter MAINTAINED his OBJECTION.
A roll call vote was taken on the motion. (Conceptual
amendment 1 to Amendment 1)
IN FAVOR: Edgmon, Josephson, LeBon, Ortiz, Thompson, Wool,
Foster, Merrick
OPPOSED: Carpenter
The MOTION PASSED (8/1). Conceptual 1 to Amendment 1 was
ADOPTED.
Representative Josephson supported the bill and preferred
that the council would not sunset. He understood that there
would not be a final end to the invasive species problem.
He asked Representative Tarr why she was comfortable with
the amendment. Representative Tarr responded that she
agreed the problem would never end considering the many
ways invasive species entered the state, especially via
shipping. She elaborated that a sunset included an audit
and she felt that an audit would evaluate the work of the
council and recommend any necessary changes. She reiterated
that at times members were not chosen in a timely manner
and it limited the effectiveness of the council. She
believed the audit provided a refresh moment.
Representative Josephson inquired whether Representative
Tarr was confident someone would advocate for the council
in 2029. Representative Tarr responded in the affirmative.
She noted that there was an array of impressive
professionals working on the effort. She believed that they
were a very dedicated group of people, and the state would
benefit from their participation on the council.
Representative Josephson indicated that one of the
repealers was AS 16.20.820, which identified that the decal
fund would be part of the General Fund (GF), which meant
that it was subject to a reverse sweep. He wondered whether
it was a concern. Representative Tarr responded that the
council would recommend how the funds should be spent. She
deduced that if the council was disbanded, she guessed that
the response would revert to relying on special capital
budget appropriations, which was the current funding source
for invasive species response.
Representative Josephson WITHDREW his OBJECTION.
There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered. Amendment 1 as
amended was ADOPTED.
Vice-Chair Ortiz MOVED to report CSHB 54(FIN) out of
Committee with individual recommendations and the
accompanying fiscal notes.
There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.
CSHB 54(FIN) was REPORTED out of committee with four "do
pass" recommendations and three "no recommendation"
recommendations and with a new zero fiscal note by
Gov/Combined and a new fiscal impact note by the Department
of Fish and Game.
9:23:29 AM
AT EASE
9:24:40 AM
RECONVENED
HOUSE BILL NO. 90
"An Act relating to rental vehicles; relating to
vehicle rental networks; relating to liability for
vehicle rental taxes; and providing for an effective
date."
9:25:16 AM
Co-Chair Foster reported that the bill was previously heard
on May 13, 2021.
REPRESENTATIVE ADAM WOOL, SPONSOR, indicated that HB 90
applied the existing vehicle rental tax that Alaska already
had in place to peer-to-peer network rentals like Turo. He
reiterated that there was already a 10 percent tax on
rental cars in the state that should be applied to the
peer-to-peer rentals. However, the state did not enforce
it. He detailed that the state had lacked the information
to collect the tax and the Department of Revenue (DOR)
asked Turo for a list of names of drivers and the company
did not comply. The tax would apply to the person renting
the car through the app and Turo would pay the tax to the
state. He emphasized that similar to renting a car though a
company like AVIS, the tax was paid by the person renting
the car through the app and the owner of the car did not
pay the tax. He noted that through the pandemic, Turo use
soared due to the scarcity of rental cars. He guessed that
the tax would raise several million dollars for the
state. He analogized Airbnb that paid a bed tax, which was
a similar premise as the peer-to-peer car rental networks.
Co-Chair Foster reviewed the testifiers available online.
Representative Wool also pointed out that the municipality
of Anchorage in addition the states tax had its own
municipal tax for vehicle rentals. Anchorage passed a law
requiring the peer-to-peer networks to pay the city tax.
9:29:32 AM
Representative Thompson reported that Recreational Vehicle
(RV) rentals only required a 3 percent tax. He asked if
Turo had engaged in any discussions regarding the disparity
in the tax percentages or offered to compromise between 3
percent and 10 percent.
Representative Wool relayed that the 3 percent tax RV was
already in state law. He did not want to change existing
statute. He commented that if someone rented an RV from
Turo they would pay the 3 percent tax. He was uncertain why
there were different rates for the different vehicles. He
noted that the bill did not attempt to change the existing
tax rates. The peer-to-peer tax rate would be the same as
what existed in state law. He was merely wanting to apply
the car rental tax to the peer-to-peer network model.
Representative Thompson asked whether the municipality of
Anchorage collected 3 percent on RV rentals. Representative
Wool acknowledged that the Anchorage vehicle rental tax was
8 percent and did not know what the municipality did
regarding taxing RV rentals. He reiterated that the state
tax for RV rentals was 3 percent, and a brick and mortar RV
rental agency was accountable for the tax.
9:33:03 AM
Vice-Chair Ortiz asked if it was safe to say if the bill
were to pass it would apply to all peer-to-peer vehicle
rental networks. It would not be limited to Turo.
Representative Wool answered in the affirmative. He noted
that other peer-to-peer vehicle rental networks existed
besides Turo.
9:33:55 AM
Co-Chair Merrick declared a conflict of interest as her
family rents out a car as a Turo vehicle.
9:34:35 AM
AT EASE
9:35:12 AM
RECONVENED
Co-Chair Foster did not hear any objections to her
conflict.
9:35:28 AM
AT EASE
9:36:41 AM
RECONVENED
Co-Chair Foster asked for a motion to move the bill out of
committee.
Vice-Chair Ortiz requested an at ease.
9:36:41 AM
AT EASE
9:37:35 AM
RECONVENED
Vice-Chair Ortiz MOVED to report HB 90 out of Committee
with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal
notes.
There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.
HB 90 was REPORTED out of committee with a "do pass"
recommendation and with a new zero fiscal note by the
Department of Administration and a new fiscal impact note
by the Department of Revenue.
HOUSE BILL NO. 111
"An Act relating to the practice of dental hygiene;
relating to advanced practice permits for dental
hygienists; relating to dental assistants; prohibiting
unfair discrimination under group health insurance
against a dental hygienist who holds an advanced
practice permit; relating to medical assistance for
dental hygiene services; and providing for an
effective date."
9:38:12 AM
Co-Chair Foster indicated the committee heard the bill last
on May 15, 2021, and there was one amendment.
REPRESENTATIVE IVY SPOHNHOLZ, SPONSOR, thanked members for
hearing the bill. She explained that the bill created an
advanced practice permit for experienced dental hygienists
who had 4,000 hours of clinical experience and passed an
exam issued by the Alaska Board of Dental Examiners. She
furthered that the bill would allow experienced licensed
hygienists to provide preventative oral health care to
underserved populations at senior centers, health care
facilities, day care centers, schools, those eligible for
public assistance, and rural underserved communities.
9:40:18 AM
Representative Spohnholz continued that importantly, the
bill had been crafted with the support of the Alaska Dental
Hygienists Association, Alaska Dental Society, and the
Board of Dental Examiners and the process was very
collaborative.
Representative Spohnholz stated that the amendment
corrected a technical issue.
Representative Wool MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 1 (copy on
file):
Page 6, Line 23:
*Sec. 9. Except as provided in sec. 8 of this Act,
this Act takes effect January 1, 2023. [Replaced 2022
with 2023].
Co-Chair Foster OBJECTED for discussion.
Representative Wool reviewed the amendment. He explained
that the bill was introduced in the prior year and the
effective date was 2022. The amendment updated the date to
January 1, 2023.
Co-Chair Foster asked if the sponsor approved the
amendment.
Representative Spohnholz responded.
Co-Chair Foster WITHDREW his OBJECTION.
There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.
9:43:33 AM
Co-Chair Foster OPENED public testimony.
Co-Chair Foster CLOSED public testimony.
9:44:50 AM
Co-Chair Foster requested a review of the fiscal notes.
SARA CHAMBERS, DIRECTOR, DIVISION OF CORPORATIONS, BUSINESS
AND PROFESSIONAL LICENSING, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE,
COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (via teleconference),
explained the Department of Commerce, Community and
Economic Development (DCCED) published fiscal impact fiscal
note allocated to Corporations, Business and Professional
Licensing (FN3 (CED). She indicated that the fiscal note
for $1,700 covered legal costs for the board to amend
regulations, printing, and postage in first year of the
program. She added that most of the costs would be
recuperated through licensing fees.
RENEE GAYHART, DIRECTOR, HEALTH CARE SERVICES, DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES (via teleconference), relayed
that the published fiscal impact fiscal note for the
Department of Health (DOH) allocated to Medicaid Services
(FN4 (HSS) was needed to cover the costs associated with
the Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS). The
funding would reconfigure a new provider type, allow for
provider enrollment, and allow for claims processing in the
MMIS system. She added that the fiscal noted totaled
$275,000.
Vice-Chair Ortiz MOVED to report CSHB 111(FIN) out of
Committee with individual recommendations and the
accompanying fiscal note
There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.
CSHB 111(FIN) was REPORTED out of committee with a "do
pass" recommendation and with a new fiscal impact note by
the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic
Development and a new fiscal impact note by the Department
of Health and Social Services.
Co-Chair Foster reviewed the agenda for the afternoon
meeting.
ADJOURNMENT
9:47:29 AM
The meeting was adjourned at 9:46 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 30 Letter ASPTA Support 4.9.21 .pdf |
HFIN 2/2/2022 9:00:00 AM |
HB 30 |
| HB 30 Presentation 2.23.21.pdf |
HFIN 2/2/2022 9:00:00 AM |
HB 30 |
| HB 54 Amendment 1 051921.pdf |
HFIN 2/2/2022 9:00:00 AM |
HB 54 |
| HB 111 Amendment #1 Wool 020222.pdf |
HFIN 2/2/2022 9:00:00 AM |
HB 111 |
| HB 54 Amendment w adopted conceptual amendment 020222.pdf |
HFIN 2/2/2022 9:00:00 AM |
HB 54 |
| HB 90 Public Testimony rec'd by 020222.pdf |
HFIN 2/2/2022 9:00:00 AM |
HB 90 |