02/21/2003 02:10 PM House JUD
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
February 21, 2003
2:10 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Lesil McGuire, Chair
Representative Tom Anderson, Vice Chair
Representative John Coghill
Representative Jim Holm
Representative Les Gara
Representative Max Gruenberg
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Ralph Samuels
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
OVERVIEW: DEPARTMENT OF LAW
- HEARD [See the 1:05 p.m. minutes for this date]
OVERVIEW: DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
- HEARD [See the 1:05 p.m. minutes for this date]
HOUSE BILL NO. 23
"An Act relating to court-ordered restitution and compensation
following a criminal conviction."
- MOVED CSHB 23(JUD) OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 59
"An Act relating to the evaluation and cleanup of sites where
certain controlled substances may have been manufactured or
stored; and providing for an effective date."
- RESCINDED ACTION OF 2/19/03; MOVED NEW CSHB 59(JUD)
OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 82
"An Act making certain activities related to commercial
electronic mail unlawful as unfair methods of competition or
unfair or deceptive acts or practices under the Act enumerating
unfair trade practices and consumer protections."
- MOVED CSHB 82(L&C) OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS ACTION
BILL: HB 23
SHORT TITLE:RESTITUTION FOR CRIME VICTIMS
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVE(S)WEYHRAUCH
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
01/21/03 0037 (H) PREFILE RELEASED (1/10/03)
01/21/03 0037 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME -
REFERRALS
01/21/03 0037 (H) JUD
01/21/03 0037 (H) REFERRED TO JUDICIARY
02/14/03 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/14/03 (H) Heard & Held
MINUTE(JUD)
02/18/03 0231 (H) COSPONSOR(S): GARA
02/21/03 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
BILL: HB 59
SHORT TITLE:CLEANUP OF ILLEGAL DRUG SITES
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVE(S)HOLM
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
01/21/03 0047 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME -
REFERRALS
01/21/03 0047 (H) JUD, FIN
02/19/03 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/19/03 (H) Moved CSHB 59(JUD) Out of
Committee
MINUTE(JUD)
02/21/03 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
BILL: HB 82
SHORT TITLE:COMMERCIAL ELECTRONIC MAIL
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVE(S)MEYER
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
02/07/03 0148 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME -
REFERRALS
02/07/03 0148 (H) L&C, JUD
02/12/03 0203 (H) COSPONSOR(S): ANDERSON,
DAHLSTROM,
02/12/03 0203 (H) CRAWFORD, GUTTENBERG, LYNN
02/12/03 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM CAPITOL 17
02/12/03 (H) Moved CSHB 82(L&C) Out of
Committee
MINUTE(L&C)
02/14/03 0212 (H) L&C RPT CS(L&C) NT 7DP
02/14/03 0212 (H) DP: LYNN, GATTO, CRAWFORD,
GUTTENBERG,
02/14/03 0212 (H) DAHLSTROM, ROKEBERG, ANDERSON
02/14/03 0213 (H) FN1: ZERO(LAW)
02/21/03 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
WITNESS REGISTER
PAMELA LaBOLLE, President
Alaska State Chamber of Commerce (ASCC)
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of HB 23.
REPRESENTATIVE BRUCE WEYHRAUCH
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 23.
REPRESENTATIVE KEVIN MEYER
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 82.
CLYDE (ED) SNIFFEN, JR., Assistant Attorney General
Fair Business Practices Section
Civil Division (Anchorage)
Department of Law (DOL)
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Responded to questions during discussion of
HB 82.
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 03-11, SIDE A
Number 0001
CHAIR LESIL McGUIRE called the House Judiciary Standing
Committee meeting back to order at 2:10 p.m. Present at the
call back to order were Representatives McGuire, Anderson, Holm,
Coghill, Gara, and Gruenberg. [For the overviews by the
Department of Law and the Department of Public Safety, see the
1:05 p.m. minutes for this date.]
HB 23 - RESTITUTION FOR CRIME VICTIMS
Number 0036
CHAIR McGUIRE announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 23, "An Act relating to court-ordered restitution
and compensation following a criminal conviction." [Before the
committee was the proposed committee substitute (CS) for HB 23,
Version 23-LS0134\D, Ford, 1/29/03, which was adopted as a work
draft on 2/14/03.]
Number 0070
PAMELA LaBOLLE, President, Alaska State Chamber of Commerce
(ASCC), testified in support of HB 23. She surmised that all
chambers of commerce are nonprofit organizations, and that they
have to rely on volunteers to help with all of their activities.
She said that speaking from personal experience, the task of
rebuilding a set of books in order to find evidence of
embezzlement is very costly and time consuming. This task must
be done, however, in order to even begin prosecuting an
embezzlement case, because the amount of the loss must be
determined first. She relayed that sometimes the cost of
looking for evidence is more than the amount embezzled. She
reiterated that the ASCC is in favor of HB 23.
CHAIR McGUIRE closed the public hearing on HB 23.
Number 0305
REPRESENTATIVE BRUCE WEYHRAUCH, Alaska State Legislature,
sponsor, relayed that since the last hearing on HB 23, he has
had a chance to work with committee members, members of the
public, and representatives from the judicial branch and
executive branch in creating some amendments. He noted that he
has reviewed those amendments and has no objection to them.
Number 0429
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON made a motion to adopt Amendment 1,
which read [original punctuation provided but formatting
changed]:
Section 1. AS 12.55.045(a)
Page 1, Line 10, after "of" insert
identifiable and measurable
Page 2, Line 11, after "of" insert
identifiable and measurable
REPRESENTATIVE WEYHRAUCH indicated that although he'd originally
provided the committee with that amendment, he no longer wished
to offer it.
Number 0491
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON withdrew Amendment 1.
Number 0581
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG, after seeking and receiving
verification that they were speaking to Version D of HB 23, made
a motion to adopt a new Amendment 1, which read [original
punctuation provided but formatting changed]:
Section 1. AS 12.55.045(a)
1 Page 1, line 10, delete
volunteer
2 Page 1, line 10, after "value of" insert
voluntarily provided goods or
CHAIR McGUIRE asked whether there were any objections to new
Amendment 1. There being no objection, Amendment 1 was adopted.
Number 0599
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG made a motion to adopt Amendment 2,
which read [original punctuation provided but formatting
changed]:
Section 1. AS 12.55.045(a)
1 Page 1, line 10, after "victim" insert
if the victim is a nonprofit organization
CHAIR McGUIRE asked whether there were any objections to
Amendment 2. There being no objection, Amendment 2 was adopted.
Number 0608
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG made a motion to adopt Amendment 3,
which read [original punctuation provided but formatting
changed]:
Section 1. AS 12.55.045(a)
1 Page 1, line 10, after "incurred" insert
that was necessary
2 Page 2, line 11, after "incurred" insert
that was necessary
CHAIR McGUIRE asked whether there were any objections to
Amendment 3. There being no objection, Amendment 3 was adopted.
Number 0661
REPRESENTATIVE GARA made a motion to adopt Amendment 4, which
would, on page 1, line 10, after "value of", insert the words "a
victim's, or agent of a victim's" He opined that Amendment 4
would ensure, as the sponsor intends, that the value of an
organization's volunteer labor is compensated.
CHAIR McGUIRE asked whether there were any objections to
Amendment 4. There being no objection, Amendment 4 was adopted.
Number 0697
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON moved to report the proposed committee
substitute (CS) for HB 23, Version 23-LS0134\D, Ford, 1/29/03,
as amended, out of committee with individual recommendations and
the accompanying fiscal note. There being no objection, CSHB
23(JUD) was reported from the House Judiciary Standing
Committee.
HB 59 - CLEANUP OF ILLEGAL DRUG SITES
Number 0765
CHAIR McGUIRE announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 59, "An Act relating to the evaluation and
cleanup of sites where certain controlled substances may have
been manufactured or stored; and providing for an effective
date." [In committee packets was a new proposed committee
substitute (CS) for HB 59, Version 23-LS0341\H, Lauterbach,
2/20/03.]
CHAIR McGUIRE explained that in drafting CSHB 59(JUD) [following
the hearing on 2/19/03], difficulties arose in conforming one of
the amendments offered by Representative Gruenberg to statute.
She relayed that the new CS in members packets, along with an
accompanying amendment, will correct that problem.
Number 0824
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON made a motion to rescind the committee's
action on [2/19/03] in reporting CSHB 59(JUD) [the proposed CS,
Version 23-LS0341\D, Lauterbach, 2/18/03, as amended on 2/19/03]
from committee. There being no objection, it was so ordered.
Number 0855
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON moved to adopt the new proposed CS for
HB 59, Version 23-LS0341\H, Lauterbach, 2/20/03, as the work
draft. There being no objection, Version H was before the
committee.
The committee took an at-ease from 2:25 p.m. to 2:26 p.m.
Number 0946
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG, including as part of his motion that
he be added as a co-sponsor of Amendment 1, made a motion to
adopt Amendment 1, labeled [23-LS0341\H.1, Lauterbach, 2/21/03],
which contained handwritten changes and which originally read:
Page 5, line 1:
Delete "specified in"
Insert "covered in regulations adopted under"
Page 5, line 22, before "listed":
Insert "specifically"
Page 5, line 23, following "use.":
Insert "The department shall also determine
whether there are other substances associated with
illegal drug manufacturing sites that may pose a
substantial risk of harm to persons who occupy the
site or to public health and shall adopt regulations
that set limits for those substances for the purposes
of determining whether the property for which notice
was received under AS 46.03.500 is fit for use."
Page 6, line 6, following "in":
Insert "regulations adopted under"
Page 7, line 3:
Delete "AS 46.03.530"
Insert "the list of substances specifically named
in AS 46.03.530(a)"
Page 7, line 5:
Following "of":
Insert "specific"
Delete "AS 46.03.530"
Insert "AS 46.03.530(a)"
[The handwritten changes in Amendment 1 involved replacing
"shall" with "may" in the section of the amendment pertaining to
page 5, line 23.]
Number 0965
CHAIR McGUIRE asked whether there were any objections to
Amendment 1. There being no objection, Amendment 1 was adopted.
Number 969
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON moved to report Version 23-LS0341\H,
Lauterbach, 2/20/03, as amended, out of committee with
individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes.
There being no objection, the new CSHB 59(JUD) was reported from
the House Judiciary Standing Committee.
HB 82 - COMMERCIAL ELECTRONIC MAIL
[Contains brief mention of HB 56.]
Number 0992
CHAIR McGUIRE announced that the final order of business would
be HOUSE BILL NO. 82, "An Act making certain activities related
to commercial electronic mail unlawful as unfair methods of
competition or unfair or deceptive acts or practices under the
Act enumerating unfair trade practices and consumer
protections." [Before the committee was CSHB 82(L&C).]
Number 1024
REPRESENTATIVE KEVIN MEYER, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor,
explained that the L&C version differs from the original in that
it focuses only on unsolicited commercial electronic mail that
contains explicit sexual material, which, he opined, is probably
the most of annoying, offensive, and harmful type of unsolicited
commercial e-mail. HB 82 does not prohibit such e-mail;
instead, it merely requires that the subject line of the e-mail
contain "ADV:ADLT". He relayed that this specific subject title
is currently required by nine other states, and posited that it
could perhaps become a standard title for all states that
institute such a requirement.
REPRESENTATIVE MEYER mentioned that although others refer to HB
82 as a consumer protection bill, he himself refers to it as a
children's protection bill. By requiring such a title, it will
become easier for parents to ensure that their children are not
exposed to sexually explicit material, either by teaching their
children not to open e-mails that contain that title, or by
having their computer systems automatically filter such e-mails
out. He pointed out that the standards being proposed for
unsolicited commercial e-mail are no higher than for any other
method of delivering sexually explicit material, whether mailed
through the United States Postal Service, or made available
through stores. He made the suggestion that if enough states
address "this issue," the federal government will be forced to
do so as well with regard to what comes into the U.S. from other
countries.
CHAIR McGUIRE closed the public hearing on HB 82.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL asked how this is policed, and what the
penalties are for violating this proposed statute.
REPRESENTATIVE MEYER relayed that the attorney general's office
would oversee "the policing of this," and so parents could bring
instances of violations to that office. He mentioned that it
would be possible to track this type of e-mail back to its
source. He also noted that an individual could take private
action to recover $500.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL asked whether the burden of proof for a
private action would be different from what would be required in
an action brought by the state.
Number 1377
CLYDE (ED) SNIFFEN, JR., Assistant Attorney General, Fair
Business Practices Section, Civil Division (Anchorage),
Department of Law (DOL), said that the burden of proof would be
the same, whether for a private action or for an action brought
by the attorney general. With regard to penalties, he explained
that if the attorney general's office pursues someone, it has
authorization to seek penalties of up to $5,000 for every
violation of the statute, and every transaction would be
considered a separate violation. Thus, if there were 100 e-
mails, for example, that could total up to $500,000 if the court
so determined. If, on the other hand, a private individual
brings forth an action, he/she could get [the greater of] either
$500 or treble actual damages. He surmised, however, that it
could be very difficult to prove that actual damages occurred
from an e-mail, unless a virus or something of that nature were
attached.
MR. SNIFFEN also noted that with regard to consumer protection
issues, private litigants could recover full attorney fees.
This, however, is not true for the state; if a similar action is
brought by the state, it can only recover a portion of its
attorney fees, as stipulated by [Civil Rule 82 of the Alaska
Rules of Civil Procedure]. In response to further questions, he
indicated that having that stipulation changed via legislation
would be helpful to the department, both the purpose of raising
revenue, and for the purpose of protecting consumers.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG suggested making such a change to HB
82.
REPRESENTATIVE MEYER stated his preference that such a change
not be included HB 82. He surmised that $5,000 per violation
would be sufficient to cover most of the state's expenses in
such actions.
REPRESENTATIVE GARA relayed that one of his bills [HB 56] makes
just such a statutory change to [Civil Rule 82 of the Alaska
Rules of Civil Procedure]. He recommended that the committee
simply wait for that bill, which will allow the attorney
general's office to recover its full, reasonable attorney fees
in consumer protection cases. He then commended Representative
Meyer for his work on HB 82.
REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON relayed that as chair of the House Labor
and Commerce Standing Committee, he did not see any problems
with HB 82.
REPRESENTATIVE MEYER noted that Representative Gara also has "a
very good bill" pending that will focus on other types of
unsolicited commercial electronic mail.
Number 1747
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to report CSHB 82(L&C) out of
committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying
zero fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 82(L&C) was
reported from the House Judiciary Standing Committee.
ADJOURNMENT
Number 1776
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Judiciary Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 2:44 p.m.
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