Legislature(2023 - 2024)BARNES 124
03/15/2023 03:15 PM House LABOR & COMMERCE
Note: the audio ![]()
and video ![]()
recordings are distinct records and are obtained from different sources. As such there may be key differences between the two. The audio recordings are captured by our records offices as the official record of the meeting and will have more accurate timestamps. Use the icons to switch between them.
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB93 | |
| HB75 | |
| HB58 | |
| HB63 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 99 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 93 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 75 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 58 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 63 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE LABOR AND COMMERCE STANDING COMMITTEE
March 15, 2023
3:15 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Jesse Sumner, Chair
Representative Justin Ruffridge, Vice Chair
Representative Mike Prax
Representative Dan Saddler
Representative Stanley Wright
Representative Ashley Carrick
Representative Zack Fields
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
HOUSE BILL NO. 93
"An Act relating to a lumber grading training program and lumber
grading certificates; relating to use of lumber graded and
certified by a person holding a lumber grading training program
certificate; and providing for an effective date."
- HEARD & HELD
HOUSE BILL NO. 75
"An Act relating to coverage for additional insureds under owner
and contractor controlled insurance programs; and providing for
an effective date."
- MOVED CSHB 75(L&C) OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 58
"An Act relating to medical assistance for recipients of
Medicaid waivers; establishing an adult care home license and
procedures; providing for the transition of individuals from
foster care to adult home care settings; and providing for an
effective date."
- MOVED HB 58 OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 63
"An Act repealing the Workers' Compensation Appeals Commission;
relating to decisions and orders of the Workers' Compensation
Appeals Commission; relating to superior court jurisdiction over
appeals from Alaska Workers' Compensation Board decisions;
repealing Rules 201.1, 401.1, and 501.1, Alaska Rules of
Appellate Procedure, and amending Rules 202(a), 204(a) - (c),
210(e), 601(b), 602(c) and (h), and 603(a), Alaska Rules of
Appellate Procedure; and providing for an effective date."
- MOVED HB 63 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 93
SHORT TITLE: LUMBER GRADING PROGRAM
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) SUMNER
03/06/23 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/06/23 (H) L&C
03/15/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
BILL: HB 75
SHORT TITLE: OWNER & CONTRACTOR CONTROLLED INSURANCE
SPONSOR(s): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
02/15/23 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/15/23 (H) L&C
02/20/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
02/20/23 (H) Heard & Held
02/20/23 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
03/01/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
03/01/23 (H) <Bill Hearing Canceled>
03/13/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
03/13/23 (H) Heard & Held
03/13/23 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
03/15/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
BILL: HB 58
SHORT TITLE: ADULT HOME CARE; MED ASSISTANCE
SPONSOR(s): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
02/03/23 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/03/23 (H) HSS, L&C, FIN
02/07/23 (H) HSS AT 3:00 PM DAVIS 106
02/07/23 (H) Heard & Held
02/07/23 (H) MINUTE(HSS)
03/07/23 (H) HSS AT 3:00 PM DAVIS 106
03/07/23 (H) Moved HB 58 Out of Committee
03/07/23 (H) MINUTE(HSS)
03/08/23 (H) HSS RPT 6DP
03/08/23 (H) DP: FIELDS, SUMNER, RUFFRIDGE,
MCCORMICK, MINA, PRAX
03/13/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
03/13/23 (H) Heard & Held
03/13/23 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
03/15/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
BILL: HB 63
SHORT TITLE: REPEAL WORKERS' COMP APPEALS COMMISSION
SPONSOR(s): RAUSCHER
02/06/23 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/06/23 (H) L&C, JUD
02/17/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
02/17/23 (H) Heard & Held
02/17/23 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
03/03/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
03/03/23 (H) Heard & Held
03/03/23 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
03/15/23 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
WITNESS REGISTER
JEREMY DOUSE, Northern Regional Forester
Division of Forestry and Fire Protection
Department of Natural Resources
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided a PowerPoint presentation on HB
93, titled "Local Lumber Grading."
RODNEY DIAL, Mayor
Ketchikan Gateway Borough
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided invited testimony during the
hearing on HB 93.
LORI WING-HEIER, Director
Division of Insurance
Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions during the hearing on HB
75.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:15:18 PM
CHAIR JESSE SUMNER called the House Labor and Commerce Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:15 p.m. Representatives
Saddler, Prax, Wright, Ruffridge, Carrick, Fields, and Sumner
were present at the call to order.
HB 93-LUMBER GRADING PROGRAM
3:15:48 PM
CHAIR SUMNER announced that the first order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 93, "An Act relating to a lumber grading training
program and lumber grading certificates; relating to use of
lumber graded and certified by a person holding a lumber grading
training program certificate; and providing for an effective
date."
Chair Sumner passed the gavel to Vice Chair Ruffridge.
3:16:52 PM
CHAIR SUMNER, as prime sponsor, introduced HB 93. He stated
that the proposed legislation would create a program to grade
lumber in the state and make it available for building. He
explained that lumber used in residential construction must be
graded and stamped, but small lumber mills in Alaska do not
produce enough lumber to justify the costs associated with
residential lumber grading. He said the bill would create a
program allowing smaller lumber mills to directly sell lumber to
individuals or contractors looking to build a home. He stated
that the proposed bill would save on lumber shipping costs,
particularly for barges in rural communities. He expressed the
opinion that local lumber grading programs would grow the
economy by increasing investment in forest management and
increasing the number of lumber mills. He stated that the
program for lumber certification would be offered at least once
a year.
3:22:13 PM
JEREMY DOUSE, Northern Regional Forester, Division of Forestry
and Fire Protection, Department of Natural Resources, provided a
PowerPoint presentation on HB 93, titled "Local Lumber Grading."
He began his presentation on slide 2 and slide 3, stating that
grade stamped lumber allows a purchaser to know the quality of
the lumber. He stated that the Western Wood Products
Association (WWPA) publishes the rules for western lumber
grading, and it is accredited by the American Lumber Standards
Committee. He said that it is economically challenging for
small mills to become a member of these types of organizations
because of the smaller operational scale. He continued that the
membership fee, monthly site inspections, and inspector travel
costs could cost approximately $2200 a month.
3:25:44 PM
MR. DOUSE continued to slide 4 through slide 6, stating that
seven other states have similar programs to the one proposed in
HB 93. He said that these states have training for smaller
mills so the mill would be able to visually grade its own
lumber. He said that building inspectors would still have the
ability to reject wood being used if necessary. Lumber sold as
part of the program would be required to be sold to the end user
or the contractor building the home. He added that most of
these states only allow this lumber to be used when building a
one to three family home.
3:29:03 PM
MR. DOUSE continued to slide 7 and stated that the program is
needed in Alaska because of several factors, including the
rising costs of lumber used in the construction of residential
homes. He stated that the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation
has reported a 15 percent decrease in new building permits,
citing the high costs of construction materials as the reason.
He said that tariffs on Canadian lumber imports have also
contributed to the increase in costs. He stated that the
proposed bill would create opportunities for forest management
by allowing the salvage of trees affected by beetles.
MR. DOUSE continued to slide 8 through slide 10 and gave an
overview of mill production and lumber grading standards. He
stated that in 2000, approximately 87 million board feet (MBF)
of lumber was produced in Alaska compared to 15 MBF in 2020. He
stated that the focus of the proposed bill is to provide a way
to grade lumber which would be used for light framing and studs
for residential construction. He provided the equivalent grades
for what would be used in Alaska's local lumber grading program
to those used by WWPA.
3:34:23 PM
MR. DOUSE moved to slide 11 and slide 12 and stated that the
one-day class used to train individuals in Alaska would be
similar to the class offered in Wisconsin. He continued that
recertification would be required on a five-year basis, and a
handbook with the different grades would be issued to those in
the program. He reiterated that the certification would follow
the individual, rather than the lumber mill, and there would be
a requirement to sell the lumber to the end user.
3:37:48 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS asked why the program would only allow the
lumber to be used in single family homes.
MR. DOUSE answered that the program is not meant to compete with
larger lumber mills, as they pay more money to have access to
lumber grading. He expressed the understanding that the
greatest need for residential construction is single family
homes in rural areas of the state. In response to a follow-up
question, he said that it would be possible for HB 93 to
contribute to the number of carbon credits available.
3:40:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked whether larger commercial lumber
mills have "more hoops to jump through."
MR. DOUSE answered that the larger mills have more employees,
produce more lumber, and pay the dues to lumber grading
organizations. In response to a follow-up question, he stated
that there are certain qualifications smaller mills would still
be unable to meet in the one-day training course offered through
a local lumber grading program.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked whether a one-day course is
sufficient to qualify an individual to grade lumber.
MR. DOUSE answered that the local lumber grading program uses a
simplified grading system which would allow an individual to
learn how to grade lumber in a single day. He added that the
state of Wisconsin uses a similar system, which he described as
successful.
3:43:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CARRICK asked what the degree requirements would
be to train individuals under the program. She also questioned
the fiscal notes relating to the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
MR. DOUSE answered that an individual with a bachelor's degree
in Wood Sciences, or a similar discipline, would not be required
to take the one-day class to grade lumber. He said that the
fiscal notes referred to having an individual to "train the
trainers." In response to a follow-up question, he stated that
allowing the certification to stay with the individual instead
of the mill would allow for the possibility of more training in
rural Alaska.
3:48:00 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked why there is a requirement to sell
the lumber directly to end users or their contractors.
CHAIR SUMNER answered that lumber bought at a store is stamped,
while lumber bought directly from the mill and graded by its
employees would not be stamped.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked what protections there are against
an inspector giving deference to a local lumber mill.
MR. DOUSE suggested that this would be up to professional
ethics.
CHAIR SUMNER added that such a scenario would require the
contractor, inspector, and mill to conspire together, which is
difficult to prevent with certainty and can still happen with
stamped lumber.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER questioned the rise in cost of lumber.
MR. DOUSE answered that the cost had been $12 a square foot and
now it has risen to $20 a square foot.
3:51:31 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS expressed the opinion that it would be
beneficial if the proposed bill were expanded to cover multi-
family structures.
3:52:39 PM
VICE CHAIR RUFFRIDGE questioned the number of lumber mills in
rural Alaska.
MR. DOUSE answered that most villages have their own mills, and
he suggested that the Native Corporations are willing to do
business. He made the observation that there is an abundance of
timber resources.
3:55:01 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER questioned why the training for the
program would not fall under the jurisdiction of the Division of
Labor and Workforce Development.
MR. DOUSE answered that the Division of Forestry and Fire
Protection is specifically looking to build up the program using
resources which would already be available.
3:56:31 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 3:56 p.m. to 3:57 p.m.
3:57:18 PM
RODNEY DIAL, Mayor, Ketchikan Gateway Borough, provided invited
testimony on HB 93. He pointed out that Ketchikan and Southeast
Alaska has a long history of logging, and the cost of lumber has
a significant impact on the cost of homebuilding and the
economy. He expressed the belief the proposed bill is a step in
the right direction for solving the problem posed by the high
cost of housing.
3:59:00 PM
[Vice Chair Ruffridge passed the gavel back to Chair Sumner.]
CHAIR SUMNER announced that HB 93 was held over.
HB 75-OWNER & CONTRACTOR CONTROLLED INSURANCE
3:59:03 PM
CHAIR SUMNER announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 75, "An Act relating to coverage for additional
insureds under owner and contractor controlled insurance
programs; and providing for an effective date." [Amendment 1
was adopted to HB 75 during the meeting on 3/13/23.]
4:00:48 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS asked whether the proposed legislation is
a continuation of the previous insurance structure or whether it
would be a "meaningful change."
4:01:05 PM
LORI WING-HEIER, Director, Division of Insurance, Department of
Commerce, Community, and Economic Development, answered that the
purpose of the bill is to add clarifying language rather than
making significant changes.
4:02:42 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to adopt the proposed committee
substitute (CS) for HB 75, Version 33-GH1009\B, Marx, 3/14/23,
("Version B") as a working document. There being no objection,
Version B was before the committee.
4:03:17 PM
The committee took a brief at-ease.
4:03:45 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to report CSHB 75, Version 33-
GH1009\B, Marx, 3/14/23, out of committee with individual
recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes.
4:04:00 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER objected for the purpose of discussion.
He questioned why the language for a "major" construction
project had been used in Amendment 1.
MS. WING-HEIER answered that it was to match language used
elsewhere in the bill.
4:05:03 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER withdrew his objection. There being no
further objection, CSHB 75(L&C) was reported out of the House
Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.
4:05:15 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 4:05 p.m. to 4:08 p.m.
HB 58-ADULT HOME CARE; MED ASSISTANCE
4:08:41 PM
CHAIR SUMNER announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 58, "An Act relating to medical assistance for
recipients of Medicaid waivers; establishing an adult care home
license and procedures; providing for the transition of
individuals from foster care to adult home care settings; and
providing for an effective date."
4:09:31 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to report HB 58 out of committee
with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal
notes. There being no objection, HB 58 was reported out of the
House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.
4:11:03 PM
The committee took a brief at-ease.
HB 63-REPEAL WORKERS' COMP APPEALS COMMISSION
4:11:18 PM
CHAIR SUMNER announced that the final order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 63, "An Act repealing the Workers' Compensation
Appeals Commission; relating to decisions and orders of the
Workers' Compensation Appeals Commission; relating to superior
court jurisdiction over appeals from Alaska Workers'
Compensation Board decisions; repealing Rules 201.1, 401.1, and
501.1, Alaska Rules of Appellate Procedure, and amending Rules
202(a), 204(a) - (c), 210(e), 601(b), 602(c) and (h), and
603(a), Alaska Rules of Appellate Procedure; and providing for
an effective date."
4:11:37 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to report HB 63 out of committee
with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal
notes. There being no objection, HB 63 was reported out of the
House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.
4:12:04 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Labor and Commerce Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at
4:12 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 93 DOF Lumber Grading Presentation 03.15.2023.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| HB93 Support Letters.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| HB93 Fiscal Note.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| HB 93 Sectional Analysis Version A.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| HB 93 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| Letter of Support SCS, TNC, Spruceroot SB87 HB93.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 SB 87 |
| Ketchikan Mayor Dial Support of HB93.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| Support Letter HB93 HDLAlaska.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| HB93 Letter of Support - Young's Timber Inc.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| ASHBA Letter of Support_Lumber Grading Program 3.22.23.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
|
| TKC HB 93 support letter.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |
HB 93 |
| ASHBA_Letter of Support_Lumber Grading Program_3.22.23.pdf |
HL&C 3/15/2023 3:15:00 PM |