Legislature(2021 - 2022)BARNES 124
04/09/2021 01:00 PM House RESOURCES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB26 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 26 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE RESOURCES STANDING COMMITTEE
April 9, 2021
1:08 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Josiah Patkotak, Chair
Representative Grier Hopkins, Vice Chair
Representative Zack Fields
Representative Calvin Schrage
Representative Sara Hannan
Representative George Rauscher
Representative Mike Cronk
Representative Ronald Gillham
Representative Tom McKay
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
HOUSE BILL NO. 26
"An Act relating to participation in matters before the Board of
Fisheries and the Board of Game by the members of the respective
boards; and providing for an effective date."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 26
SHORT TITLE: CONFLICT OF INTEREST: BD FISHERIES/GAME
SPONSOR(s): FISHERIES
02/18/21 (H) PREFILE RELEASED 1/8/21
02/18/21 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/18/21 (H) FSH, RES
02/25/21 (H) FSH AT 10:00 AM GRUENBERG 120
02/25/21 (H) -- MEETING CANCELED --
03/12/21 (H) BILL REPRINTED
03/16/21 (H) FSH AT 11:00 AM GRUENBERG 120
03/16/21 (H) Heard & Held
03/16/21 (H) MINUTE(FSH)
03/18/21 (H) FSH AT 11:00 AM GRUENBERG 120
03/18/21 (H) Moved HB 26 Out of Committee
03/18/21 (H) MINUTE(FSH)
03/20/21 (H) FSH RPT 5DP 1DNP 1NR
03/20/21 (H) DP: STORY, STUTES, ORTIZ, KREISS-
TOMKINS, TARR
03/20/21 (H) DNP: MCCABE
03/20/21 (H) NR: VANCE
03/31/21 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/31/21 (H) Heard & Held
03/31/21 (H) MINUTE(RES)
04/09/21 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
WITNESS REGISTER
REPRESENTATIVE GERAN TARR
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information and answered questions
during the hearing on HB 26 on behalf of the House Special
Committee on Fisheries, sponsor.
THATCHER BROUWER, Staff
Representative Geran Tarr
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information and answered questions
during the hearing on HB 26 on behalf of Representative Tarr,
who chairs the House Special Committee on Fisheries, sponsor.
ALPHEUS BULLARD, Legislative Counsel
Legislative Legal Services
Legislative Affairs Agency
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information and answered questions
during the hearing on HB 26.
KRISTY TIBBLES, Executive Director
Board of Game
Boards Support Section
Alaska Department of Fish & Game
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information and answered questions
during the hearing on HB 26.
GLENN HAIGHT, Executive Director II
Board of Fisheries
Boards Support Section
Alaska Department of Fish & Game
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information and answered questions
during the hearing on HB 26.
MARK RICHARDS, Executive Director
Resident Hunters of Alaska (RHAK)
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to Amendment 1
during the hearing on HB 26.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:08:11 PM
CHAIR JOSIAH PATKOTAK called the House Resources Standing
Committee meeting to order at 1:08 p.m. Representatives McKay,
Fields, Cronk, Hopkins, Schrage, Gillham, Hannan, Rauscher, and
Patkotak were present at the call to order.
HB 26-CONFLICT OF INTEREST: BD FISHERIES/GAME
1:08:51 PM
CHAIR PATKOTAK announced that the only order of business would
be HOUSE BILL NO. 26, "An Act relating to participation in
matters before the Board of Fisheries and the Board of Game by
the members of the respective boards; and providing for an
effective date."
1:09:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GERAN TARR, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf
of the House Special Committee on Fisheries, sponsor of HB 26,
introduced her staff, Thatcher Brouwer, to present.
1:10:00 PM
THATCHER BROUWER, Staff, Representative Geran Tarr, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of Representative Tarr, who chairs the
House Special Committee on Fisheries, sponsor of HB 26, detailed
answers to questions remaining after the House Resources
Standing Committee meeting on March 31, 2021. He referred to a
memorandum ("memo") from Alpheus Bullard, Legislative Counsel
[included in the committee packet], which addressed
Representative Fields' inquiry as to how other Executive Branch
boards and commissions manage member conflicts of interest. He
explained that other boards and commissions have the same
requirements for disclosure and recusal in both deliberations
and voting. He also noted AS 39.52.120(c), which is applicable
only to members of the Boards of Fisheries and Game and read as
follows:
(c) In addition to other provisions of this
section, a public officer who is a member of the Board
of Fisheries or the Board of Game may not act on a
matter before the board if the public officer has not
disclosed in the manner set out in AS 39.52.220 all
personal or financial interests in a business or
organization relating to fish or game resources.
MR. BROUWER then directed attention to a document [included in
the committee packet] detailing definitions of an "immediate
family member", "financial interest", "personal interest", and
"official action". Mr. Brouwer also noted that he would answer
any further questions committee members may have.
1:12:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAUSCHER moved to adopt Amendment 1, labeled 32-
LS0227\A.1, Bullard, 3/31/21, which read as follows:
Page 1, lines 1-2:
Delete "and the Board of Game by the members of
the respective boards"
insert "by the members of the board"
Page 2, line 26
Delete "or the Board of Game"
Page 2, line 31:
Delete "or the Board of Game"
Page 3, line 3:
Delete "fish or game"
Insert "fishery"
Page 3, line 5:
Delete "respective"
1:12:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HANNAN objected for purposes of discussion.
1:12:40 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAUSCHER expressed his belief that HB 26 "seems
to be a Board of Fisheries bill instead of a combination of
both," so Amendment 1 would remove language pertaining to the
Board of Game.
1:13:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE TARR said that the Boards of Fisheries and Game
have been treated the same under statute, so Amendment 1 would
cause a policy deviation from historical precedent. She noted
that the committee has received communication from hunting
organizations that are concerned about the possibility of the
two boards being treated differently.
1:14:41 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HANNAN said that she opposes Amendment 1 because
statutorily and in terms of disclosure the two boards have been
treated the same. She stated her belief that the intent of HB
26 is to make the discussion of issues a matter of public record
and that having the same policy for both boards adds to their
credibility.
1:16:18 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHRAGE asked whether there has been an instance
in which a statute for either board has been amended without
affecting the other.
REPRESENTATIVE TARR said that this question was addressed in the
aforementioned memo from Mr. Bullard, and she deferred to Mr.
Brouwer.
MR. BROUWER referred to the second page of the memo, which
informs the reader that a change that impacted both boards was
made in 1992.
1:17:37 PM
ALPHEUS BULLARD, Legislative Counsel, Legislative Legal
Services, Legislative Affairs Agency, said that the 1992 change
to the Executive Branch Ethics Act "applied equally to the Board
of Fisheries and the Board of Game."
1:18:48 PM
KRISTY TIBBLES, Executive Director, Board of Game, Boards
Support Section, Alaska Department of Fish & Game (ADF&G), said
that Amendment 1 to HB 26 would constitute a change in process
leading to inconsistency between the two boards, but that the
change would be workable.
1:19:44 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHRAGE noted that the Boards of Fisheries and
Game occasionally have joint meetings and asked whether
Amendment 1 would impact those meetings.
MS. TIBBLES indicated that the [Boards Support Section] would
consult with the Department of Law on that matter.
1:20:33 PM
GLENN HAIGHT, Executive Director II, Board of Fisheries, Boards
Support Section, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, said, "that's
something we would lean on the Department of Law for" but "the
Department of Law but that "probably the default position would
be the one that's most cautious."
REPRESENTATIVE SCHRAGE added that, given the uncertainty of how
joint meetings would be handled, he is uncomfortable with
Amendment 1.
1:21:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CRONK said he supports Amendment 1 and
characterized HB 26 as "unnecessary in the first place because
it's trying to fix a problem that really wasn't there."
1:21:51 PM
CHAIR PATKOTAK noted that the representative from Resident
Hunters of Alaska should be given an opportunity to speak to
Amendment 1.
1:22:32 PM
MARK RICHARDS, Executive Director, Resident Hunters of Alaska
(RHAK), said that RHAK had initially requested that the Board of
Game be removed from HB 26, but that there are several unwritten
rules that apply only to the Board of Fisheries, and he is of
the opinion that both boards should be governed by the same
statute. He noted that Representative Cronk has a point in
noting that recusals have not been a problem in the Board of
Game but opined that it could benefit the public to have
discussions as a part of public record. He said that issues are
discussed privately between board members, including those with
a conflict of interest, prior to the meetings, therefore RHAK
doesn't expect a possible policy change under HB 26 to affect
the outcome of any vote. He concluded that RHAK does not
support Amendment 1 and would prefer to continue the precedent
of both boards being treated equally under statute.
1:25:42 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAUSCHER characterized HB 26 as "a solution
looking for a problem" as pertains to the Board of Game, which
would be addressed by Amendment 1.
1:26:38 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HANNAN maintained her objection.
1:26:46 PM
A roll call vote was taken. Representatives McKay, Cronk,
Rauscher, and Gillham voted in favor of Amendment 1.
Representatives Fields, Hopkins, Hannan, Schrage, and Patkotak
voted against it. Therefore, Amendment 1 failed by a vote of 4-
5.
1:27:30 PM
CHAIR PATKOTAK announced that HB 26 would be held over.
1:29:34 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Resources Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 1:29 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 26 Amendment Rauscher 3.31.2021.pdf |
HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Boards of Game and Fisheries Ethics Process Overview and Recusals 2.1.21.pdf |
HFSH 3/16/2021 11:00:00 AM HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Informational Document BOF-BOG History and Process 03.06.19.pdf |
HFSH 3/16/2021 11:00:00 AM HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Research Legislative Legal Memo 4.6.2021.pdf |
HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 HRES Bill Hearing Follow-up Definitions 4.2.2021.pdf |
HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Letter of Support CDFU 3.31.2021.pdf |
HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Email in Support - Dunaway 3.17.21.pdf |
HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Sectional Analysis 3.14.21.pdf |
HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Sponsor Statement 3.16.21.pdf |
HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Email of Opposition 3.16.21.pdf |
HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Letters of Support 3.16.21.pdf |
HFSH 3/16/2021 11:00:00 AM HFSH 3/18/2021 11:00:00 AM HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |
| HB 26 Letters of Support 3.15.21.pdf |
HRES 3/31/2021 1:00:00 PM HRES 4/9/2021 1:00:00 PM |
HB 26 |