Legislature(1995 - 1996)
04/03/1996 02:35 PM Senate CRA
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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SENATE COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
April 3, 1996
2:35 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator John Torgerson, Chairman
Senator Tim Kelly
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Randy Phillips, Vice Chairman
Senator Fred Zharoff
Senator Lyman Hoffman
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 466(FIN) am
"An Act establishing the Adak Reuse Authority."
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 322(FIN)
"An Act authorizing grants for temporary housing assistance during
emergencies and disasters."
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 386(JUD)
"An Act relating to cruelty to animals and to the power of first
and second class boroughs to prohibit cruelty to animals."
PREVIOUS SENATE COMMITTEE ACTION
HB 466 - No previous action to record.
HB 322 - No previous action to record.
HB 386 - No previous action to record.
WITNESS REGISTER
Representative Carl Moses
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Prime Sponsor of HB 466
Tim Benintendi, Legislative Aide to Representative
Carl Moses
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered information on HB 466
Chris Gates
The Aleut Corporation
500 Front St.
Ketchikan, AK 99901
POSITION STATEMENT: Opposes HB 466
Kris Lethin, CEO
The Aleut Corporation
4000 Old Seward Highway, #300
Anchorage, AK 99513
POSITION STATEMENT: Does not support HB 466
Roger Poppe, Staff to Representative Pete Kott
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered information on HB 322
Ms. Carol Carroll, Director
Administrative & Support Services Division
Department of Military & Veterans Affairs
P.O. Box 110900
Juneau, AK 99811-0900
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered information on HB 322
Representative Ben Grussendorf
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Prime Sponsor of HB 386
Bill Ward
P.O Box 350
Soldotna, AK99669
POSITION STATEMENT: Has concern with HB 386
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 96-19, SIDE A
Number 001
HB 466 ADAK REUSE AUTHORITY
CHAIRMAN TORGERSON called the Senate Community & Regional Affairs
Committee meeting to order at 2:35 p.m. He stated because the
committee lacked a quorum and could take no action on the
calendared legislation, the meeting would be considered a work
session on the bills. He then brought CSHB 466(FIN) am before the
committee as the first order of business.
Number 015
REPRESENTATIVE MOSES , prime sponsor of HB 466, explained the
legislation establishes an Adak Reuse Authority to facilitate the
conversion of the Adak Naval Air Facility to predominantly civilian
use. Because there is no local government on Adak, the authority
is needed to receive federal assets, manage a reuse plan and
perform administrative functions as the Navy withdraws from the
island.
The bill establishes a seven-member board, and provides that two of
those members must be residents of the Aleutian region. It also
empowers the authority to enter into contracts, operate
enterprises, receive grants and other funds, disperse funds and
issue revenue bonds. It also requires approval by the legislature
of any specific issue.
Representative Moses noted the legislation also contains a
provision for the director of the Office of Management & Budget to
approve transfers of property from the federal government once the
director has established that funds will be available to manage
that property appropriately.
Representative Moses said the bill has been written to ensure a
smooth transfer to any eventual municipality created locally or on
the island. The reuse authority is not expected to be a long-lived
entity.
In conclusion, Representative Moses said with the considerable
assets available once the Navy leaves Adak, a diverse commercially
viable community is a realistic vision of enhancement for the
Aleutian region. He urged the committee's favorable consideration
of the legislation.
Number 055
SENATOR TORGERSON questioned having the Department of Community &
Regional Affairs as the lead agency instead of the Department of
Commerce & Economic Development, because the biggest issue is
probably economic development. REPRESENTATIVE MOSES responded he
thought DCRA was selected because of the eventual need for forming
a local government in the region.
TIM BENINTENDI , legislative aide to Representative Moses, pointed
out the legislation provides that two members of the authority to
be selected by the governor will be heads of principal departments
of the executive branch, and he suggested the Department of
Commerce could be represented in that way.
Number 090
SENATOR KELLY inquired what the cost of the reuse authority will be
in general fund dollars. REPRESENTATIVE MOSES replied the fiscal
note from DCRA shows a cost of $281,000.
Number 104
SENATOR TORGERSON referred to language on page 2, lines 20 - 22,
which gives the governor the authority to break a tie vote on a
motion or resolution pending before the authority, and he
questioned why that provision was included. SENATOR KELLY also
pointed out that the section does not specify the number of votes
of the full membership needed to take an action. On most boards
and commissions there has to be a majority of the membership of the
board to take action, and, if it is a seven-member board, it takes
four votes in order to take an action. TIM BENINTENDI said the
language was pretty standard language that was included in the
original draft of the legislation and those issues hadn't been
previously raised.
SENATOR KELLY noted the fiscal note is for two employees, and he
suggested that be put into statute like was done several years ago
with the Tourism Marketing Council in order to limit the ability to
hire more than two employees. He assumed the authority would have
the ability to contract for employees to provide other types of
necessary services. TIM BENINTENDI agreed that was correct, and he
added that those contract employees would not be employees of the
state, but the executive director and the executive secretary will
be employees of the state.
Number 182
CHRIS GATES, representing the Aleut Corporation and testifying from
Boston, Mass., asked that the committee focus on three areas, the
first being representation. He said the intent of federal law is
real clear that it should be a local reuse authority, and, so far,
consideration of a local reuse concept has not been allowed to move
forward. He urged the committee to look at the possibility of a
local reuse committee.
Mr. Gates said the legislation provides that the governor appoint
five board members, which can come from any where in the state, two
of which might come from the Aleutians. He suggested the bill be
amended to allow villages, communities and Native groups of the
region, those who will win or lose when Adak is reused, to serve on
the board of directors.
Mr. Gates suggested on page 1, beginning on line 10, to change the
language to read as follows: "(a) The membership of the authority
consists of (1) a representative from the City of Unalaska; (2) a
representative from the City of Atka; (3) a representative from the
Aleutians East Borough; (4) a representative from The Aleut
Corporation; (5) a representative from the 15 village corporations
located within the Aleutians-Pribilof Island region; (6) a
representative from the 12 tribal organizations in the region; (7)
a representative from the Aleutians Pribilof Island Association;
and (8) two representatives from the state of Alaska."
Mr. Gates believes a local board will be more informed of the
economics, the political, the social, the administrative framework
of the region, and would be more capable of making quicker
decisions than the board that's proposed in the bill.
Mr. Gates noted the Aleut people having been working very hard for
several months to consolidate and make an arrangement with the
Department of Interior to trade all of their land entitlements
under ANCSA in the whole region on to Adak Island so that Adak will
be the "basket carrying all the eggs in the future of the Aleut
people and the Aleut community in the Aleutians."
Mr. Gates spoke to the necessity of keeping the assets and
infrastructure on Adak Island in tact. As an example, he noted
that when a school with an enrollment of over 400 students was
closed on the island, every thing in that was school stripped out
and dispersed to other locations, and when Adak is reused, all of
that will have to bought and resupplied to the island at great
cost. He suggested that if the legislation moves forward, it
should provide a moratorium on stripping equipment and
infrastructure off of the island for three to five years without a
super majority vote of the board.
Mr. Gates directed attention to page 13 and the section relating to
"Succession." He said the House Finance Committee pointed out the
section needs clarification as to the duties to be taken over by a
successive municipality, but no work has been done to clarify the
section.
In closing, Mr. Gates said the state authority concept may not be
the best tool. He said there are four bases around the country
that use simple nonprofit organizations that do exactly the same
things that this authority does, only does them better.
Number 326
SENATOR TORGERSON asked what Senator Stevens' position is on the
issue. REPRESENTATIVE MOSES answered that he doesn't think Senator
Stevens has taken a definitive position, although he would like to
see the interested parties come back with a united front.
Addressing Mr. Gates comments that the makeup of the board does not
constitute a local authority, Representative Moses said he gets the
impression that according to the Aleut Corporation, nothing will
work unless they have absolute control of whatever authority it
will be. He also believes that whatever authority comes into play,
it should not be limited and have its hands tied so that nothing
can be removed from the island. There undoubtedly will be a lot of
extra equipment that won't be immediately needed for the community
and it will just sit there and become obsolete and deteriorate.
Number 362
SENATOR TORGERSON asked for a response to Mr. Gates' comments on
the succession provision. TIM BENINTENDI said the bill was amended
on the floor to accommodate the House Finance Committee's concern.
He added that there has been no indication since the last House
Finance meeting or on the floor of the House that there is still a
problem with succession. The authority is designed to be a fairly
austere short-lived authority. He said the authority should have
the liberty to sell off surplus material, or trade it, lease it,
etc., in terms of generating cash flow to sustain itself and to
help the community remain on its feet until a municipality can be
formed. He also said the makeup of the board is compatible with
the way other boards have been done. The bill has been determined
to be a reasonable vehicle from many quarters of the state, and
even outside of the state, and that Aleut interests can participate
in it.
Number 422
SENATOR TORGERSON commented that it could end up with only two
people representing the Adak area on the board and five that are
not residents, so even with a super majority vote, equipment or
whatever else could be removed over the objections of the two
people who reside in the area. He asked Representative Moses if
this was a concern. REPRESENTATIVE MOSES replied that if an
authority is created for the benefit of Adak becoming a viable
community in a fairly rapid time, their charge is to look out for
the interests of Adak. However, if there were a number of
different communities controlling that board, they would probably
start fighting among themselves as to who was going to get what.
Number 445
CHRIS GATES informed the committee that Senator Stevens recently
wrote that a nonprofit corporation offers a mechanism to jump start
the process of attracting commercial enterprises to Adak this year.
He has looked at another entity besides this authority and thinks
that it might, if well constructed and well put together, do better
than the authority proposed in the legislation.
Number 475
SENATOR TORGERSON asked if with DCRA's involvement their primary
objective would be to form a municipality. TIM BENINTENDI answered
it is not addressed positively or negatively in the legislation.
SENATOR TORGERSON said he feels DCRA should probably have a
secondary role and DCED should be the lead agency because this is
a two billion dollar economic development issue. The secondary
proposal would be to form a local government if possible. Also, it
speaks to the bonding authority and the commissioner of DCRA is not
on the bond council, but the commissioner of DCED is.
REPRESENTATIVE MOSES said he didn't think he would have a problem
with DCED being the lead agency. He also related the City of
Unalaska has done a study on forming a borough and expanding their
boundaries to include Adak and Aleutians East.
Number 520
KRIS LETHIN , CEO of The Aleut Corporation, stated an issue that has
not been brought to the surface is the issue of lands. This
particular military base sits on national wildlife refuge land;
it's totally encompassed in that land. He said he has not heard
Representative Moses or Deputy Commissioner Cotten address how the
state is going to deal with the issue of taking over and having
authority in a national wildlife refuge and having all the
facilities to maintain and upkeep, as well as being able to have
the funding available to them.
Mr. Lethin said the Aleut people have felt very strongly about
their involvement because they would like to be able to be involved
from a land standpoint. They have 55,000 acres of unconveyed
surface estate and 144,000 acres of subsurface estate, which is
unconveyed to them under the ANCSA legislation. They have also
over-selected in the Aleutian Maritime Refuse over 1,000,000 acres
that basically cloud the title on the entire refuge in the
Aleutians. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife would very much like to
negotiate with the Aleut people to resolve those title clouds and
the title issues and to use Adak as the primary tool for that.
Mr. Lethin said there was a meeting the previous Friday with the
state of Alaska, the U.S. Navy and The Aleut Corporation
participating, to discuss how this issue could potentially be taken
care of. He said they were told that the state, in essence, did
not want to proceed any further until they knew exactly what was
going to happen with HB 466, so that brought that whole process on
the lands issue to a halt until the issue of the legislation is
resolved.
Mr. Lethin said this could end up being a very contentious thing,
and they have tried all along to figure how to bring some middle
ground to all of this, and he suggested there may be some middle
ground by using the nonprofit approach. He pointed out the Fort
Greely reuse program is under a nonprofit corporation. He
personally sees the state taking on an authority such as provided
for in HB 466, as a black hole with the state becoming the deep
pocket.
Number 580
There being no further testimony on HB 466, SENATOR TORGERSON said
a committee substitute would be prepared to address the issues of:
the number of employees of the authority being placed in statute;
the quorum requirement; and changing DCED to the lead agency. He
added that the issues brought up by Mr. Gates and Mr. Lethin,
relating to authority and limits, were questions that would need to
be addressed in Senate Finance. He stated it was his intention to
have the legislation back before the committee at its next meeting
for final action.
Number 585
CSHB 322(FIN) GRANTS FOR HOUSING FOR DISASTER VICTIMS
SENATOR TORGERSON brought CSHB HB 322(FIN) before the committee as
the next order of business. He stated because the committee lacked
a quorum, the hearing on the legislation would be considered a work
session.
TAPE 96-19, SIDE B
Number 001
ROGER POPPE , aide to Representative Pete Kott, explained that in
federal disaster relief, the federal government can provide grant
funds directly to individuals to make their own temporary housing
arrangements and reimburse them up to 100 percent. Currently, the
state of Alaska does not have the authority to do that when the
governor declares a state emergency. As a result, the Division of
Emergency Services is required to arrange for temporary housing,
arrange for leases, renew lease arrangements periodically as
needed, and generally act as an intermediary between the lessors
and the persons using the temporary housing. This causes several
problems for the division, and it is administratively burdensome
and increases the cost of administering the program.
Mr. Poppe said HB 322 authorizes the Division of Emergency Services
to provide the grants directly to the individuals, which will
remove a lot of bureaucratic activity on their part. He added it
will not make the state more vulnerable in terms of the whole
process because in providing funds to the people that need them,
the state would first have to determine whether federal funds had
been provided, or whether payment was made by the private insurer,
or whether assistance was provided by the Red Cross, etc., so the
state would be the last in the line in an emergency situation.
Number 040
CAROL CARROLL , Director, Administrative & Support Services
Division, Department of Military & Veterans Affairs, said in a
disaster the Red Cross is the first responder in providing
temporary aid. However, if individuals are not able to get back
into their residences for a period of time, they are eligible for
temporary housing assistance from the state and from the federal
government if it is a federally declared disaster. If it is a
state-only declared disaster, the Division of Emergency Services
acts as the rental agent. The legislation will allow the
individuals to find their own accommodations and be reimbursed by
the state. If an individual is a renter prior to the disaster, it
limits it to one month of Red Cross assistance and then up to three
months assistance from the state. Home owners have an 18-month
limit on temporary housing funds.
Number 070
SENATOR TORGERSON pointed out that during the last flood disaster
in the state, the administration said there were no funds available
for that disaster, and it was the local governments, through their
purchase orders, that actually provided the money for all of the
work that was done. The local governments were eventually
reimbursed by the state. He asked how this program will be handled
when there isn't money appropriated for disaster relief. MS.
CARROLL said last year when there weren't enough funds, the
department borrowed $3,000,000 from another allocation within the
disaster relief fund to match both the federal money and the state
only portion of that flood.
SENATOR TOGERSON said he has serious concerns when there isn't
money in the appropriation pot, as well as the bill carrying a zero
fiscal note. MS. CARROLL said the bill just gives authority for
when a disaster occurs and it would have a negative fiscal impact
because they would not have to spend money on the administrative
work At the time of a disaster, because the disaster relief fund
now has about $26 in it, there would be a fiscal impact.
There being no further testimony on CSHB 322(FIN), SENATOR
TORGERSON stated it would be back before the committee at its next
meeting.
Number 120
CSHB 386(JUD) CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
SENATOR TORGERSON brought CSHB 386(JUD) before the committee as the
final order of business.
REPRESENTATIVE BEN GRUSSENDORF , prime sponsor of the legislation,
said a problem was brought to his attention relating to the
treatment of animals, and the bill was introduced in response to
concerns expressed by constituents regarding the difficulty of
prosecuting cases which involve cruelty to animals.
Representative Grussendorf explained the bill doesn't change what
can legally be done right now or what is illegal to do. It simply
changes some standards and allows the borough to adopt an ordinance
to prohibit cruelty to animals.
The main change in Section 1 is changing "intentionally" to
"knowingly" which lowers the state of mind the state must prove in
prosecuting a case. This would help in cases of starving animals.
An owner's actions may not have been intentional, but a reasonable
person would "know" that a lack of food results in a starving
animal. It also lowers the criminal standard by changing
"recklessly" to "with criminal negligence," which would mean gross
deviation from a standard of care that a reasonable person would
observe.
Section 2 gives the boroughs the authority to adopt an ordinance.
Number 180
BILL WARD , testifying from the Kenai LIO, stated he has an
agricultural operation on the Kenai Peninsula, and his concern is
with turning some of this responsibility over to borough staff
people who may not be qualified to interpret what is proper care of
agricultural animals. Right now, the state veterinarian's office
and the Division of Agriculture hold that responsibility, and he
believes they are qualified and should remain the oversight on
proper care of agricultural animals. He agrees with the original
intent of the legislation to take care of pets and other companion
animals where people may not be in the professional business of
raising livestock.
Number 428
SENATOR TORGERSON related that amendments have been drafted that
will address Mr. Ward's concern.
Representative Grussendorf explained one of the amendments
fortifies accepted veterinarian practice by adding "animal
husbandry," but he assured Mr. Ward that the proposed legislation
would not affect any of his current practices.
SENATOR TORGERSON stated because the committee lacked a quorum, the
bill and proposed amendments would be held over until the next
meeting of the committee.
There being no further business to come before the committee, the
meeting was adjourned at 3:40 p.m.
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