02/26/1996 01:35 PM Senate CRA

         SENATE COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE                         
                       February 26, 1996                                       
                           1:35 p.m.                                           
                                                                               
  MEMBERS PRESENT                                                              
                                                                               
 Senator John Torgerson, Chairman                                              
 Senator Randy Phillips, Vice Chairman                                         
 Senator Tim Kelly                                                             
 Senator Lyman Hoffman                                                         
                                                                               
  MEMBERS ABSENT                                                               
                                                                               
 Senator Fred Zharoff                                                          
                                                                               
  COMMITTEE CALENDAR                                                           
                                                                               
 HOUSE BILL NO. 392 am                                                         
 "An Act relating to the reinstatement of dissolved Native village             
 corporations, and to the affirmative vote necessary to amend the              
 articles of incorporation of Native village corporations to                   
 authorize the classification of directors."                                   
                                                                               
  PREVIOUS SENATE COMMITTEE ACTION                                             
                                                                               
 HB 392 - No previous action to record.                                        
                                                                               
  WITNESS REGISTER                                                             
                                                                               
 Representative Ivan Ivan                                                      
 State Capitol                                                                 
 Juneau, AK 99801-1182                                                         
  POSITION STATEMENT:   Prime Sponsor of HB 392                                
                                                                               
  ACTION NARRATIVE                                                             
                                                                               
 TAPE 96-11, SIDE A                                                            
 Number 001                                                                    
             HB 392 am NATIVE VILLAGE CORPORATIONS                            
                                                                              
  CHAIRMAN   TORGERSON  called the Senate Community & Regional Affairs         
 Committee meeting to order at 1:35 p.m.  He brought HB 392 am                 
 before the committee as the only order of business.                           
                                                                               
 Number 015                                                                    
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE IVAN , prime sponsor of HB 392, reading the following         
 sponsor statement into the record:                                            
                                                                               
 "I sponsored HB 392 to amend the Alaska Corporation Code to allow             
 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) village corporations to           
 amend their articles of incorporation to authorize a classified or            
 staggered term board of directors by a majority vote of the shares            
 represented at a meeting of shareholders.                                     
                                                                               
 Under current law, for those villages which did not have classified           
 boards in place by July 1, 1989, such an amendment requires a vote            
 of two-thirds of all outstanding shares entitled to vote.  This is            
 often difficult for village corporations to achieve.  This bill               
 rectifies that situation.                                                     
                                                                               
 An amendment to HB 392 was presented and accepted, to include a               
 provision for ANCSA village corporations that have been                       
 involuntarily dissolved by the State an opportunity to reinstate.             
 A similar provision was provided by the Eighteenth Alaska                     
 Legislature in 1994, under HB 71.                                             
                                                                               
 Amended HB 392 allows Native village corporations that have been              
 involuntarily dissolved by the State, the ability to be reinstated            
 under the law, one year after the effective date of this act.                 
 According to the Division of Banking, Securities and Corporations,            
 there remain five Native village corporations that did not take               
 advantage of the 1994 reinstatement.  Those corporations are                  
 Oscarville Native Corporation (Oscarville - Senate District T),               
 Tulkisarmute, Inc. (Tuluksak - Senate District R), Cully                      
 Corporation (Point Lay - Senate District S), Ohog Incorporated                
 (Russian Mission - Senate District R), and The Grouse Creek                   
 Corporation (Seward - Senate District D)."                                    
                                                                               
 Representative Ivan stated he would respond to questions from the             
 committee.                                                                    
                                                                               
 Number 062                                                                    
                                                                               
  SENATOR RANDY PHILLIPS  noted the members' packets contain a                 
 resolution adopted by the Swan Lake Corporation Board of Directors            
 in support of HB 392, and he asked if Swan Lake is a community.               
  REPRESENTATIVE IVAN  informed him it is the name of a village                
 corporation.                                                                  
                                                                               
  SENATOR TORGERSON  said he originally had two small concerns                 
 relating to staggered terms for board members and the possibility             
 of being able to get rid of a board member by a majority vote, but            
 he was assured by the LAA legal division that they were not                   
 problems.                                                                     
                                                                               
 Number 090                                                                    
                                                                               
 There being no further testimony on HB 392 am,  SENATOR TORGERSON             
 asked for the pleasure of the committee.                                      
                                                                               
  SENATOR RANDY PHILLIPS  moved that HB 392 am and the accompanying            
 fiscal notes be passed out of committee with individual                       
 recommendations.  Hearing no objection, it was so ordered.                    
                                                                               
 There being no further business to come before the committee, the             
 meeting was adjourned at 1:40 p.m.