Legislature(2007 - 2008)SENATE FINANCE 532
01/30/2008 09:00 AM Senate FINANCE
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB119 | |
| SJR14 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 119 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SJR 14 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE
January 30, 2008
9:03 a.m.
CALL TO ORDER
Co-Chair Stedman called the Senate Finance Committee meeting
to order at 9:03:29 AM.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Lyman Hoffman, Co-Chair
Senator Bert Stedman, Co-Chair
Senator Charlie Huggins, Vice-Chair
Senator Kim Elton
Senator Donny Olson
Senator Joe Thomas
Senator Fred Dyson
MEMBERS ABSENT
None
ALSO PRESENT
Ginny Austerman, Staff, Senator Donny Olson; Cathy Boutin,
Dzantik'I Heeni Middle School, Juneau
PRESENT VIA TELECONFERENCE
Debbie Edwardson, North Slope School Board Member, Barrow;
Charlotte Glover, Librarian, Ketchikan; Roz Goodman, Retired
School Librarian, Pedro Bay; Maureen Radotich, Parent,
Valdez; Barb Bryson, Librarian, Valdez;
SUMMARY
SB 119 "An Act establishing a grant program to support
public school libraries."
SB 119 was heard and HELD in Committee for further
consideration.
SJR 14 Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the
State of Alaska relating to appropriations from
the budget reserve fund.
SJR 14 was heard and HELD in Committee for further
consideration.
9:03:43 AM
SENATE BILL NO. 119
"An Act establishing a grant program to support public
school libraries."
GINNY AUSTERMAN, STAFF, SENATOR DONNY OLSON, explained that
SB 199 was at the request of the Alaska Association of
School Librarians (AkASL). It establishes a program to
assist libraries with purchasing materials that will update
their collections. This version of the bill includes a
grant of up to $3000 per year per school. The funds are to
be used to expand library collection materials: books,
magazines, reference and audio visual materials, and
electronic curriculum that support reading activities.
Ms. Austerman explained that the grant money may not be used
to purchase classroom materials, textbooks, testing
software, library automation software, computer hardware,
operating software, or for technology support. The grants
will be awarded to eligible public school libraries and will
be administered by the person in charge of the state
library. Unused funds may be awarded to a school district
as an incentive grant to encourage innovative public school
library programs. If the funds are not sufficient to fund
all of the eligible grant requests, the available funds
shall be paid out on a pro rata basis.
9:08:00 AM
Senator Thomas wondered about the reference to communities
with a population of less than 10,000. He requested
information about the definition of "community" in existing
statute. Ms. Austerman did not have that information.
9:08:36 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman MOVED to ADOPT CSSB 119 (FIN), labeled 25-
LS0749\C, Mischel, 1/29/08, as the working document before
the committee. Co-Chair Stedman OBJECTED for discussion
purposes.
Senator Thomas said he asked the question to determine which
communities would be eligible for the grant. Ms. Austerman
agreed to find that information.
Senator Dyson asked where the funds would come from. Ms.
Austerman explained that they would be obtained by
appropriation from general funds. Senator Dyson pointed out
that there were matching funds contained in the bill.
9:10:00 AM
Co-Chair Stedman related that the bill is modeled after to
the harbor bill in that the state would appropriate funds
into a capital matching account out of which communities
could apply for monies to construct or expand public
libraries. The state would match 50 percent of the capital
to the community's 50 percent. Communities would be allowed
to use entities such as the Rasmuson Foundation for funding.
At least 20 percent of the funding must come from the local
community. The concept is for the communities to construct
and expand public libraries using some of their own money.
Similar to the harbor bill process, there may need to be
additional language needed to deal with maintenance issues
to ensure that the libraries will be maintained to a high
standard by the communities.
9:12:54 AM
Senator Elton pointed out that the Department of Education
and Early Development maintains a prioritized list for major
maintenance for new school construction. He reference page
2, line 24, where it says if there is insufficient money to
fund all eligible grant requests, the available money shall
be paid on a pro rata basis, which seems to assume that all
requests are equal in value. He wondered how the requests
would be prioritized.
Ms. Austerman noted that eligibility requirements are
spelled out in the bill. She reported that the person in
charge of the state library is in charge of determining how
the money would be awarded. Senator Elton asked Ms.
Austerman to find out more information about that.
9:15:48 AM
SENATOR DONNY OLSON, SPONSOR, talked about how library needs
might vary in different areas of the state. He reported
that the purpose of the bill is to provide an opportunity
for communities to have access to new library materials. It
is important to have this legislation because of the rapid
changes in technology and outdated materials and
information.
9:17:11 AM
Senator Dyson agreed with Senator Elton's concern about
finding a fair way of distributing the grant funds. He
voiced concern about unorganized communities with a school
not having access to this program due to a lack of ability
to raise matching funds. He gave an example of the Sitka
School District library's "enlightened" philosophy that
welcomes students from home schooling and correspondence
programs. He hoped that those types of schools would be
eligible for the grant.
9:19:34 AM
Senator Huggins wanted more information about determining
who is eligible for the program and how many schools might
qualify. Co-Chair Stedman listed population centers over
10,000 in the state: Anchorage, Fairbanks, Eagle River, and
Juneau. They are eligible for larger capital dollars to be
used for expansion of libraries. This legislation is geared
for smaller areas. He provided the borough of Kenai and
Soldotna as an example. Senator Huggins assumed some of
the sites in Mat-Su would be eligible. He reiterated a
definition of who is eligible. Co-Chair Stedman said the
intent is to include such schools.
9:22:32 AM
CATHY BOUTIN, DZANTIK'I HEENI MIDDLE SCHOOL LIBRARIAN,
JUNEAU, noted that though libraries do a great job of
instructing children, the cost of books and materials has
increased. She gave examples of books that are now more
expensive. Co-Chair Stedman assumed Ms. Boutin was
supportive of the bill. Ms. Boutin said she was.
9:27:03 AM
BARB BRYSON, LIBRARIAN, VALDEZ, testified in support of SB
119. She read from a prepared statement (copy on file.) As
a member of AkASL, she stated strong support of the bill
because it would parallel the already existing state support
of public libraries. She quoted studies to support the
library's relationship to higher student achievement. She
encouraged support of the bill as a means of supporting
school curriculum needs.
9:31:08 AM
DEBBIE EDWARDSON, NORTH SLOPE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT,
BARROW, testified in strong support of SB 119. She shared
personal experiences about the importance of books and
reading, as a mother and as a writer. Village school
libraries provide the only source of books in the North
Slope area. She shared statistics about student success.
She related funding issues which prevent allocating money
for libraries and technology.
9:35:56 AM
ROZ GOODMAN, RETIRED SCHOOL LIBRARIAN, PEDRO BAY, testified
in strong support of SB 119. She provided written testimony
(copy on file.) She pointed out the need for updating
school library collections. She listed studies about the
correlation between reading success and library collections
and the need to support public school libraries. She
reported on outdated materials and how schools do need new
library resources. She listed the benefits of passing SB
119.
9:40:52 AM
MAUREEN RADOTICH, PARENT, VALDEZ, testified in support of SB
119. She spoke from personal experience about the benefits
of reading and the love of books.
9:43:31 AM
CHARLOTTE GLOVER, LIBRARIAN, KETCHIKAN, provided written
testimony in support of SB 119 (copy on file.) She spoke
about how poorly funded the school libraries are in the
Ketchikan area as compared to the well-funded public
library. She related that she loans out an average of 600
public library books a month to school libraries. School
libraries are some children's only resource for books. She
urged support of SB 119.
9:47:30 AM
Senator Elton commented that public school libraries don't
have the funds they need; however, that is a failure of the
school district. He maintained that Sections 2 and 3 of the
bill ask the state to do something that school districts
should be doing. This bill may further that problem because
the state would be providing those materials that the
schools should be providing.
Senator Elton requested feedback on the population number
used in the bill. Large school districts have a better
ability to do a better job for their public school libraries
than the rural schools do. He wondered about the population
cap for the construction component in the bill. He wanted
to be clear that he supports the bill, even though he
believes that many public school districts have failed to
support their libraries.
9:50:49 AM
Senator Huggins echoed Senator Elton's comments. He
referred to a proposed foundation formula funding increase
and thought that libraries could be one of the areas funded
by that increase. He asked how new libraries would be
staffed. He thought that outdated textbooks might be a
bigger priority than library books. He commented that
schools that are funded at an 80 percent level, such as
correspondence schools, might have to be addressed
differently than regular schools.
At-Ease: 9:53:03 AM
Reconvene: 9:53:25 AM
Co-Chair Stedman stated that SB 119 would be set aside until
a later date.
SB 119 was MOVED but NOT ADOPTED. It was heard and HELD in
Committee for further consideration.
9:54:27 AM
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 14
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State
of Alaska relating to appropriations from the budget
reserve fund.
CO-CHAIR HOFFMAN, SPONSOR, explained that he introduced the
bill in order to change the constitutional requirements to
extract funds from the budget reserve (CBR) account from
three-fourths to two-thirds of the members of each house of
the legislature. Prior legislators have been reluctant to
pay back the $5.2 billion in the budget reserve because of
the high standard to extract funds. It has been said that
as a result of the three-fourths vote, there have been votes
that required additional appropriations in capital projects
or operating projects. He maintained that was never the
original intent of the constitutional amendment.
Co-Chair Hoffman recalled when the concept of raising the
standard was first brought up in the House. He pointed out
the current financial position in Alaska, where there are
several billions of dollars as potential savings. Co-Chair
Hoffman emphasized that the proper procedure would be to
repay the constitutional budget reserve and return to the
original intent of the constitution. He thought there could
be a simple majority, but that there should be a higher
standard.
9:57:56 AM
Senator Dyson asked about the committee's intention
regarding the bill. Co-Chair Stedman replied that the
intent was to pass it out of committee today. Senator Dyson
requested that SJR 14 be held in committee for a few more
days. Co-Chair Hoffman said he had no problem with that.
9:58:55 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman related that there is an article from the
Juneau Empire stating support for the bill (copy on file.)
He referred to Senator Wilken's support for the ideas found
in bill.
Senator Elton calculated that under a two-thirds requirement
it would take 14 votes in the Senate to access the CBR and
27 in the House, which is only a change of one less in the
Senate and three less in the House. Co-Chair Hoffman agreed
that the problem has been in the House. Three votes
difference in the House lowers the bar quite a bit.
10:00:21 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 1, labeled 25-
LS1350\A.1, Cook, 1/25/08:
Page 1, line 1:
Delete "an amendment"
Insert "amendments"
Page 1, line 2:
Delete "appropriations from"
Page 1, following line 7:
Insert a new resolution section to read:
* Sec. 2. Article IX, sec. 17(d), Constitution of the
State of Alaska is amended to read:
(d) If an appropriation is made from the budget
reserve fund, until the amount appropriated is repaid,
the amount of money in the general fund available for
appropriation at the end of each succeeding fiscal year
shall be deposited in the budget reserve fund. For
purposes of this subsection, each amount deposited into
the fund under (a) of this section shall be treated as
a repayment of money appropriated from the fund. If the
amount deposited under (a) of this section exceeds the
amount due in repayment, the excess amount shall be
treated as a credit to be applied as a repayment of
money appropriated from the fund in the future. The
legislature shall implement this subsection by law."
Renumber the following resolution section accordingly.
Co-Chair Stedman OBJECTED for discussion purposes.
Co-Chair Stedman explained that Amendment 1 moves the
legislature away from the day-to-day, year-to-year
management of the CBR. When remunerations from settlements
are available, the monies go into the CBR as an offset of
what is owed. Most likely there will be sizeable
adjustments any time there is an audit request going out on
PPT. Such a payment would offset what is owed and lower the
debt. The state owes the CBR roughly $5 billion and has
about a $3 billion balance. There is a high probability
that a large sum of that balance could be paid back this
year. Over the next several years the CBR could easily
approach $8 billion to $10 billion. Co-Chair Stedman wanted
the legislature to recognize that when claims were made for
taxes or settlements, they would be returned to the CBR.
There will need to be future discussions regarding what size
the CBR should be.
10:04:02 AM
Senator Elton quoted from the amendment, "for purposes of
this subsection, each amount deposited into the fund". He
asked if income earned by the fund is a deposit or if it
only refers to revenues from the sources stated in the
constitution. Co-Chair Stedman replied that it would not
include realized or unrealized earnings. It is targeting
settlements such as those from oil taxation, which could be
very sizeable.
10:05:04 AM
Senator Dyson thought the amendment did not quite get where
the sponsor wants to go. It makes assumptions about optimal
levels. Senator Dyson reported that he requested a
recommendation of what the ideal level for the CBR is and he
never received an answer. He applauded the intent of the
amendment. He guessed that there was a formula that would
guide the state. He stated support for having a high bar
for removing money when the balance is below the recommended
level and a lower bar when there is plenty of money. He
wondered what other large enterprises use as a guiding
formula for their rainy day accounts. Part of the
discussion should involve expert advice.
10:07:45 AM
Co-Chair Stedman thought that it would be very difficult to
find a comparison to the state with its very large wealth.
He did not think there was an exact model to use for
comparison.
10:09:10 AM
Co-Chair Stedman WITHDREW his OBJECTION to Amendment 1.
There being NO OBJECTION, Amendment 1 was adopted.
Co-Chair Stedman concluded that the intent of the amendment
is to move from crisis management to planning for the
future.
At-ease: 10:09:48 AM
Resume: 10:10:41 AM
Co-Chair Stedman referred the committee to a copy of Article
09, Section (a), of the Constitution of the State of Alaska.
He suggested members read it because it applies to the
amendment and to Senator Elton's question regarding deposits
to the fund.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 10:12 AM.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|