02/21/2007 01:30 PM Senate HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB81 | |
| SB4 | |
| Overview: Public School Funding Formula | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 81 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| = | SB 4 | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE HEALTH, EDUCATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES STANDING COMMITTEE
February 21, 2007
1:34 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Bettye Davis, Chair
Senator Joe Thomas, Vice Chair
Senator John Cowdery
Senator Kim Elton
Senator Fred Dyson
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 81
"An Act extending the termination date for the Board of
Certified Direct-Entry Midwives; and providing for an effective
date."
MOVED SB 81 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 4
"An Act extending the cash assistance benefit program for
seniors under the senior care program and increasing the benefit
amount; and providing for an effective date."
MOVED SB 4 OUT OF COMMITTEE
OVERVIEW: Foundation Formula
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 81
SHORT TITLE: EXTEND BOARD OF MIDWIVES
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) DAVIS
02/12/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/12/07 (S) HES, FIN
02/21/07 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: SB 4
SHORT TITLE: SENIOR CARE PROGRAM
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) OLSON
01/16/07 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/5/07
01/16/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/16/07 (S) HES, FIN
02/19/07 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/19/07 (S) Heard & Held
02/19/07 (S) MINUTE(HES)
02/21/07 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
Richard Benavides, Aide
to Senator Davis
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented SB 81 for the sponsor
Nikki Rouget
Division of Legislative Audit
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Available for questions on SB 81
Kaye Kanne, Executive Director
Juneau Family Birth Center
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported SB 81
Dana Brown, Director
Alaska Family Health and Birth Center
Fairbanks, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported SB 81
Elinor Fitzjarrald, Acting Director
Division of Public Assistance
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Available for questions on SB 81
ACTION NARRATIVE
CHAIR BETTYE DAVIS called the Senate Health, Education and
Social Services Standing Committee meeting to order at 1:34:55
PM. Present at the call to order were Senators Dyson, Elton,
Cowdery, Thomas, and Chair Davis.
SB 81-EXTEND BOARD OF MIDWIVES
CHAIR DAVIS announced SB 81 to be up for consideration.
1:36:43 PM
RICHARD BENAVIDES, staff to Senator Davis, sponsor of SB 81,
explained that the bill extends the sunset date for the Board of
th
Certified Direct-Entry Midwives (BCDEM) to June 30, 2015. The
extension is in line with legislative audit recommendations. The
board serves to educate midwives of the level of service,
experience, and education expected of them, regulating the
profession while ensuring public safety.
SENATOR COWDERY asked for the number of other states that have a
board of midwives, and if the length of the proposed extension
is normal.
MR. BENAVIDES said that the extension is average.
SENATOR COWDERY asked if the members are paid.
MR. BENAVIDES said that he believes they only receive a per diem
while on board business.
1:39:15 PM
NIKKI ROUGET, with the Division of Legislative Audit (DLA), said
that the DLA conducted a review of the BCDEM and concurred that
the board is operating in the best interest of the public and
should be extended, with no operational recommendations. In 2005
the typical extension was changed from four years to eight
years.
SENATOR ELTON commented that the previous administration had the
idea to reduce the instance of board overlap, and said he
wondered if anyone knew of a similar plan by the current
administration.
1:41:31 PM
KAY KANNE, Executive Director of the Juneau Family Birth Center
(JFBC), said that she has been a midwife in Juneau for 23 years,
since there were no midwife laws. The board was created in 1992
and she served two consecutive terms; it strives for the highest
levels of training and service, and is looked to as an example
for other states, most of which have midwife boards. The JFBC
serves 10 percent of birth population in Juneau.
1:43:38 PM
SENATOR COWDERY asked where midwives are concentrated in the
state.
MS. KANNE replied that most midwives are concentrated in Juneau,
Anchorage, and Fairbanks, and are required to practice near a
hospital. The midwife population has been relatively stable in
recent years.
SENATOR THOMAS asked if midwife training is readily available in
the state.
MS. KANNE replied that it is readily available in Juneau,
coupled with an approved program with an option for a masters'
degree. Training generally takes two to three years.
1:46:10 PM
BRODIE ANDERSON, aide to Representative Kawasaki, said that he
was available for questions but did not plan to testify.
DANA BROWN, Director of Alaska Family Health and Birth Center,
said that she wants to see the board extended because it does a
good job of serving the profession and contributing to public
safety. The responsibilities of the board include investigating
midwives, overseeing regulations, and providing continuing
education.
She added that the Fairbanks Birth Center assists in 11 percent
of local births, and in Wasilla the percentage is 25.
1:49:50 PM
CHAIR DAVIS commented that all kinds of health services are
needed across Alaska.
SENATOR ELTON said that he was surprised by the high fees for
board membership, and added that the board is important for
monitoring confidence and it ensures excellence of care.
1:52:44 PM
SENATOR DYSON said that expensive legal cases brought against
the board mean penalization of innocent members; in general,
though, the board has done an excellent job of serving its
members.
SENATOR DYSON made a motion to move SB 81 from committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s). There
being no objection, the motion carried.
SB 4-SENIOR CARE PROGRAM
1:56:07 PM
CHAIR BETTYE DAVIS announced SB 4 to be up for consideration.
ELLIE FITZJARRALD, Acting Director for the Division of Public
Assistance (DPA), said that she was available for questions on
the fiscal notes of SB 4.
JANET CLARK, Assistant Commissioner for the Department of Health
and Social Services (DHSS), said that the governor introduced a
senior care bill, SB 90, that morning and that she could provide
a comparison of the two.
MS. FITZJARRALD said that the current Senior Care Program (SCP)
provides $120 a month to seniors whose income is under 135
percent of the 2005 federal poverty levels. The governor's bill
maintains the $120 payment, raises the income qualifying limit
to 135 percent of the 2007 poverty level, and allows it to
increase proportionally each year; SB 4 increases the payment to
$150 and maintains the former income qualifying levels. Both
bills eliminate the little-used prescription drug benefit. In
addition, the governor's proposal doesn't allow for a person to
receive both senior care and the longevity bonus; although the
provision is not included in SB 4, the intent is the same.
She added that 5040 seniors will qualify for the governor's
proposal. For SB 4, the number would be 4835. The total cost of
benefit payments under the governor's bill would be $7,002,557,
and $8,000,701 under SB 4. SB 90 would allow for a five-year
extension, while SB 4 does not provide a sunset date.
2:00:31 PM
SENATOR OLSON said that he was not an expert on the governor's
proposal and could only comment on his own bill.
CHAIR DAVIS said she had not expected the governor's bill to be
seen by the committee that day, and she asked Senator Olson to
try and combine some of the differences between his and the
governor's bill.
2:02:48 PM
MS. CLARK said that the governor's plan would cost $7.3 million,
while SB 4 would cost $8.7 million. The main differences are
that SB 4 increases the benefit amount, and the governor's
proposal increases the income eligibility.
SENATOR COWDERY asked where the governor's funding would come
from.
MS. CLARK said that a provision currently in the budget would
fund the proposal.
SENATOR COWDERY commented that he would like to see the
longevity bonus funding taken from Permanent Fund earnings.
2:05:03 PM
SENATOR ELTON said that it appeared that more seniors would opt
for senior care than he expected, and asked for an explanation.
MS. CLARK said that 2500 individuals are eligible for the senior
care payment but not the longevity bonus.
2:06:59 PM
SENATOR OLSON said that he is willing to work with the
administration on changes in his bill, and that the main
priority is to care for Alaska's seniors as best and quickly as
possible. Most of the issues between the two bills may be best
brought up in the finance committee.
2:08:43 PM
SENATOR ELTON made a motion to move SB 4 from committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s).
SENATOR DYSON commented that he would have preferred to hear the
governor's bill before deciding on the sunset date, and said
that he objected to passing the bill from committee.
A roll-call vote was taken, and Senators Cowdery, Elton, Thomas,
and Chair Davis voted yea; Senator Dyson voted nay. Therefore,
SB 4 passed from committee.
^OVERVIEW: PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING FORMULA
CHAIR DAVIS announced the committee would hear an overview of
public school funding formula.
2:11:38 PM
EDDY JEANS, Director of School Finance for the Alaska Department
of Education and Early Development (DEED), said that he would be
presenting the Foundation Funding Formula, as defined in AS
14.17. The Adjusted Average Daily Membership (AADM) is the
school's population adjusted by the base student allocation,
which equals the basic need.
He explained that the count period of the ADM population ends
the 4th Friday in October; the result is the number of
enrollments in a district. Qualifying students must be six years
st
of age by September 1 of the school year or under the age of
twenty-one and have not graduated. Also, students of five yrs of
age may enter kindergarten. Children with disabilities may enter
school at the age of three and may continue through their
twenty-first year.
He said that the first step in calculating the AADM is adjusting
the student population by the school size, multiplying the
result by the student cost factor, and finally adding the
intensive service funding and the correspondence count.
Community funding is determined by a population-based scale; a
population of 10-100 is funded as a single school and a
population of 101-425 is funded as two schools.
2:17:34 PM
SENATOR COWDERY asked if the percentage of vocational funding is
the same statewide or if it depends on the status of the
community as urban or rural.
MR. JEANS replied that such funding is contained within block
funding.
SENATOR COWDERY asked for the dropout rate in high schools.
MR. JEANS replied that he did not have the answer with him.
He continued to explain that a community with more than 425
students would have each of its facilities funded separately,
excepting alternative schools or technical schools. Charter
schools must have at least 150 students to be counted
separately.
He used the Nome school district as an example to explain the
school size adjustment table for different population levels,
and said that the larger the student population in a school, the
smaller the adjustment because larger schools are more
efficient. He then gave an example of how to adjust a school's
daily average.
2:22:06 PM
SENATOR THOMAS asked if the adjustment for charter schools is a
severe disadvantage to their funding, and why small schools are
added to the largest.
MR. JEANS said that the DEED wants to encourage charter school
efficiency, and that the population threshold used to be 200
students.
2:23:34 PM
SENATOR DYSON said he thinks the threshold needs to be
revisited, and that some schools are being penalized through
this formula. For charter schools to meet safety requirements,
finding rentable space is a big challenge. However, some
districts have found ways to get more revenue for charter
schools.
MR. JEANS said that in the last three years there have been
supplemental appropriations for smaller charter schools,
allocated on a per-student basis. He then continued to explain
the adjustment table using an example school. He added that
youth detention facilities are counted separately for funding
purposes.
2:28:03 PM
SENATOR ELTON said that youth facilities have shifting
populations and asked how funding is determined.
MR. JEANS replied that funded is allocated on a per-bed basis.
He then explained the next step in determining school funding,
and said that adjustments to cost differentials are required
every other year. He said that he doesn't find the Institute of
Social and Economic Research (ISER) report evaluating cost
differentials to be 100 percent accurate, but that cost
differentials will always be a point of contention.
CHAIR DAVIS asked when the first study was conducted.
MR. JEANS replied that it was done in 2002.
He continued to say that the next step in the funding formula is
the adjustment for special needs, which is a 20 percent block
allocation; intensive needs children, however, are funded
separately. A study was required to determine the impact of the
change from individual to block funding, and it showed that the
new method generated $14 million more than the previous one.
Also, categorical funding in the previous funding formula
generated fixed amounts of money; now departments have to
justify their spending.
2:32:47 PM
SENATOR ELTON asked if new block grants penalize vocational
education over other categories like bilingual programs.
MR. JEANS agreed that the most pressure is put on vocational
programs, which must compete for funding.
SENATOR ELTON asked if there are now fewer vocational programs
than before the block funding was implemented
MR. JEANS replied affirmatively; he said that the intent of
block funding was to stop labeling children to unfairly generate
revenue. The percentage could be increased, but distribution
would still be the same.
SENATOR ELTON commented that vocational education shouldn't be
lumped in with other subjects, because districts are forced to
take funding away from it when money is needed.
2:36:41 PM
SENATOR DYSON said that he thinks funding for gifted and
talented children isn't necessarily more important than
vocational or bilingual education.
MR. JEANS said that gifted and talented funding is also under
pressure.
2:38:40 PM
MR. JEANS explained how to adjust the allocation for special
needs children, and that intensive needs costs are based on a
one-day count period. These students are also included in other
funding categories as well as in intensive needs. The DEED has
been conducting audits of intensive needs cases because they had
increased disproportionately in recent years. The department
used to do random sampling and districts were only held
accountable for the inappropriate claims found. Now audits are
done on a 100 percent basis; children are still being improperly
claimed and so districts are being penalized. There was a DEED
meeting in Anchorage in January to discuss intensive funding; 2
percent block funding was suggested; audits would be ceased, and
unique circumstances would be accounted for. Yearly intensive
children cost $65,000 to $75,000 thousand apiece.
2:43:32 PM
SENATOR DYSON referenced a newspaper article about a child whose
out-of-state treatment expenses were being paid by the school
district who could not provide them itself, and asked if this
would become a trend.
MR. JEANS said that such a decision would not be the parents'. A
hearing would have to be held, and the school district would
still be able to claim such kids for its funding.
SENATOR ELTON said that such children need to be evaluated as
either mental health or educational responsibilities.
CHAIR DAVIS commented that required intensive needs funding
takes funds away from the general student population.
MR. JEANS said that school districts want to receive 100 percent
reimbursement for such funding, but that such a program would be
enormously costly, and another mechanism should be used.
2:47:38 PM
MR. JEANS gave an example of how to calculate intensive needs
and correspondence needs for a total entitlement figure, and
showed a spreadsheet with district AADMs and basic need figures.
He explained that there are three school funding sources:
required local contribution, state aid, and federal aid. The
state assessor determines the district taxable value to
calculate the required local effort.
2:51:26 PM
SENATOR DYSON asked if a community can not meet the required
local contribution, if the state must pay the rest.
MR. JEANS said that was correct. He explained that areas that
have struggling economies have dropping property values and are
still paying the same percentage of required contribution, while
some more rapidly growing areas pay lower percentages of their
value. The percentage disparity needs to be leveled out to avoid
cost problems.
2:56:06 PM
SENATOR ELTON commented that lowering the required contribution
would limit voluntary contribution.
MR. JEANS said that this is true, but the loss would be made up
by state funds.
2:57:07 PM
SENATOR THOMAS asked how less money can be available when
property valuations are going up.
MR. JEANS said that the funding burden is being shifted from the
local taxpayers to the state.
He explained that the required local effort can't exceed 45
percent of the district's basic need from the prior year, which
guarantees funding from the state.
3:00:11 PM
MR. JEANS explained that federal impact aid comes in lieu of
property taxes, and much comes from Alaska Native Claim
Settlement Act (ANCSA) lands. Federal aid is required to be
treated as local revenue, and unorganized school districts have
no required contribution.
He added that there is a cap to additional local contribution.
The supplemental funding floor, for which nine districts
qualify, is under $1 million now and is disappearing.
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Davis adjourned the meeting at 3:03:30 PM.
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