01/23/2023 01:30 PM Senate JUDICIARY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Introductions and Committee Discussion of Judiciary Topics | |
| SB38 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | SB 38 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
January 23, 2023
1:31 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Matt Claman, Chair
Senator Jesse Kiehl, Vice Chair
Senator James Kaufman
Senator Cathy Giessel
Senator Donald Olson
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
COMMITTEE DISCUSSION OF JUDICIARY TOPICS
- HEARD
SENATE BILL NO. 38
"An Act establishing the crime of interference with emergency
communications."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 38
SHORT TITLE: INTERFERENCE WITH EMERGENCY SERVICES
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) WILSON
01/18/23 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/13/23
01/18/23 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/18/23 (S) JUD
01/23/23 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
SENATOR DAVID WILSON, District N
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SB 38.
JASMIN MARTIN, Staff
Senator David Wilson
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented the Sectional Analysis for SB 38.
JACOB BUTCHER, Communications Manager
Mat-Com Dispatch
Wasilla, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided invited testimony and answered
questions in support of SB 38.
JOEL BUTCHER, Alaska President
Association of Public Safety Communication Officials
(APCO)/National Emergency Numbers Association, Alaska
Palmer, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided invited testimony and answered
questions in support of SB 38.
JAMES COCKRELL, Commissioner
Department of Public Safety
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided invited testimony and answered
questions in support of SB 38.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:31:02 PM
CHAIR MATT CLAMAN called the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee
meeting to order at 1:31 p.m. Present at the call to order were
Senators Kaufman, Kiehl, Giessel, Olson and Chair Claman.
^INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMITTEE DISCUSSION OF JUDICIARY TOPICS
INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMITTEE DISCUSSION OF JUDICIARY TOPICS
1:32:01 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN asked members to introduce themselves and voice
their goals for the Senate Judiciary Committee.
1:32:05 PM
SENATOR KAUFMAN, District F, admitted that he had little
experience with the judiciary system, and this was his first
judiciary committee placement since serving in the legislature.
1:32:45 PM
SENATOR OLSON, District T, stated that he attended law school.
The communities in the district he served were small and village
public safety officers (VPSOs) provided "law and order". He
expressed interest in the needs of rural communities.
1:33:20 PM
SENATOR GIESSEL, District E, informed that she had "zero
background" in judiciary. She specialized in nursing
professionally and focused on Alaska's natural resources during
her time with the legislature.
1:34:06 PM
SENATOR KIEHL, District Q, noted that he served on the committee
four years previously and he did not have a law degree. He
mentioned issues encountered during prior sessions.
1:35:30 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN, District H, provided a brief overview of his legal
background which included a current law practice and law degree.
He served on the House Judiciary Committee for eight years. He
provided further description of his 34 year-long law practice in
Texas and Alaska. He believed that productive committee
discussions led to the best product and outcome. He committed
himself to the non-lawyer members of the committee and hoped to
provide accessibility and education.
CHAIR CLAMAN explained his management style and how he intended
to lead the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee. He requested
that members use time related to questions and policy issues
appropriately. He noted that he would not set time limits for
questions or comments initially. He expressed confidence that
the habits of the Senate would set the tone for an efficient
process. He stated that he would set deadlines for proposed
amendments and asked members to communicate with his office
about these deadlines.
SB 38-INTERFERENCE WITH EMERGENCY SERVICES
1:40:06 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 38
"An Act establishing the crime of interference with emergency
communications."
CHAIR CLAMAN revealed that this was the first hearing of SB 38
in the Senate Judiciary Committee and asked the bill sponsor and
staff to come forward, put their names on the record, and begin
their remarks.
1:40:42 PM
SENATOR DAVID WILSON, District N, Alaska State Legislature,
Juneau, Alaska, sponsor of SB 38 paraphrased the following
Sponsor Statement:
[Original punctuation provided.]
SPONSOR STATEMENT
Senate Bill 38 establishes the offense of interference
with emergency communications. This statute would
apply when a person: repeatedly makes 911 calls to
report something they know has already been reported,
repeatedly calls 911 when there is no emergency, or
harasses or threatens a 911 operator.
Interference with emergency communications -- the
misuse, abuse, and disruption of 911 dispatch centers
-- is a problem that severely impacts public safety
and emergency response by delaying responses to real
emergencies. It is prevalent at dispatch centers
across Alaska and must be addressed.
During these disruptive events, other urgent emergency
calls must be placed on hold or delayed to meet
standards; industry standards are that all 911 calls
must be answered within 15-20 seconds. A dispatcher
could be required to place the parent of a choking
child on hold to answer repeated calls from a
harassing individual who is not in need of emergency
services, delaying necessary life-saving measures.
Under the language in the bill, that harasser could be
charged. Currently, state statute does not address
harassing behavior specific to 911 dispatch centers,
nor does it give law enforcement adequate recourse to
stop the behavior.
This problem is not unique to Alaska. Other states
have developed legislation that makes interfering with
emergency communications an arrestable offense --
which is the most effective way to stop the
interference -- thus allowing 911 telecommunicators to
focus on legitimate emergencies.
Please contact Jasmin Martin in my office at (907)465-
8165 or by email at Jasmin.Martin@akleg.gov for more
information. I respectfully ask for your support of
this legislation.
1:44:09 PM
JASMIN MARTIN, Staff, Senator David Wilson, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, presented the Sectional Analysis
for SB 38 into the record:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Sectional Analysis
Senate Bill 38 v. A
"An Act establishing the crime of interference with
emergency communications."
Section 1: Adds a new section (.785. Interference with
emergency communications) to AS 11.56. (Criminal Law, 56.
Offenses Against Public Administration).
(a) Establishes that a person commits a crime of
interference with emergency communication when they:
(1) Call 911 to elicit a first responder response
for a previously reported incident when there
has been no change in circumstances, and they
have been instructed to stop calling
(2) Make repeated 911 calls when there is no
emergency.
(3) Threaten 911 operator during a call to 911.
(b) Defines: "emergency communication," "emergency
communication center," and "emergency communication
worker."
(c) Establishes that this crime is a class B misdemeanor.
Section 2: Adds a section to uncodified law that
specifies that this act is not applicable to offenses
committed prior to this legislation.
1:45:05 PM
SENATOR WILSON indicated invited testifiers were standing by
online.
1:45:29 PM
JASMIN MARTIN presented a brief audio recording exemplifying
harassment in an emergency call.
1:46:21 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN introduced Mr. Jacob Butcher for invited testimony.
1:46:36 PM
JACOB BUTCHER, Communications Manager, Mat-Com Dispatch,
Wasilla, Alaska, provided invited testimony and answered
questions in support of SB 38. He informed that he served as a
911 telecommunicator for nearly 17 years in South Central
Alaska. He had answered countless emergency help requests and
helped many people with various emergencies. Every call to a 911
dispatch center was answered efficiently to determine the
validity of the reported emergency. Non-emergent calls were
handled with grace and efficiency and redirected to appropriate
resources. He highlighted some cases where explanations and
education could not surmount the disruption caused by
intentionally false, disorderly and harassing calls to the 911
center. Computerized call spoofing allowed false emergencies to
be reported. These types of calls required appropriate vetting
to ensure that the reported incident was false. The calls tied
up resources from Mat-Com Dispatch, the Department of Public
Safety (DPS), Anchorage police, fire departments and others.
MR. JACOB BUTCHER continued to say that Mat-Com Dispatch
recalled an incident where a community member expressed
discontent by dialing the emergency number over 80 times in one
day only to unleash a profane and insulting barrage of
expressions to the telecommunicators before hanging up. Staff
was asked to sift through the calls to provide emergency
assistance for true emergencies. He stated that SB 38 provides a
mechanism in which law enforcement could react swiftly to
resolve these disruptions to Alaska's essential public safety
infrastructure.
1:49:46 PM
JOEL BUTCHER, Alaska President, Association of Public Safety
Communication Officials (APCO)/National Emergency Numbers
Association, Alaska, Palmer, Alaska, provided invited testimony
and answered questions in support of SB 38. He noted the absence
of a state statute that criminalizes the reporting of false
emergencies to 911 emergency communications. This legislation
does not pertain to an error, but rather gives dispatchers the
ability to cite a statute and warn those calling with fraudulent
emergency requests.
1:51:14 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN asked Mr. Joel Butcher about his knowledge of other
states enacting similar laws. He wondered how the legislation
enacted in other states aided those dispatchers with harassment
calls.
1:51:29 PM
MR. JOEL BUTCHER stated his belief that 23 states had passed
similar legislation. Those pieces of legislation helped inform
the language displayed in SB 38. He was unsure about the effect
of the legislation on prosecution rates in those other states.
1:52:21 PM
JAMES COCKRELL, Commissioner, Department of Public Safety,
Anchorage, Alaska, provided invited testimony and answered
questions in support of SB 38. He declared that the Department
of Public Safety (DPS) supported this bill. He stressed the need
for a mechanism to prevent abuse of the 911 emergency call
service. He noted that social media heightened the number of
problematic calls. He concluded that DPS required legislation to
hold people accountable for fraudulent behavior that could
hamper an effort to help with a true life-threatening emergency.
1:54:51 PM
SENATOR KAUFMAN asked Commissioner Cockrell what percentage of
dispatcher time is consumed by disruptive 911 calls.
1:55:08 PM
COMMISSIONER COCKRELL answered that he did not have a specific
time percentage but noted that these fraudulent calls can
complicate efforts to provide public safety interventions when
needed.
1:55:48 PM
SENATOR GIESSEL asked whether there was a provision to
accommodate callers with mental health/impairment issues. She
shared a personal story related to dementia and her mother in
Fairbanks.
COMMISSIONER COCKRELL deferred to the sponsor to answer
questions pertaining to specific provisions in the bill. He said
that the purpose of SB 38 is not to target people with dementia
or mental health issues.
1:59:06 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN said he understood that the proposed law would act
as a warning rather than an act of prosecution.
COMMISSIONER COCKRELL concurred and stated that SB 38 provided a
deterrent to the disruptive behavior.
1:59:42 PM
SENATOR KAUFMAN wondered about the routing and logging of 911
calls. He supposed that warnings would be recorded and logged
appropriately.
2:00:08 PM
SENATOR WILSON deferred the question to Mr. Jacob Butcher.
2:00:24 PM
MR. JACOB BUTCHER replied that the routing technology directed
calls to the responsible communication center. He stated that
misrouted or overflow calls occurred infrequently.
2:01:05 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN asked Senator Kaufman to clarify his question.
2:01:11 PM
SENATOR KAUFMAN asked if the system would communicate or flag
nuisance callers.
MR. JACOB BUTCHER replied that various technological tools were
in place to flag those who were making multiple calls.
2:02:15 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN opened public testimony on SB 38; finding none, he
closed public testimony.
2:03:10 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked two questions of the bill sponsor on a
broader issue of callers suffering from mental health response.
He relayed that the state lacked adequate resources and first
responders. He wondered about alternatives to the criminal
approach for those calls from people with mental health
challenges who might unknowingly abuse the emergency call
systems.
2:03:58 PM
SENATOR WILSON responded that his office thoroughly researched
the issue. He brought up past meetings in the House State
Affairs Committee. He pointed to the passage of HB 172 last
session. The intent of the legislation is to provide tools for
first responders including a crisis mobilization team
assessment.
2:06:37 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked a technical question regarding the bill
language. He wondered about harassment language and the word
"threatens".
2:07:26 PM
JASMIN MARTIN requested an opportunity to discuss past
legislation.
2:08:14 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN agreed that the information was helpful and
appropriate.
JASMIN MARTIN stated that SB 38 builds on previously heard
legislation. The language in the proposed legislation was
similar to that of last session. The language related to
harassment was changed last year following some criticism about
its broad nature.
2:09:05 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN recalled discussion related to misdemeanor
language.
2:09:43 PM
JASMIN MARTIN responded that changes were made related to
misdemeanor and felony language. She recalled various changes
during the committee process last year.
2:10:50 PM
SENATOR WILSON clarified the intent of those laws was to provide
a deterrent that might prevent the abusive and disruptive
fraudulent calls. The legislation would allow first responders
to efficiently preform their public safety duties.
2:12:40 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN pointed to class C felonies and terrorist calls. He
noted that other options existed in the criminal code to address
these serious crimes.
2:12:58 PM
SENATOR WILSON agreed, but pointed out that the current law did
not have clear definitions or tools related to harassing calls.
2:13:54 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN held SB 38 in committee.
2:14:14 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Claman adjourned the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee
meeting at 2:14 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 38 version A 1.18.2023.PDF |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Sponsor Statement version A 1.17.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Sectional Analysis version A 1.17.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Letters of Support as of 1.23.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Fiscal Note DOA-OPA 1.22.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Fiscal Note DOA-PDA 1.22.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Fiscal Note DOC-IDO 1.20.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Fiscal Note LAW-CJL 1.20.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |
| SB 38 Fiscal Note DPS-DET 1.20.2023.pdf |
SJUD 1/23/2023 1:30:00 PM SJUD 1/30/2023 1:30:00 PM |
SB 38 |