04/17/2018 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB346 | |
| SB160 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HB 346 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 160 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE LABOR AND COMMERCE STANDING COMMITTEE
April 17, 2018
1:32 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Mia Costello, Chair
Senator Kevin Meyer, Vice Chair
Senator Berta Gardner
Senator Gary Stevens
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Peter Micciche
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 346(L&C)
"An Act relating to the licensure of dentists."
- MOVED CSHB 346(L&C) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 160
"An Act relating to the regulation of broadband Internet; and
making certain actions by broadband Internet service providers
unlawful acts or practices under the Alaska Unfair Trade
Practices and Consumer Protection Act."
- MOVED SB 160 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 346
SHORT TITLE: DENTIST: TEMPORARY PERMIT
SPONSOR(s): LABOR & COMMERCE
02/14/18 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/14/18 (H) L&C, FIN
02/19/18 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
02/19/18 (H) Heard & Held
02/19/18 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
02/23/18 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
02/23/18 (H) Moved CSHB 346(L&C) Out of Committee
02/23/18 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
02/26/18 (H) L&C RPT CS(L&C) 7DP
02/26/18 (H) DP: SULLIVAN-LEONARD, STUTES, WOOL,
JOSEPHSON, BIRCH, KNOPP, KITO
03/16/18 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM ADAMS ROOM 519
03/16/18 (H) Moved CSHB 346(L&C) Out of Committee
03/16/18 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
03/19/18 (H) FIN RPT CS(L&C) 10DP
03/19/18 (H) DP: GARA, WILSON, KAWASAKI, ORTIZ,
PRUITT, GUTTENBERG, GRENN, TILTON,
SEATON,
03/19/18 (H) FOSTER
04/11/18 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
04/11/18 (H) VERSION: CSHB 346(L&C)
04/12/18 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
04/12/18 (S) L&C, FIN
04/17/18 (S) L&C AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
BILL: SB 160
SHORT TITLE: BROADBAND INTERNET: NEUTRALITY/REGULATION
SPONSOR(s): BEGICH
01/24/18 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/24/18 (S) L&C, STA
02/13/18 (S) L&C AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
02/13/18 (S) Heard & Held
02/13/18 (S) MINUTE(L&C)
04/17/18 (S) L&C AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
WITNESS REGISTER
REPRESENTATIVE SAM KITO III
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 346.
SARAH CHAMBERS, Deputy Director
Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing
Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions related to HB 346.
DR. PAUL SILVEIRA, Member
Board of Dental Examiners
Valdez, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of HB 346 on behalf of
the board.
DR. DAVID LOGAN, Executive Director
Alaska Dental Society
Juneau Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in strong support of HB 346 on
behalf of the Alaska Dental Society.
SENATOR TOM BEGICH
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SB 160.
SYDNEY LIENEMANN, Staff
Senator Tom Begich
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions related to SB 160 on
behalf of the sponsor.
MIKE ROBINSON, Head of Systems, UAA; Chair of Intellectual
Freedom, Alaska Library Association
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 160.
JENNIE STEWART, Founder
Custom Everything, Inc.
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 160.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:32:55 PM
CHAIR MIA COSTELLO called the Senate Labor and Commerce Standing
Committee meeting to order at 1:32 p.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Meyer, Gardner, and Chair Costello. Senator
Stevens arrived soon thereafter.
HB 346-DENTIST: TEMPORARY PERMIT
1:33:26 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO announced the consideration of HB 346 and noted
that the committee previously heard the companion bill. She
stated her intention to move the bill after taking public
testimony.
1:33:44 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SAM KITO III, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau,
Alaska, sponsor of HB 346 introduced the legislation
paraphrasing the following sponsor statement:
House Bill 346 would allow the Alaska Board of Dental
Examiners to grant temporary licenses when a dental
specialist is suddenly incapacitated or when a small
community does not have access to specialized care.
Alaska has a limited number of dental specialists,
many of whom serve multiple small communities. There
are nine dental specialties as defined by the American
Dental Association: oral surgery, orthodontics,
periodontics (gums), endodontics (root canals),
pedodontics (kids), prosthodontics (replacing teeth),
public health, , oral pathology (oral diseases), and
oral radiology (x-rays); however, Alaska does not have
a single specialist in oral radiology. Of the 647
licensed dentists in Alaska, 136 dentists are
specialists.
Dental specialists in Alaska are limited in number and
have full schedules. If a specialist is suddenly
incapacitated, there is no reserve to draw from, and
multiple small communities could be without specialist
care for an extended period of time. Small communities
have historically had a hard time recruiting
healthcare practioners and the trend seems to be
worsening.
Temporary dental licenses would allow the Alaska Board
of Dental Examiners to maintain dental care in these
communities until a full-time dentist can be found.
The board is ideally qualified to evaluate the need to
circumvent transitional licensing procedures for
dentists in exceptional circumstances.
HB 346 will allow temporary licenses to be granted in
times of need at the discretion of the Alaska Board of
Dental Examiners.
REPRESENTATIVE KITO III advised that the bill was changed in the
other body to give the board the authority to bring a licensed
dentist from another jurisdiction to Alaska to fill in for a
short period of time. One extension is allowed but the temporary
dentist would need to get an Alaska license if they spend more
time working in Alaska.
1:36:29 PM
SENATOR GARDNER asked if he anticipates that a lot of dentists
will be interested in taking advantage of this opportunity.
REPRESENTATIVE KITO III deferred the question to the
representative from the dental society. He shared his experience
when the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Center was having
difficulty recruiting a dentist to come to Juneau, and opined
that this provision might have allowed SEARHC to bring somebody
in temporarily to fill the gap.
SENATOR GARDNER asked if he envisions the pool of dentists would
be those who are already licensed - but perhaps not practicing -
and interested in coming to Alaska for a limited period.
REPRESENTATIVE KITO replied the target pool was dentists who are
not licensed in Alaska.
SENATOR GARDNER directed attention to the provision on page 2,
lines 3-5. It says the temporary permit is valid only to treat
patients of the incapacitated dentist at the address listed on
the business license of the incapacitated dentist. Noting that
the companion bill had the same problematic language, she asked
what would happen if the incapacitated dentist did business in
more than one location.
REPRESENTATIVE KITO III said he suspects the bill would
accommodate the emergency replacement of a dentist who had
offices in more than one location. However, if each office
offered different specialty services, the replacement dentist
may not have both specialties. He deferred further comment to
the board.
CHAIR COSTELLO said she assumes each location has a business
license, and her reading is that the bill does contemplate
multiple locations.
SENATOR GARDNER observed that the license is for the facility,
not the individual.
CHAIR COSTELLO added that the bill is written to accommodate a
dentist who has multiple licenses.
SENATOR MEYER asked if other states grant temporary dental
licenses.
REPRESENTATIVE KITO III said he didn't know.
CHAIR COSTELLO asked Sarah Chambers to respond to any questions
she'd heard.
1:41:34 PM
SARAH CHAMBERS, Deputy Director, Division of Corporations,
Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce,
Community and Economic Development (DCCED), Juneau, Alaska,
confirmed that businesses must maintain a business license for
each location. Thus, someone with a temporary permit could cover
the dental office of the incapacitated dentist.
CHAIR COSTELLO asked if the administration had a position on the
bill.
MS. CHAMBERS replied the administration has not taken a position
on the bill but the dental board supports it.
SENATOR MEYER asked what it costs for a temporary permit.
MS. CHAMBERS explained that a typical temporary permit for a
health care profession ranges from $50 to $100. It would not be
cost prohibitive.
SENATOR MEYER noted that the fiscal note reflects $2,600 in
receipt services.
MS. CHAMBERS explained that those services would generally be
covered by the licensing fees.
CHAIR COSTELLO asked if the board could call an emergency
meeting to approve an emergency license.
MS. CHAMBERS replied the Administrative Procedures Act allows
all boards to call a teleconference meeting within five days.
1:44:32 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO opened public testimony on HB 346.
1:44:57 PM
DR. PAUL SILVEIRA, Board of Dental Examiners, Valdez, Alaska,
stated that the board supports HB 346 to expedite a temporary
permit to help an incapacitated dentist.
1:45:23 PM
DR. DAVID LOGAN, Executive Director, Alaska Dental Society,
Juneau Alaska, stated that the Alaska Dental Society is in
strong support of HB 346. He cited examples of the need for
temporary permits to fill in for dental specialists who were
unexpectedly incapacitated. One had a stroke and another had a
major traffic accident. This isn't a common occurrence, he said,
but a temporary permit is a necessary tool for the board to
maintain continuous dental health care in Alaska. Unlike other
states, Alaskans can't easily move to another community for
treatment. It is more effective to bring one dentist to a
community than flying members of a community to another location
for treatment. He reiterated that this would be a valuable tool
for the board.
1:47:08 PM
SENATOR MEYER asked how this would work.
DR. LOGAN said the expectation is that the incapacitated
specialist or their designee would put somebody's name forward.
He posited that they would pull from former classmates,
colleagues, and friends in the field.
SENATOR MEYER asked if someone would need to obtain a temporary
permit before they could be considered as a replacement.
DR LOGAN said the expectation is the name would be submitted to
the board for temporary license approval. If the board approved
the name, the individual would take over the practice
temporarily.
SENATOR MEYER asked if it would be a fairly quick process.
DR LOGAN said it could be fairly quick. The board is able to
meet on an emergency basis and it can also circulate an
application amongst the members for approval. This might take
just a week, which isn't an unrealistic gap.
1:49:55 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO closed public testimony on HB 346.
1:50:07 PM
SENATOR MEYER moved to report the CS for HB 346, version D, from
committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal
note(s).
CHAIR COSTELLO found no objection and CSHB 346(L&C) moved from
the Senate Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.
1:50:29 PM
At ease
SB 160-BROADBAND INTERNET: NEUTRALITY/REGULATION
1:52:28 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SB 160. She noted that this was the second
hearing and public testimony was closed. She asked the sponsor
to comment.
1:53:08 PM
SENATOR TOM BEGICH, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska,
sponsor of SB 160, reminded members that SB 160 would require
internet service providers to abide by net neutrality principles
in Alaska. That means no blocking lawful content, no paid
prioritization or throttling unless the reasonable network
management practices make an exception for distance learning and
telemedicine. It would ensure continued access to a fair and
open internet that treats all data equally and fairly.
He noted the following slight changes since the committee heard
the bill last:
• Six governors have now signed executive orders requiring
internet service providers (ISPs) with government contracts
to abide by net neutrality.
• 28 states have introduced net neutrality legislation
• 22 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits against the
FCC. Alaska is not yet one of those states but the governor
and Senator Murkowski have both written op-ed pieces about
net neutrality.
SENATOR BEGICH warned that the deadline for Congress to reverse
the FCC Title II net neutrality order was just a week away so it
was even more imperative to pass this legislation. He emphasized
that state legislatures must set the template for what Congress
does on this matter. He noted who his office had invited to
testify.
1:56:13 PM
SENATOR MEYER asked if there was an ongoing federal lawsuit.
SENATOR BEGICH replied Alaska is not engaged in a federal
lawsuit, but 22 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits
against the FCC on this particular action. Many of those states
have also introduced legislation similar to SB 160 in an effort
to set a common template for a proper net neutrality statute.
SENATOR MEYER asked if resolution of the federal lawsuit would
trump any state action.
SENATOR BEGICH said it's difficult to say, but lawsuits can take
years if not decades to resolve. This and similar legislation is
intended to motivate Congress to act and resolve this matter
quickly.
1:57:32 PM
SENATOR STEVENS joined the committee.
SENATOR MEYER said his concern was that if the laws aren't the
same in all areas, providers will abandon some areas altogether.
SENATOR BEGICH explained that this was model legislation that
represents the voice of the states to ensure that internet
companies cannot apply principles that block Alaskan citizens'
access to the internet whether they are the wealthiest or
poorest. He noted an earlier Senate floor debate regarding
broadband access where several Senators emphasized the
importance of equal access to all citizens. He opined that SB
160 would be a step towards encouraging equal access.
SENATOR MEYER asked how many other states have passed similar
legislation.
SENATOR BEGICH deferred the question to his staff.
2:01:31 PM
DR. SYDNEY LIENEMANN, Staff, Senator Tom Begich, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, advised that Washington State has
passed similar legislation and governors in five other states
have signed executive orders. Those states are Hawaii, New
Jersey, New York, Montana, and Vermont.
2:02:29 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO asked the sponsor to comment on her observation
that the phrase "in a manner sufficient for" on page 1, line 9,
is a statement of philosophy, whereas the bill has more teeth
starting on page 2, line 17.
SENATOR BEGICH disagreed with the portrayal of the language as
philosophical because the subsequent language is very specific
and replicates the existing FCC rules regarding net neutrality
that were repealed in December. He added that if the legislation
does make a philosophical statement, it is that Alaska and other
states have identified a way of protecting their citizens' free
and open access to the internet. It's something that the federal
government can use as a guide. He related his early encounters
with the internet which supports the importance of a free and
open internet.
CHAIR COSTELLO asked if the bill would be unnecessary if the
federal government took action.
SENATOR BEGICH confirmed that if the federal government were to
pass legislation that replicated this model language, the bill
would be unnecessary. But until the federal government takes
that action, passing SB 160 will make it possible for the state
to defend its citizens' right to a free and open internet.
2:06:55 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO noted the 2/12/2018 letter of opposition from
AT&T in the packet.
2:07:26 PM
At ease
2:07:30 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO reconvened the meeting.
2:08:18 PM
MIKE ROBINSON, Head of Systems, UAA; Chair of Intellectual
Freedom Committee, Alaska Library Association, Anchorage,
Alaska, said he works in technology at the university library
and several years ago he was a representative on Governor
Parnell's Broadband Task Force so he is familiar with broadband
issues in Alaska. He stated that libraries support network
neutrality for two reasons: equitable access and intellectual
freedom. He pointed out that libraries are often the gateway for
internet access in communities and in some cases they are the
only gateway. In that role they serve as an aggregated end user
for people trying to get on the internet. Libraries are also a
portal for access to online information such as e-books, journal
content, and other things. In that sense, they are a content
provider or small business. He emphasized the importance of
ensuring that library users get to the information they need
without hinderance and ensuring that libraries do not have to
compete with large content companies whose use may be
prioritized by some internet companies.
MR. ROBINSON noted that when Commissioner Pai revoked net
neutrality for the FCC, he argued that market competition would
solve the problems of any broadband providers that attempt to
violate net neutrality. However, that is not a solution for
Alaska because many Alaskan communities don't have any broadband
competition. Libraries also support network neutrality because
broadband companies should not be in a position to decide what
content to promote or provide access to. That decision should be
left to individual users. In this democracy it's critical that
broadband companies remain neutral gateways rather than
gatekeepers, he said.
MR. ROBINSON concluded his comments noting that AT&T's comments
on the bill basically said they had never violated net
neutrality and should be trusted to continue that practice.
Acknowledging that it was a separate issue, he said Facebook
would probably have made the same argument several years ago. He
urged the committee to support SB 160.
2:11:37 PM
JENNIE STEWART, Founder, Custom Everything, Inc. Anchorage,
Alaska, stated that she started her web-based business in 2002
and net neutrality allowed her business to compete on a national
and international scale. Her current competitors are businesses
like Amazon and Walgreens and without net neutrality a large
business could pay to promote their content and thereby throttle
access to her website. This would result in a vast change to her
business. "If we had just a minor decrease in speed, it would
bump us down in terms of the search engine results." She said
it's likely her business would no longer be on the first page
and she would be out of business in a very short time. Alaska
can compete on a national scale because network neutrality
ensures a level playing field. Under the "pay to play" scheme,
that will change.
CHAIR COSTELLO noted that public testimony was closed and looked
to the will of the committee.
2:14:17 PM
SENATOR GARDNER said she was eager to see this important piece
of legislation move along.
2:14:30 PM
SENATOR MEYER moved to report SB 160, version A, from committee
with individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s).
2:14:46 PM
CHAIR COSTELLO found no objection and SB 160 moved from the
Senate Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.
2:15:17 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Costello adjourned the Senate Labor and Commerce Standing
Committee meeting at 2:15 p.m.
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