Legislature(2007 - 2008)BUTROVICH 205
05/09/2007 04:00 PM Senate RESOURCES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB186 | |
| HB176 | |
| HB165 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 186 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 176 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 165 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE RESOURCES STANDING COMMITTEE
May 9, 2007
4:03 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Charlie Huggins, Chair
Senator Gary Stevens
Senator Lesil McGuire
Senator Thomas Wagoner
Senator Lyda Green
Senator Bill Wielechowski
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Bert Stedman, Vice Chair
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 186(FSH)
"An Act relating to sharing with certain federal agencies
records required of sport fishing guides; and providing for an
effective date."
MOVED CSHB 186(FSH) OUT OF COMMITTEE
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 176(RES)
"An Act creating the Fort Rousseau Causeway State Historical
Park."
HEARD AND HELD
HOUSE BILL NO. 165
"An Act relating to providing field accommodations for big game
hunters."
HEARD AND HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 186
SHORT TITLE: SPORT FISHING GUIDE RECORDS
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) HARRIS BY REQUEST
03/12/07 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/12/07 (H) FSH, RES
03/19/07 (H) FSH AT 8:30 AM BARNES 124
03/19/07 (H) Heard & Held
03/19/07 (H) MINUTE(FSH)
03/21/07 (H) FSH AT 8:30 AM BARNES 124
03/21/07 (H) Moved CSHB 186(FSH) Out of Committee
03/21/07 (H) MINUTE(FSH)
03/22/07 (H) FSH RPT CS(FSH) NT 4DP 2NR
03/22/07 (H) DP: JOHNSON, LEDOUX, EDGMON, SEATON
03/22/07 (H) NR: JOHANSEN, HOLMES
03/26/07 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/26/07 (H) -- MEETING CANCELED --
03/28/07 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/28/07 (H) Moved CSHB 186(FSH) Out of Committee
03/28/07 (H) MINUTE(RES)
03/29/07 (H) RES RPT CS(FSH) NT 6DP 2NR
03/29/07 (H) DP: ROSES, WILSON, SEATON, EDGMON,
GATTO, JOHNSON
03/29/07 (H) NR: KAWASAKI, GUTTENBERG
03/30/07 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
03/30/07 (H) VERSION: CSHB 186(FSH)
04/02/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
04/02/07 (S) RES
04/20/07 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
04/20/07 (S) Heard & Held
04/20/07 (S) MINUTE(RES)
04/23/07 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
04/23/07 (S) Scheduled But Not Heard
04/27/07 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
04/27/07 (S) Scheduled But Not Heard
05/09/07 (S) RES AT 4:00 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: HB 176
SHORT TITLE: CREATE FORT ROUSSEAU CAUSEWAY PARK
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) WILSON
03/05/07 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/05/07 (H) RES, FIN
03/28/07 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/28/07 (H) Scheduled But Not Heard
04/04/07 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
04/04/07 (H) Moved CSHB 176(RES) Out of Committee
04/04/07 (H) MINUTE(RES)
04/10/07 (H) RES RPT CS(RES) 6DP
04/10/07 (H) DP: ROSES, SEATON, KOHRING, GUTTENBERG,
GATTO, JOHNSON
04/19/07 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
04/19/07 (H) Moved CSHB 176(RES) Out of Committee
04/19/07 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
04/20/07 (H) FIN RPT CS(RES) 7DP 1NR
04/20/07 (H) DP: NELSON, THOMAS, CRAWFORD, JOULE,
STOLTZE, HAWKER, MEYER
04/20/07 (H) NR: KELLY
04/30/07 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
04/30/07 (H) VERSION: CSHB 176(RES)
05/02/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
05/02/07 (S) RES, FIN
05/09/07 (S) RES AT 4:00 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: HB 165
SHORT TITLE: BIG GAME GUIDES AND TRANSPORTERS
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) LEDOUX
02/28/07 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/28/07 (H) RES
03/12/07 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/12/07 (H) Heard & Held
03/12/07 (H) MINUTE(RES)
03/19/07 (H) RES AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/19/07 (H) Moved Out of Committee
03/19/07 (H) MINUTE(RES)
03/21/07 (H) RES RPT 8DP 1NR
03/21/07 (H) DP: WILSON, ROSES, GUTTENBERG, EDGMON,
KOHRING, SEATON, GATTO, JOHNSON
03/21/07 (H) NR: KAWASAKI
05/01/07 (H) RETURNED TO RLS COMMITTEE
05/05/07 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
05/05/07 (H) VERSION: HB 165
05/07/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
05/07/07 (S) RES, JUD
05/09/07 (S) RES AT 4:00 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
TOM WRIGHT
Staff to Speaker Harris
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Available to answer questions on CSHB
186(FSH).
DOUG VINCENT-LANG
Special Projects
Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G)
Anchorage AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported CSHB 186(FSH).
JERRY MCCUNE
United Fishermen of Alaska
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported CSHB 186(FSH).
REPRESENTATIVE PEGGY WILSON
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 176.
CLIFF STONE
Staff to Representative Wilson
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions on HB 176.
MIKE EBERHARDT, Superintendent
Southeast Area Parks
Division of
Parks and Outdoor Recreation
Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported HB 176.
REPRESENTATIVE GABRIELLE LEDOUX
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 165.
SUZANNE HANCOCK
Staff to Representative LeDoux
POSITION STATEMENT: Available to answer questions on HB 165.
BOBBY FITHIAN, Executive Director
Alaska Professional Hunters Association
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported HB 165.
ACTION NARRATIVE
CHAIR CHARLIE HUGGINS called the Senate Resources Standing
Committee meeting to order at 4:03:58 PM. Present at the call to
order were Senators Wagoner, Stevens, McGuire and Huggins.
HB 186-SPORT FISHING GUIDE RECORDS
CHAIR HUGGINS announced HB 186 to be up for consideration. [CSHB
186(FSH) was before the committee.]
TOM WRIGHT, staff to Speaker John Harris, sponsor of HB 186,
said he didn't have anything to add to previous testimony.
4:05:09 PM
DOUG VINCENT-LANG, Special Projects, Alaska Department of Fish
and Game (ADF&G), said questions were raised in the last hearing
about how confidentiality of this data would be assured. So, he
provided the committee with a memo from Kirk Brogdon, Division
of Fish, indicating that the security process the ADF&G has in
place doesn't allow sharing of information within the department
or with public. Secondly, once the data has been transferred, he
explained that this bill would allow for an MOU to be signed by
the department and the National Marine Fisheries Service. It
would provide that a witness-approved certificate must be signed
by anyone in the federal government who gets access to this
information and has penalties associated non-compliance. The
penalties consist of a violation of federal law, which is
punishable by a minimum of six months and a maximum of a year in
prison and a $100,000 fine.
CHAIR HUGGINS asked him to remind the committee why this bill is
needed.
MR. LANG replied that this bill is needed so that information on
some management issues with the sport charter fleet can be
shared with the National Marine Fishery Service at its June
meeting. Some options, like annual limits, might not be
available to them without this data.
4:06:24 PM
SENATOR WAGONER asked if the department would keep a running
tally of quota and poundage and turn it in weekly or monthly.
MR. LANG replied that the data has to be turned in weekly to the
department.
4:07:05 PM
JERRY MCCUNE, United Fishermen of Alaska, supported HB 186 for
all the reasons previously stated.
4:07:43 PM
SENATOR STEVENS moved to pass CS for HB 186from committee with
individual recommendations and attached zero fiscal note. There
were no objections and CSHB 186(FSH) moved from committee.
4:08:12 PM at ease 4:08:26 PM
HB 176-CREATE FORT ROUSSEAU CAUSEWAY PARK
CHAIR HUGGINS announced HB 176 to be up for consideration. [CSHB
176(RES) was before the committee.] He asked Representative
Wilson to give them a brief background on the park.
4:08:40 PM
REPRESENTATIVE PEGGY WILSON, sponsor of HB 176, replied that
during World War II the Army wanted to have a defense across
Sitka in case the Japanese came back. So, they connected 800 ft.
of causeway from one island to another and to this day many
historical artifacts are still there - like an anti-aircraft
gun, bunkers and ammo magazine structures. This causeway has
already been added to the National Registry of Historical Places
and has been designated as a landmark by the National Park
Service. This bill makes sure that it becomes the Fort Rousseau
Causeway State Historical Park.
SENATOR STEVENS asked who Rousseau was. When no one knew the
answer, he added that he was the commander of the American
troops when Sitka became a part of the United States in 1867.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON said Alaska doesn't have many areas that
go back to WWII and this bill is trying to preserve this
history. She explained that Sitka Trail Works was awarded a
federal grant of $140,700 to begin work on renovating the Fort
Rousseau Causeway and $60,000 of the grant money was given to
the State's Historical Preservation Office in the Department of
Natural Resources (DNR) to pay for site mapping, culture survey
and inventory work; another $14,000 was used for a phase 1
environmental assessment. Another federal trails grant is
pending for this project in the federal transportation
legislation for 2008 and 2009.
She said the causeway business plan shows modest tourism dollars
of around $12,000 per year at first. As the program grows, the
budget will be about $16,800 per year which would eventually be
supplanted by tourism dollars with an additional $20,000 going
into the general fund to be used for other parks. She explained
further that the idea is to take tourists back and forth and
there is no way to get to the island except on a boat.
CHAIR HUGGINS asked if that was what the "boat charter costs
associated with assessing the site" referred to in the fiscal
note.
CLIFF STONE, staff to Representative Wilson, explained that the
fiscal note is based on what it would take DNR to manage the
site. He thought that need for the fiscal note would go away as
tourist dollars supplanted it.
4:13:51 PM
SENATOR GREEN and SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI joined the committee.
CHAIR HUGGINS said he knew of a proposed boat launch in a state
park that had a fiscal note of $100,000 just to run it.
SENATOR MCGUIRE commented, "It depends on whether they like the
project or not."
MR. STONE added that this is not done very often; the folks in
Sitka know it's a special occasion.
CHAIR HUGGINS asked if he had heard of any opposition to the
bill.
MR. STONE replied no and that he had a packet full of support.
CHAIR HUGGINS asked if it's on the National Register.
MR. STONE replied yes.
4:15:51 PM
SENATOR MCGUIRE asked if the community is already used to those
rules since it's already designated as a park.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON replied that it is designated as a
historical place right now by the National Park Service.
4:17:19 PM
MIKE EBERHARDT, Superintendent for Southeast Area Parks,
Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation, Department of Natural
Resources (DNR), explained that being listed on the National
Historic Register requires the land manager to abide by certain
rules to preserve the resources. That land currently is not
managed as a park unit. Actually the DOT has been managing it
with the FAA and its use has been very restricted because of
9/11 and airport security issues. Its management will be changed
from general state land to state park statutes.
4:19:13 PM
SENATOR MCGUIRE said she wanted more clarification on page 3,
lines 19 - 21, where it says the commissioner may designate by
regulation incompatible uses within the land and water of the
Fort Rousseau Causeway State Historical Park. She was afraid
that regulations would be written that were never intended. She
asked if "land and water" meant fishing, for instance.
MR. EBERHARDT responded that all water was purposely left out of
the bill except where the dock is so as to not create a conflict
with existing fisheries. The bill concerns only the uplands and
doesn't go into the park and local citizens have not voiced any
objections.
4:21:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON added that the land itself used to be
connected to the airport, but it was cut off in the 80s when the
airport was built. You can't walk or drive there.
CHAIR HUGGINS asked what activities are going on presently that
anyone would protest.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON replied that the land is too close to the
airport to have shooting.
SENATOR GREEN asked what would happen if this bill didn't pass.
REPRESENTATIVE WILSON replied that there are lots of volunteers
who would try to keep up preservation of the area.
CHAIR HUGGINS announced that HB 176 would be held in committee.
HB 165-BIG GAME GUIDES AND TRANSPORTERS
4:23:39 PM
CHAIR HUGGINS announced HB 165 to be up for consideration.
REPRESENTATIVE GABRIELLE LEDOUX, sponsor of HB 165, said that it
rights an inadvertent wrong and promotes economic development in
rural areas. It is an act related to providing field
accommodations for big game hunters. She explained in 1996, much
needed legislation was enacted to define who is a big game
hunter, outfitter, or transporter and to provide regulations for
licensing and other considerations. However, there was no
provision for the person who merely wants to rent his or her
cabin to people who may or may not be hunting. Many people in
rural Alaska have extra cabins or whose cabins are empty for
part of the year.
REPRESENTATIVE LEDOUX reminded them that it is very difficult to
generate economic development in rural areas and this bill will
enable those people to provide a service and make little bit of
additional money. She said that members of the Big Game
Commercial Services Board have worked with her office in order
to craft a bill that will protect their interests while allowing
others to do business.
SUZANNE HANCOCK, staff to Representative LeDoux, said she was
available to answer questions.
4:26:03 PM
BOBBY FITHIAN, Executive Director, Alaska Professional Hunters
Association, supported HB 165, which fills a void in statutory
language that relates to legitimate use of privately owned
lodges, houses or cabins.
4:27:05 PM
CHAIR HUGGINS asked how professional hunters have operated in
the last couple of years without this bill.
MR. FITHIAN replied that the people who asked Representative
LeDoux to address this issue have had a real serious challenge
in dealing with the Division of Public Safety, the Big Game
Commercial Services Board, and with agencies that own land
around their private properties in trying to get the right to
rent their privately-owned cabins to big game hunters in the
field. He explained that defining the laws, regulations and
statutes pertaining to who can supply or provide what kind of
services to big game hunters in the field has been complex and
challenging and a loophole was found that didn't address these
cabins.
CHAIR HUGGINS asked who is doing the challenging.
MR. FITHIAN replied that mainly the Department of Public Safety
has been trying to figure out how to address private property
holders, because current regulations and statutes forbid renting
of privately-owned cabins to big game hunters. This bill address
only cabins on private land, not on public land.
4:31:16 PM
SENATOR MCGUIRE said she was concerned about over-regulation and
unintended consequences. She asked if this covered cases where
an individual owns a private cabin on public land.
REPRESENTATIVE LEDOUX replied that those situations are not
accommodated in this bill, which is only about private property.
She noted that this bill has a further Judiciary referral.
CHAIR HUGGINS thanked everyone for their testimony and said HB
165 would be held in committee.
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Huggins adjourned the meeting at 4:32:46 PM.
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