04/17/2015 09:00 AM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB6 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HB 6 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
April 17, 2015
9:03 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Bill Stoltze, Chair
Senator John Coghill, Vice Chair
Senator Charlie Huggins
Senator Bill Wielechowski
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Lesil McGuire
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 6(MLV)
"An Act relating to a voluntary preference for veterans by
private employers."
- MOVED CSHB 6(MLV) OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 6
SHORT TITLE: PRIV EMPLOYER VOLUNTARY VET PREFERENCE
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) TUCK
01/21/15 (H) PREFILE RELEASED 1/9/15
01/21/15 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/21/15 (H) MLV, L&C
03/19/15 (H) MLV AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
03/19/15 (H) Moved CSHB 6(MLV) Out of Committee
03/19/15 (H) MINUTE(MLV)
03/20/15 (H) MLV RPT CS(MLV) NT 6DP
03/20/15 (H) DP: GRUENBERG, LEDOUX, COLVER, HUGHES,
TUCK, HERRON
04/10/15 (H) L&C AT 3:15 PM BARNES 124
04/10/15 (H) Moved CSHB 6(MLV) Out of Committee
04/10/15 (H) MINUTE(L&C)
04/11/15 (H) L&C RPT CS(MLV) NT 6DP
04/11/15 (H) DP: LEDOUX, TILTON, HUGHES, KITO,
JOSEPHSON, OLSON
04/14/15 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
04/14/15 (H) VERSION: CSHB 6(MLV)
04/15/15 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
04/15/15 (S) STA
04/17/15 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
REPRESENTATIVE CHRIS TUCK
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 6.
MARK SAN SOUCI, Northwest Regional Liaison
Military Community and Family Policy
Readiness and Force Management
United States Department of Defense (DOD)
Tacoma, Washington
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided comments during discussion of
HB 6, and asked the committee to move the bill through the
process.
RUSSELL POUNDS
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided comments during discussion of
HB 6.
RUSSELL BALL
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided comments during discussion of
HB 6.
ACTION NARRATIVE
9:03:32 AM
CHAIR BILL STOLTZE, at 9:03 a.m., reconvened and formally
adjourned the April 16, 2015, Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting that was recessed to a call of the chair. He
then called the April 17, 2015, Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting to order at 9:04 a.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Wielechowski, Coghill, Huggins, and Chair
Stoltze.
HB 6-PRIV EMPLOYER VOLUNTARY VET PREFERENCE
9:04:52 AM
CHAIR STOLTZE announced that the only order of business would be
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 6(MLV), "An Act relating to a voluntary
preference for veterans by private employers."
9:05:03 AM
REPRESENTATIVE CHRIS TUCK, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor of
HB 6, explained that the bill would allow private employers to
grant an employment preference to veterans. He offered his
understanding that federal law provides that states may allow
such a preference to be granted by private employers as long as
they are not being mandated to grant it, and that currently 17
states allow private employers to grant such a preference.
Alaska has done a lot for veterans, and HB 6 would constitute an
additional step in that direction.
9:08:25 AM
MARK SAN SOUCI, Northwest Regional Liaison, Military Community
and Family Policy, Readiness and Force Management, United States
Department of Defense (DOD), asked the committee to move HB 6
through the process. He said the DOD feels that private
employers are the ones best suited to determine which skill sets
are needed in the positions they are hiring for, and offered his
belief that HB 6 - providing private employers with the option
of granting an employment preference to veterans - would help
private employers make such determinations. He noted that the
National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) has addressed
the issue of employment preferences for veterans, and advocates
- via its military and veterans' affairs task force - for
providing for such in state law. To correct an earlier
statement, he indicated that more than 17 states now allow
private employers to grant an employment preference to veterans.
He offered his understanding that information from the United
States Department of Labor's (DOL's) Bureau of Labor Statistics
indicates that the unemployment rate for veterans compared to
other populations is higher; predicted that many more veterans
are going to be moving to Alaska in the foreseeable future; and
referenced statistics he said came from the DOD's Defense
Manpower Data Center to illustrate the latter point.
9:11:15 AM
RUSSELL POUNDS - remarking that he is a small business owner and
noting that both his father and brother are veterans and that
he's met a lot of military personnel from Joint Base Elmendorf-
Richardson (JBER) that have expressed interest in staying in
Alaska - relayed his appreciation of HB 6 and what he called the
opportunity to hire veterans.
9:13:12 AM
RUSSELL BALL, remarking that he is a small business owner, said
he's had many veterans work for him and he finds them to be
outstanding employees in the majority of cases. He expressed
concern about the unemployment rate of veterans, shared his
belief that passage of HB 6 would encourage veterans to apply
for private-sector jobs, and indicated that he would be choosing
to grant an employment preference to veterans.
CHAIR STOLTZE, after ascertaining that no one else wished to
testify, closed public testimony on HB 6.
9:16:01 AM
SENATOR COGHILL moved to report CSHB 6(MLV) from committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s). There
being no objection, CSHB 6(MLV) moved from the Senate State
Affairs Standing Committee.
9:16:40 AM
The Senate State Affairs Standing Committee was recessed at
9:16 a.m. to a call of the chair. [The meeting was not
reconvened this day.]