04/20/2004 03:40 PM Senate STA
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
April 20, 2004
3:40 p.m.
TAPE (S) 04-27
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Gary Stevens, Chair
Senator John Cowdery, Vice Chair
Senator Bert Stedman
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Gretchen Guess
Senator Lyman Hoffman
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
HOUSE BILL NO. 378
"An Act relating to the Alaska Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act,
including sales, advertising, certain devices, food donors, and
food banks; making certain violations of organic food provisions
and of the Alaska Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act unfair methods of
competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices under
certain of the state's unfair trade practices and consumer
protection laws; and providing for an effective date."
MOVED HB 378 OUT OF COMMITTEE
CONFIRMATION HEARING:
Alaska Public Offices Commission-Roger E. Holl
CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
SENATE BILL NO. 380
"An Act relating to the extension under the State Procurement
Code of terms for leases for real estate and certain terms for
certain state contracts for goods and services; and providing
for an effective date."
MOVED CSSB 380(STA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 224
"An Act relating to lowering the legal level of intoxication for
operating a motor vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft to .02
percent or the equivalent for persons under 21 years of age;
relating to implied consent for purposes of determining
consumption of alcohol; and providing for an effective date."
SCHEDULED BUT NOT HEARD
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 93(FIN)
"An Act relating to boating safety, registration, and numbering;
extending the sunset date of changes in ch. 28, SLA 2000; and
providing for an effective date."
MOVED SCS CSHB 93(TRA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
CONFIRMATION HEARING - No previous action to record.
BILL: HB 378
SHORT TITLE: FOOD, DRUGS, COSMETICS, CERTAIN DEVICES
SPONSOR(s): FINANCE
01/12/04 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/12/04 (H) HES, JUD
02/05/04 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
02/05/04 (H) Moved Out of Committee
02/05/04 (H) MINUTE(HES)
02/09/04 (H) HES RPT 2DP 1DNP 2NR
02/09/04 (H) DP: SEATON, WILSON; DNP: WOLF;
02/09/04 (H) NR: GATTO, COGHILL
02/09/04 (H) FIN REFERRAL ADDED AFTER JUD
02/23/04 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/23/04 (H) Moved Out of Committee
02/23/04 (H) MINUTE(JUD)
02/24/04 (H) JUD RPT 1DP 3NR 1AM
02/24/04 (H) DP: MCGUIRE; NR: HOLM, GARA, SAMUELS;
02/24/04 (H) AM: GRUENBERG
03/02/04 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
03/02/04 (H) Moved Out of Committee
03/02/04 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
03/03/04 (H) FIN RPT 4DP 6NR
03/03/04 (H) DP: MEYER, FATE, FOSTER, WILLIAMS;
03/03/04 (H) NR: HAWKER, STOLTZE, JOULE, CROFT,
03/03/04 (H) MOSES, HARRIS
04/01/04 (H) GRUENBERG CHANGED JUD RPT TO DP UC
04/05/04 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
04/05/04 (H) VERSION: HB 378
04/06/04 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
04/06/04 (S) STA, JUD, FIN
04/20/04 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
BILL: SB 380
SHORT TITLE: STATE LEASE AND CONTRACT EXTENSIONS
SPONSOR(s): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
03/26/04 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/26/04 (S) STA, FIN
04/20/04 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
BILL: HB 93
SHORT TITLE: BOATING SAFETY,REGISTRATION, NUMBERING
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) WEYHRAUCH
02/12/03 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/12/03 (H) TRA, STA
02/18/03 (H) TRA AT 1:30 PM CAPITOL 17
02/18/03 (H) -- Meeting Canceled --
02/25/03 (H) TRA AT 1:30 PM CAPITOL 17
02/25/03 (H) Heard & Held
02/25/03 (H) MINUTE(TRA)
03/27/03 (H) TRA AT 1:30 PM CAPITOL 17
03/27/03 (H) Scheduled But Not Heard
04/01/03 (H) TRA AT 1:30 PM CAPITOL 17
04/01/03 (H) Moved CSHB 93(TRA) Out of Committee
04/01/03 (H) MINUTE(TRA)
04/02/03 (H) TRA RPT CS(TRA) NT 1DP 2DNP 2NR
04/02/03 (H) DP: HOLM; DNP: KOHRING, MASEK;
04/02/03 (H) NR: OGG, FATE
04/03/03 (H) STA AT 8:00 AM CAPITOL 102
04/03/03 (H) Heard & Held
04/03/03 (H) MINUTE(STA)
04/08/03 (H) STA AT 8:00 AM CAPITOL 102
04/08/03 (H) Moved CSHB 93(TRA) Out of Committee
04/08/03 (H) MINUTE(STA)
04/09/03 (H) STA RPT CS(TRA) NT 6DP
04/09/03 (H) DP: SEATON, GRUENBERG, HOLM, LYNN,
04/09/03 (H) DAHLSTROM, WEYHRAUCH
04/09/03 (H) FIN REFERRAL ADDED BEFORE RLS
04/14/03 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
04/14/03 (H) Heard & Held
04/14/03 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
01/22/04 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
01/22/04 (H) Heard & Held
01/22/04 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
01/29/04 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
01/29/04 (H) Moved CSHB 93(FIN) Out of Committee
01/29/04 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
02/02/04 (H) FIN RPT CS(FIN) NT 4DP 6NR
02/02/04 (H) DP: MEYER, FATE, FOSTER, WILLIAMS;
02/02/04 (H) NR: HAWKER, STOLTZE, JOULE, CROFT,
02/02/04 (H) CHENAULT, HARRIS
02/04/04 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
02/04/04 (H) VERSION: CSHB 93(FIN)
02/06/04 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/06/04 (S) TRA, STA, FIN
03/25/04 (H) TRA AT 1:30 PM CAPITOL 17
03/25/04 (H) -- Meeting Postponed to 4/1/04 --
04/01/04 (H) TRA AT 1:30 PM CAPITOL 17
04/01/04 (H) -- Meeting Postponed to Fri, 4/2/04 --
04/02/04 (S) TRA RPT SCS 2DP 3NR SAME TITLE
04/02/04 (S) DP: WAGONER, COWDERY; NR: LINCOLN,
04/02/04 (S) THERRIAULT, OLSON
04/13/04 (S) STA AT 0:00 AM BELTZ 211
04/13/04 (S) -- Meeting Canceled --
04/20/04 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
WITNESS REGISTER
Representative Bill Williams
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of HB 378
Commissioner Ernesta Ballard
Department of Environmental Conservation
410 Willoughby
Juneau, AK 99801-1795
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke in favor of HB 378
Kristin Ryan, Director
Division of Environmental Health
Department of Environmental Conservation
410 Willoughby
Juneau, AK 99801-1795
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions on HB 378
Pat Lubbie
AARP Advocacy Director
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 378
Robin Northsayer
Northern Hospitality Training Center
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 378
Confirmation Nominee:
Roger E. Holl
No address provided
Vern Jones
Chief Procurement Officer
Division of General Services
Department of Administration
PO Box 110200
Juneau, AK 99811-0200
POSITION STATEMENT: Introduced SB 380
Linda Sylvester
Staff to Representative Bruce Weyhrauch
POSITION STATEMENT: Introduced CSHB 93(FIN) for the sponsor
Sue Hargas
Coast Guard Boating Safety Specialist
Juneau, AK 99801
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave information related to CSHB 93(FIN)
Kevin Quinlan
Chief Of Safety Advocacy
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
Washington D.C.
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on CSHB 93(FIN)
Jack Cadigan
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, retired
Juneau, AK 99801
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on CSHB 93(FIN)
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 04-27, SIDE A
CHAIR GARY STEVENS called the Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:40 p.m. Present were Senators
Stedman and Chair Gary Stevens. They were awaiting a third
member, but would hear the introduction to HB 378 in the
meantime.
HB 378-FOOD, DRUGS, COSMETICS, CERTAIN DEVICES
REPRESENTATIVE BILL WILLIAMS, sponsor of HB 378, said the bill
is the result of several years work with the Department of
Environmental Conservation (DEC). The need stems from concern
that bar and restaurant owners are concerned about paying high
fees but seldom receiving an inspection. Since 1995 the fees
have risen from $50 to $450.
He asked DEC to come up with a plan and they did so.
Commissioner Ballard was available to explain the basic points,
he said.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS noted that Senator Cowdery had joined the
meeting.
SENATOR JOHN COWDERY asked which cities and towns already have
food inspections and whether this bill would result in a
duplication of effort.
ERNESTA BALLARD, Commissioner of the Department of Environmental
Conservation, acknowledged that it's hard for people to get
excited about regulatory change, but if you're a regulator, this
is exciting, she said. "We've been working for a year to
redesign our food inspection and safety program so that it can
achieve food safety in our state with its disconnected, no
roads, vast reaches of open space but restaurants are available
to our citizens and their guests all over the state of Alaska."
For the last 50 years they've had a consultative inspection
program so that whenever inspectors were able to make
inspections, they reviewed deficiencies and made suggestions.
This regulatory program hasn't kept pace with those that have
been developed for air, solid waste and wastewater management.
An overhaul is past due as witnessed by the fact that before
WWII there were 20 million meals served in restaurants every day
and after the war that number jumped to 60 million per day. The
National Restaurant Association (NRA) predicts that in 2004, 70
billion meals will be served in restaurants every day. Today the
average person eats out 4.2 times per week. It's time for a
change, she asserted. The NRA more than agrees and they have
already qualified over 1 million workers in their food-workers
safety certification program.
COMMISSIONER BALLARD said they propose to shift responsibility
to the restaurant owners and operators in the same way that they
hold other industry operators responsible for their performance
in all DEC regulatory areas. "When the consequences of failure
are unacceptable, we have learned...that standard operating
procedures can be followed and can dramatically increase the
likelihood of success."
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked how they would determine that they're
doing a good job in the future.
COMMISSIONER BALLARD said the first measure of success wouldn't
be epidemiologic because you can't always be certain about the
source of the illness. It could come from the post office as
easily as from a restaurant. They will judge their success by
the implementation of the program. It requires restaurants to
advise DEC of their participation through annual or periodic
signing. They will adopt standard operating procedures and
conduct self-certification checks. DEC spot checks and will
likely discover that a high percentage of those that are visited
are maintaining their self-certification records. They implement
their air and water programs in the very same way.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS said, "So in the end you cannot tell me how
many people have gotten ill in Alaska this past year from badly
handled food in restaurants or how many people have died and you
cannot tell me five years from now."
COMMISSIONER BALLARD said that is true, but they are able to
follow and track food borne illnesses. During the recent
Iditarod, they tracked 74 cases along the trail and were able to
prevent the spread of the disease to the celebratory banquet in
Nome thanks to Kristin Ryan and her staff. They took 1,000 pair
of disposable gloves to Nome and educated the food preparers and
servers about ways to prevent the spread of disease. There
wasn't a single case of illness. "That, to me, is a crystal
clear demonstration. Every single checkpoint along the Iditarod
Trail had an outbreak of Norovirus...and we stopped it in Nome
with gloved hands. That is an operating procedure - clean hands.
We couldn't guarantee that all 800 people would wash their
hands, but we could guarantee that dirty hands wouldn't touch
the common serving utensils."
CHAIR GARY STEVENS said he applauds what they are doing, but
he's uncomfortable with the lack of statistics.
COMMISSIONER BALLARD said she could provide national statistics.
KRISTIN RYAN, director, Division of Environmental Health, told
the committee that they do have some figures for illness
outbreaks in Alaska. They are reported to the epidemiology
section, but food borne illnesses are reported at a 25 to 1
ratio. That's the dilemma they have in using numbers as an
indication that the system is working, she said.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked if we're getting better at protecting
the public or not.
MS. RYAN said it's hard to measure prevention because if one
person dies that's too many. It's difficult to count the cases
that didn't occur, but you can count cases that do occur and are
reported so you can show trends. "But it's a slippery slope to
base all your decisions on one indicator. I would recommend a
balance performance measure portfolio. ....There are a variety
of ways you can determine that people are getting safe food
rather than just relying on outbreak numbers."
COMMISSIONER BALLARD said ours is a different job than the
epidemiology job, which is trying to count the results. Our job
is to know that we're protecting people from exposure.
MS. RYAN added that a previous performance measure that will
continue to be an indicator is critical violations found while
performing inspections. "We will continue to be doing our
inspections at the frequency that we are doing them," she
assured.
SENATOR BERT STEDMAN asked about the fees.
MS. RYAN said they are proposing to charge $10 for a food
handler card that would remain valid for three years.
SENATOR STEDMAN asked if the card could be obtained online.
MS. RYAN said their primary conduit would be the Internet. The
information and test would be offered online, but arrangements
could be made for a proctored exam if a computer wasn't
available. The information would be free while the test would
carry a charge. When you pass the test, you could print your own
card that would be similar to a driver's license.
SENATOR STEDMAN asked who would take the test.
MS. RYAN said they are proposing that anyone who touches
unpackaged food would be trained. They haven't determined how
they would apply the process, but they want to engage the
regulated industry through a negotiated rule making process.
SENATOR STEDMAN asked whether DEC would impose civil fines for
violators.
MS. RYAN told him the enforcement mechanisms are narrow.
Currently they can close the establishment or press criminal
charges, but neither option is efficient for enforcing minor
regulatory violations. They propose the ability to impose civil
fines.
SENATOR STEDMAN asked whether the current inspectors would
continue in their jobs.
MS. RYAN assured him they are an essential component. She
pointed to a chart that depicts food safety as a three legged
stool with the three legs representing enforcement, managing
risks and a knowledgeable workforce. The stool doesn't stand
without all three legs.
SENATOR COWDERY asked whether someone running a hotdog stand on
the street would have to participate.
MS. RYAN said they would address that through the regulatory
process, but they're proposing that anyone who handles
unpackaged food would participate.
SENATOR COWDERY asked what score would result in a closure
order.
MS. RYAN said Anchorage is the only area in the state that has
its own food safety program and he was probably familiar with
that program.
SENATOR COWDERY asked whether they would post scores in other
areas of the state.
MS. RYAN told him that inspections aren't frequent enough to
rely on them alone for food safety. They're considering posting
an 800 number that people could call to report bad food
experiences though.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked what other states are doing in this
regard and whether this proposal is the best route.
MS. RYAN said that other states are going this route to some
extent, but Alaska food safety experts came up with this model.
COMMISSIONER BALLARD added that this solution appeals to DEC
because professionals developed the program and because it's the
system that Pillsbury Kitchens designed for NASA. In that system
you identify critical hazard steps, which are the places in food
handling where contamination might occur and you focus on those
through standard operating procedures and institutionalizing
control. Finally, the proposal is sound because the Division of
Environmental Health has used the same regulatory system for air
and wastewater and they know that it works well. There's no
reason the restaurant industry shouldn't fall in line, she said.
It's reasonable to ask people to conduct self-inspections and
implement standard operating procedures as the method of
achieving compliance with standards that are set by the
regulators, she asserted.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked whether this proposal might not overlap
with the Anchorage program ultimately causing the municipality
to close their food safety program down and rely on DEC.
COMMISSIONER BALLARD pointed out that DEC does have the
statutory authority to delegate the responsibility for food
safety. Alaska is currently the only state that administers the
program at the state level and DEC would be delighted for
jurisdictions that are capable to assume responsibility.
MS. RYAN added that Anchorage already requires their food
managers to be certified.
PAT LUBBIE, advocacy director for AARP, Alaska, spoke in favor
of the proposal. With regard to food safety, a good day is one
in which nothing happened, he said. Training workers with
certified managers does decrease food borne illnesses, he said,
and this bill will provide for that training. It also provides
fines for non-compliance. "We think this is very important for
Alaska," he concluded.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked whether other states take such a hands-
off approach to inspections.
MR. LUBBIE said there would never be enough people to do as many
food inspections as they would like, but this is a good second
choice because it places the responsibility on the restaurant
owner/operator.
ROBIN NORTHSAYER, owner/operator of Northern Hospitality
Training, spoke in support of HB 378. Having been in business
for about four years, she said she could speak from the
standpoint of a trainer as well as a consumer who has contracted
a food borne illness from a restaurant.
In the last four years she has trained close to 1,000 food
managers and about the same number of food handlers. These
people leave the training program with the knowledge and desire
to keep people safe. Food handlers and managers have a duty to
send people home safely. Sending citizens and visitors home with
food poisoning is not the kind of advertising we're looking for,
she said.
SENATOR COWDERY motioned to report HB 378 from committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes. He asked
for unanimous consent. There being no objection, it was so
ordered.
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS
CHAIR GARY STEVENS announced the committee would take up
confirmation hearings. He asked Mr. Holl to give his opening
remarks.
ROGER E. HOLL spoke via teleconference and told members he had
submitted a copy of his resume and appeared before the Alaska
Public Offices Commission. They submitted his name to the
governor who forwarded his name to the Legislature.
He reported that he has served the State of Alaska in good non-
partisan ways over the years. He worked with the University of
Alaska on the governor's institutional restructuring committee
years ago and now works as an adjunct faculty member. He served
with the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs as
commander of the 492nd Coastal Command for Alaska and for some
years he wrote opinions for the ethics committee at the Alaska
Bar Association. He has been an attorney in private practice
since he arrived in Alaska in 1972 and has enjoyed that
profession.
He indicated to the commission that he didn't come with a
preordained agenda, but he believes in the purpose of the
commission to disclose to the public to make the election
process fair and open. He also notes that some of the statutory
duties of the commission are to assist candidates or groups to
comply with the regulations and to develop the proper forms and
manual.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS noted that his resume indicates he has a
great deal of experience that would be of benefit to the Alaska
Public Offices Commission.
TAPE 04-27, SIDE B
4:30 pm
SENATOR BERT STEDMAN asked whether he intended to retire in the
state.
MR. HOLL said that if he does retire it would be in the state.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked for a motion to forward Mr. Holl's name
to the joint body for confirmation.
SENATOR JOHN COWDERY so moved. There being no objection, it was
so ordered.
SB 380-STATE LEASE AND CONTRACT EXTENSIONS
SENATOR GARY STEVENS announced SB 380 to be up for
consideration. He asked for a motion to adopt the \D version
committee substitute (CS).
SENATOR JOHN COWDERY made a motion to adopt \D version CS for
discussion purposes.
SENATOR GARY STEVENS asked Mr. Jones to come forward and present
the bill.
VERN JONES, chief procurement officer, Department of
Administration, explained that the current procurement code
allows for negotiation for extension of office leases of up to
ten years in exchange for rent reductions. He further explained
that:
SB 380 would increase the State's ability to negotiate
lease extensions by changing the required threshold
from a 10 to 15 percent reduction from the existing
lease rate, as the current law requires, to a 10
percent reduction from the current market rate for the
area.
Existing statutory restrictions on negotiations have
hampered our ability to negotiate lease extensions
with our lessors. The increase in the real estate
market in Alaska combined with the way we structure
our leases often makes a 15 percent reduction from the
current lease rates unattainable. Tying the reduced
lease rate to a percentage of the market rate is a
more reasonable approach that will allow us to
negotiate reduced rates more frequently and avoid the
lengthy and expensive reprocurement process not to
mention the cost and disruption of moving state
offices and large numbers of state employees.
Holding up a chart he continued to say:
Our typical state office leases are comprised of
several cost elements. First of all we have the
lessors profit that's built in throughout the life of
the lease. We have the lessor's base cost that are
ongoing throughout the life of the lease. We also have
the landowner's construction or tenant improvement
costs that typically are financed and amortized only
through the first firm term portion of the lease.
Typically those fall off in the optional renewal
periods. This is intended to demonstrate the cost of
the lease - all the cost elements of the lease
throughout the life of the lease.
As the chart demonstrates, a rate below the already
reduced rate of an option year is often too low for a
lessor to agree to. On the other hand a percentage
below the market rate, which is generally established
at the beginning of the lease, is much more
reasonable. [It's] something that lessors will more
often accept and again, the more often we can
negotiate a below market rate and avoid the cost of
reprocurement and moving expenses, the more the state
saves.
The committee substitute that you just adopted makes
some changes to the original bill. Those changes are:
It removes procurement contracts from the bill. Now
it's just strictly office space leases. It specifies
how the market rate is established. It's either a
broker's opinion of rental value or an appraisal of
the rental value. It tightens the definition up. And
it changed what was a five percent reduction to now a
10 percent reduction.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS thanked him and asked if there were any
questions.
SENATOR BERT STEDMAN noted there was a memo from Theresa
Bannister, Legislative Counsel, warning that the draft's
coverage of the judicial branch could raise a separation of
powers issue. He asked Mr. Jones to define the issue and comment
on the potential impact.
MR. JONES said this issue was raised in a House Labor and
Commerce Committee hearing. It refers to Section 1 (b) and is
talking about the Legislature passing a law that would restrict
the court system. However, one of the committee members spoke
with a representative of the court system who supported the bill
and stated that they plan on taking advantage of the bill if it
should pass. "Beyond that I really couldn't comment," he said.
SENATOR JOHN COWDERY asked whether he'd addressed the other
issue raised in the same memo that said the "proposed Sec.
36.30.083 establishes a reporting requirement for the judicial
branch."
MR. JONES replied that same Section 1 (b) requires the executive
branch to report on lease extensions under the bill. He wasn't
sure the court system was uncomfortable with that and he didn't
have any suggested change. "I think the intent here is that
since this is not full open RFT or ITD type procurement that the
Legislature would like to see reporting on agreements made under
this section," he said.
SENATOR COWDERY asked if the bill had a Judiciary Committee
referral.
SENATOR GARY STEVENS told him the Finance Committee would hear
the bill next. He noted that the bill addresses rental space and
goods and services. The bill authorizes term extensions for five
years on goods and services contracts, but he wasn't clear as to
whether the extensions were for rental space or leases as well.
"Is this a similar thing or not," he asked.
MR. JONES explained that the CS removes other contracts from the
bill so only procurements of leased real estate or leased office
space are included. "The rule that the bill would employ would
be up to a ten year maximum extension of a lease in exchange for
minimum 10 percent reduction from market value."
SENATOR GARY STEVENS wanted to make it clear and asked for
verification that although the governor's letter of March 24,
2004 spoke of leases and contracts for goods and services, the
CS relates to just leases and not with contracts for goods and
services.
MR. JONES agreed that is correct.
There were no further questions.
SENATOR GARY STEVENS asked for a motion.
SENATOR COWDERY made a motion to move CSSB 380(STA) [\D version]
from committee with attached fiscal note and asked for unanimous
consent. There being no objection, it was so ordered.
CSHB 93(FIN)-BOATING SAFETY,REGISTRATION, NUMBERING
CHAIR GARY STEVENS announced HB 93 to be the next order of
business. [The committee considered SCS CSHB 93(TRA).]
LINDA SYLVESTER, staff to Representative Bruce Weyhrauch,
explained that the bill reauthorizes the boating safety program
that passed in 2000. "It created a superb comprehensive boating
safety statute for Alaska." As a result, safety on Alaska's
inland and marine waters increased and fatalities decreased.
The Act did two things: it consolidated boating
regulatory functions and it created a steady funding
source for boater education programs for the state of
Alaska. Funding for the new registration function is
derived from federal motor fuel taxes collected in
Alaska as well as revenues from the boat registration
program.
Originally the bill had a sunset to ensure that this didn't
become an unfunded mandate if the federal funds didn't continue.
The federal funding stream is currently in place and the House
Finance Committee placed a 2010 sunset provision on the program.
MS. SYLVESTER noted that there are 350 active sites in about 140
communities across the state that participate in the "Kids Don't
Float" lifejacket loan program. This is a successful program
that is funded by the boating safety program.
SENATOR JOHN COWDERY asked if this included documented boats or
just registered boats.
SUE HARGAS, Coast Guard Boating Safety Specialist, told him this
includes only registered boats. Documented boats are documented
under a national documentation program.
SENATOR COWDERY said, "I just wanted that on the record. I knew
that."
MS. HARGAS told Senator Cowdery that the program wouldn't affect
his boat. Continuing, she said Alaska has done a good job with
the program since inception. "Alaska was the last state in the
nation to take a program on and [the state] really took the
opportunity to work with us and work with other states to put
together a good program." This is an education rather than
compliance program with 75 percent of the federal proceeds going
to education and safety.
The authority for the programs went to the states in 1958 and
the funding followed in 1971. Since September 11 it's become
more important for states to run the program because the Coast
Guard has increased national security duties.
SENATOR BERT STEDMAN noted some of the exemptions and was
curious why recreational boat tenders aren't exempted.
MS. HARGAS explained that the federal law requires that all
boats equipped with machinery propulsion be registered. The
original exemption for less than 10 feet was included because
the Legislature decided to include registration requirements for
vessels not equipped with machinery propulsion that were over 10
feet long. This meant that canoes, kayaks and other similar
craft had to be registered.
Since that time the public has spoken up in opposition to that
requirement so that was one of the first things taken out. As
written, CSHB 93(TRA) requires any boat with machinery
propulsion to be registered, which is in line with the federal
requirement, and does not require non-motorized vessels to be
registered. "Tenders under both federal law and state law would
be required to register."
SENATOR STEDMAN asked for verification that tenders would have
to be registered regardless of state law because federal
requirements trump state laws.
MS. HARGAS agreed.
SENATOR STEDMAN asked what happens if you put a 2 HP motor on
your canoe.
MS. HARGAS told him that once you put a motor on the canoe,
you'd have to register it. "Anything that's equipped with
machinery propulsion. Same thing with sailboats; if they have a
motor on them, which many sailboats do, they have to register."
SENATOR STEDMAN remarked that he didn't agree with the
requirement.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS noted that Jeff Johnson, with the Office of
Boating Safety in DNR, was available to answer questions. He
then called on Mr. Quinlan.
KEVIN QUINLAN, chief of safety advocacy at the National
Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in Washington D.C., described
the board as the independent transportation accident
investigation agency. He reiterated, "The Boating Safety Program
is an exceptionally effective program. Nationally we were
running about 1,200 fatalities per year before the Boating
Safety Program started and we're down to about 6 or 7 hundred
now."
His only criticism of the bill was in Section 3. Because the
program is so successful, he could see no reason for the sunset;
this should be a permanent program.
SENATOR STEDMAN asked how boats without title are addressed.
MR. QUINLAN told him the Coast Guard representative was better
able to answer that question.
MS. HARGAS advised that there has been better compliance since
the state took over the program. She opined this is because
there is an increased awareness of the program and it's more
convenient and visible located in the DMV.
She asked if that addressed his basic question. The number of
registrations is up and they haven't heard resistance from
boaters regarding fees, which are $24 for 3 years.
SENATOR STEDMAN replied boaters are motivated when fish and game
officers check fishing licenses and find boats that aren't
registered. He reported that all his motorized boats are now
registered. "We're all-legal now," he said.
MS. HARGAS said that the Coast Guard relies on those numbers
heavily for search and rescue operations. They are particularly
important in the coastal areas and Southeast Alaska in
particular.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS announced that he would lose a quorum in nine
minutes and he would like to move the bill.
JACK CADIGAN, Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, retired, stated that he
was representing the Coast Guard auxiliary, an organization that
has 400 volunteers around the state. He read testimony in
support of HB 93 into the record. A copy of his full testimony
may be found in the bill file.
There was no further testimony.
SENATOR COWDERY made a motion to move SCS CSHB 93(TRA) from
committee with accompanying fiscal note and individual
recommendations. There being no objection, it was so ordered.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS adjourned the meeting at 5:00 pm.
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