03/22/2007 09:00 AM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB117 | |
| SB92 | |
| SB115 | |
| SB16 | |
| SB33 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 16 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 117 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 33 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| = | SB 92 | ||
| = | SB 115 | ||
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
March 22, 2007
9:00 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Lesil McGuire, Chair
Senator Gary Stevens, Vice Chair
Senator Hollis French
Senator Lyda Green
Senator Con Bunde
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
HOUSE BILL NO. 117
"An Act relating to proclamations issued by the governor calling
the legislature into special session."
MOVED CSHB 117(JUD) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 92
"An Act relating to ignition interlock requirements; relating to
limited driver's license privileges for persons convicted of
driving while under the influence of an alcoholic beverage,
inhalant, or controlled substance and requiring certain persons
to utilize ignition interlock devices to qualify for a limited
driver's license; relating to probation for driving while under
the influence of an alcoholic beverage, inhalant, or controlled
substance, and refusal to submit to a chemical test; and
providing for an effective date."
MOVED CSSB 92(STA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 115
"An Act relating to gift certificates and gift cards, and to
unclaimed property; and making a violation of certain gift card
prohibitions an unlawful trade practice."
MOVED CSSB 115(STA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 16
"An Act extending the termination date for the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska; and providing for an effective date."
HEARD AND HELD
SENATE BILL NO. 33
"An Act relating to DNA samples from persons charged with
felonies."
MOVED CSSB 33(STA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 117
SHORT TITLE: PROCLAMATION CALLING A SPECIAL SESSION
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVE(S) HARRIS
02/01/07 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/01/07 (H) STA, JUD
02/20/07 (H) STA AT 8:00 AM CAPITOL 106
02/20/07 (H) Moved Out of Committee
02/20/07 (H) MINUTE(STA)
02/21/07 (H) STA RPT 6DP
02/21/07 (H) DP: JOHNSON, DOLL, COGHILL, GRUENBERG,
ROSES, LYNN
02/22/07 (H) STA AT 8:00 AM CAPITOL 106
02/22/07 (H) <Bill Hearing Canceled>
02/26/07 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/26/07 (H) Heard & Held
02/26/07 (H) MINUTE(JUD)
02/28/07 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/28/07 (H) Moved CSHB 117(JUD) Out of Committee
02/28/07 (H) MINUTE(JUD)
03/01/07 (H) JUD RPT CS(JUD) 6DP
03/01/07 (H) DP: GRUENBERG, LYNN, COGHILL,
DAHLSTROM, HOLMES, RAMRAS
03/05/07 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
03/05/07 (H) VERSION: CSHB 117(JUD)
03/07/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/07/07 (S) STA
03/22/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
BILL: SB 92
SHORT TITLE: LIMITED LICENSE IGNITION INTERLOCK
SPONSOR(S): SENATOR(S) FRENCH
02/21/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/21/07 (S) STA, JUD, FIN
03/13/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
03/13/07 (S) Heard & Held
03/13/07 (S) MINUTE(STA)
03/20/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
03/20/07 (S) Heard & Held
03/20/07 (S) MINUTE(STA)
BILL: SB 115
SHORT TITLE: GIFT CARDS
SPONSOR(S): STATE AFFAIRS
03/12/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/12/07 (S) STA, L&C
03/20/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
03/20/07 (S) Heard & Held
03/20/07 (S) MINUTE(STA)
BILL: SB 16
SHORT TITLE: EXTEND REGULATORY COMMISSION OF ALASKA
SPONSOR(S): SENATOR(S) THERRIAULT
01/16/07 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/5/07
01/16/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/16/07 (S) CRA, STA, FIN
02/15/07 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
02/15/07 (S) Heard & Held
02/15/07 (S) MINUTE(CRA)
02/20/07 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
02/20/07 (S) -- Meeting Canceled --
03/01/07 (S) CRA AT 4:00 PM BELTZ 211
03/01/07 (S) Moved CSSB 16(CRA) Out of Committee
03/01/07 (S) MINUTE(CRA)
03/02/07 (S) CRA RPT CS 5DP NEW TITLE
03/02/07 (S) DP: OLSON, THOMAS, WAGONER, STEVENS,
KOOKESH
03/22/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
BILL: SB 33
SHORT TITLE: DNA FROM PERSONS CHARGED WITH FELONIES
SPONSOR(S): SENATOR(S) BUNDE
01/16/07 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/5/07
01/16/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/16/07 (S) STA, JUD, FIN
03/13/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
03/13/07 (S) Heard & Held
03/13/07 (S) MINUTE(STA)
03/22/07 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BELTZ 211
WITNESS REGISTER
REPRESENTATIVE JOHN HARRIS
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented HB 117 as sponsor.
DUANE BANNOCK, Director
Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding SB 92.
MARIT CARLSON VAN DORT, Staff
to Senator Lesil McGuire
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding SB 115.
TERRY BANNISTER, Attorney
Legislative Affairs
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding SB 115.
SENATOR GENE THERRIAULT
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented SB 16 as sponsor.
KATE GIARD, Chair
Regulatory Commission of Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke in favor of SB 16.
GEORGE GORDON, Director
Regulatory Affairs
Utility Services of Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Expressed support for SB 16.
KAREN FORREST, Deputy Director
Division of Juvenile Justice
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS)
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Suggested clarifying language to SB 33.
DAVID SCHADE, Director
Division of Statewide Services
Department of Public Safety
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke in favor of SB 33.
ACTION NARRATIVE
CHAIR LESIL MCGUIRE called the Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting to order at 9:00:13 AM. Senators McGuire,
Green, and Bunde were present at the call to order. Senators
French and Stevens arrived shortly thereafter.
HB 117-PROCLAMATION CALLING A SPECIAL SESSION
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the consideration of HB 117. [Before the
committee was CSHB 117(JUD).]
REPRESENTATIVE JOHN HARRIS, Alaska State Legislature, said HB
117 is very basic and stems from the frustration members felt
last year regarding special sessions. The bill statutorily
changes the number of notification days from 15 to 30, but it
doesn't disable the governor from calling emergency special
sessions. For a normal special session it gives people time to
adjust their lives. "Many people have vacations; they have work
schedules; they have other things they're trying to do as
ordinary citizens outside the legislature-just a little longer
period of time to try to adjust their schedules."
9:01:35 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked if he gave thought to limiting the reasons
for why a special session could be called.
REPRESENTATIVE HARRIS said no.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said she has heard a lot from her constituents
about the number of special sessions, the costs, and whether
they were being called for appropriate reasons-"if you don't get
your way, I'm going to call you back-type thing."
REPRESENTATIVE HARRIS said he has heard that as well but didn't
want to get into constitutional issues. He noted that the
present governor doesn't have any problems with the bill, and he
surmised it wouldn't be as big an issue "under this situation."
A session could be called immediately under a declaration of
disaster, he clarified.
SENATOR GREEN moved CSHB 117(JUD) from committee with individual
recommendations and attached fiscal note(s). There being no
objection, it was so ordered.
SB 92-LIMITED LICENSE IGNITION INTERLOCK
9:03:04 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the consideration of SB 92.
SENATOR GREEN moved to adopt the Committee Substitute (CS) for
SB 92, labeled 25-LS0439\M, Luckhaupt, as a work draft. Hearing
no objections, Version M was before the committee.
SENATOR FRENCH said the CS addresses the previously discussed
issue of remote locations where it is impractical to require an
interlock system. He described a person who may live in a small
village but gets a DWI in Anchorage or vice versa. The solution
roughly parallels the requirements for automobile insurance;
whereby some parts of the state are exempt. He adopted the same
geographic divisions for SB 92. There will be no differentiation
based on who gets the DWI, but the requirement to have an
interlocking device is based only on geography, he explained.
9:06:03 AM
SENATOR FRENCH said there is a new subsection on pages 6 and 7,
which says: not withstanding all the requirements that you must
have the ignition interlock, the court will waive the
requirement when operating a vehicle in certain communities. The
communities are listed on a separate handout, he said.
SENATOR STEVENS said it's convoluted, and he asked about rental
cars.
SENATOR FRENCH said there is a mark on driver's licenses
indicating if a person needs an interlock device. He said he
doesn't know if the rental car company would notice it, but the
onus is on the individual. He or she would be breaking the law
by driving a rental car without the device.
SENATOR BUNDE said the list of where one could get a waiver is
substantial. He thought it was based on the connection to state
highways. He noted that Iliamna has many roads.
9:09:01 AM
DUANE BANNOCK, Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles, said AS
28.10.011 says vehicle registration and mandatory insurance are
exempted for a vehicle driven or moved in an area that is off of
the highway system and has a traffic count of less than 500.
SENATOR BUNDE asked how often the traffic counts are taken,
because Iliamna, Fort Yukon, and Kotzebue have a lot of traffic.
MR. BANNOCK said he relies on data from the Department of
Transportation.
9:11:00 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said agreed that those three communities do stand
out. She noted that Senator French worked with the committee to
strike a balance. It is now an issue of educating people, but
there will always be those who try to skirt the law, she stated.
MR. BANNOCK said the bill is pretty darn good.
9:12:01 AM
SENATOR BUNDE said the intent is to protect the innocent driver
from the habitual drunk, and people in rural Alaska should have
the same kind of protection as urban Alaskans. He suggested that
adjustments need to be made to the list of exempt communities,
but that is beyond the scope of this discussion.
SENATOR STEVENS moved the CS for SB 92, labeled 25-LS0439\M,
from committee with individual recommendations and attached
fiscal note(s). There being no objection, CSSB 92(STA) passed
from committee.
SB 115-GIFT CARDS
9:13:28 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the consideration of SB 115. There is a
concern in combining the term "certificate" with "gift card" and
so there should be a definition of both in the bill. There also
was a question about the value of a gift card remaining into
perpetuity or not.
9:14:57 AM
MARIT VAN DORT, Staff to Senator McGuire, said leaving the value
in perpetuity strikes a nice balance between providing consumer
protection and giving business owners the choice of issuing gift
cards. Alaska is making money off of the unclaimed property, and
there is no reason to limit it. She said Rachel Lewis noted that
the law isn't being changed; gift cards are just being added.
Instead of going through the Attorney General's office, a person
can go to the Department of Revenue website and get the value of
a gift card back if it has been reported as unclaimed property.
If someone held a gift card for a long time and the business had
not recorded it as unclaimed property, the person with the gift
card can tell the business to honor it or threaten to report the
business to the Department of Revenue.
9:17:24 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said a business is required to report an aggregate
of $750 worth of unclaimed property. The bill doesn't change
that, but it includes gift cards. Whether a consumer buys a gift
card or a product, "the business can choose, at that point in
time, to calculate it for however they want into their profit
statements. Later, if they decide, put it off the books and
three years later report it as unclaimed property." If the
business has reached an aggregate $750, it is required to report
the unclaimed property, giving the consumer the right to get
that money back. "I think that's a really nice consumer
protection to have in Alaska." She noted elderly consumers, and
"somebody has given their money toward that gift to you, so it
still ought to have a value." This is a nationwide movement, she
noted. The bill also eliminates fees and interest. Merchants
have no obligation to issue gift cards, she said, but she
believes they will because of the money they can make from them.
9:19:54 AM
SENATOR GREEN said one store has racks of cards from different
venders, so either the store receives a cut from selling the
card or it must add a fee.
MS. VAN DORT said unless the gift card is issued from a bank,
the fees will not be allowed.
SENATOR FRENCH said Carrs has $50 Nordstrom gift certificates,
so there must be an agreement that Nordstrom gets $48 of those
dollars, for example, and Carrs gets $2.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said the two companies can make those
arrangements, but the consumer won't be required to pay more.
"So when you buy the $50 card at the checkout stand, you get 50
bucks worth of merchandise. What happens between Nordstrom and
Carrs is not impacted by this."
9:21:40 AM
SENATOR GREEN said right now a person will pay about $6.50 in
fees for a $150 gift card.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said the merchants will have to make that
decision. She offered that it has been extremely valuable for
Nordstrom and others to make gift cards available. She got a
card and got the full value, she added, but the bill is
necessary because of an increasing trend to tack on fees that
the consumer pays.
9:23:10 AM
SENATOR GREEN said the businesses should be alerted in case they
want to testify. Gift cards are convenient, she stated.
CHAIR MCGUIRE suggested reaching out to Carrs and Kroger and
having them come and talk about the gift card structures.
9:24:21 AM
MS. VAN DORT said gift certificates are defined in statute under
gift cards, "so we cannot add gift certificate in there because
we would have two terms meaning the same thing."
CHAIR MCGUIRE said the committee sees the gift card and gift
certificate differently, although they do the same thing.
TERRY BANNISTER, Attorney, Legislative Affairs, said a different
term, like "gift device", could be used to cover certificates
and cards, but right now gift card is the main definition and it
is used throughout the bill. Adding gift certificate, "we would
have a separate term being used, but gift card covers it." The
title uses the term gift certificate because "we're affecting
gift certificates; we're changing the names and all that, and
that's why I was trying to be very careful to say: oh, we're
talking about gift certificates to the extent that we're kind of
replacing the terminology with gift cards. So we wanted to
notify everybody that we were addressing this." She said on page
1, line 5, the section title should be corrected to read gift
card and credit memos, and that could be done by the revisor.
"Whenever we delete something or change a term we try to
evaluate whether or not we need to alert people to tell them
that this has been affected."
9:27:04 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said prior to this bill, gift certificate was
defined and not gift card. "So now the question is whether you
define them both separately, or whether you replace the term
gift certificate with gift card, or whether we call it a gift
device."
SENATOR STEVENS asked how it differs from a credit memo, and he
gave an example of selling something to a second-hand store in
return for credit in the store.
MS. BANNISTER said she will have to check the uniform act to see
how credit memo is defined. She assumes that wouldn't fit, but
it could be included under gift card. It seems to be a totally
different item, she stated. "It is not affected by the bill;
we've left it as it is."
9:29:24 AM
SENATOR BUNDE said there is no simple issue that we can't
convolute. The bill is focused on the new phenomena of gift
cards, "and I would say that gift certificate is a distinction
that doesn't make a difference." He said, "Go ahead with the
card," which is electronic and is used like a credit card. Some
merchants charge a fee for using a credit card, he noted.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said her inclination is to keep the bill as is,
but also to make the technical change. She offered Amendment 1,
as follows:
Page 1, line 5:
Delete "certificates"
Insert "cards"
Hearing no objection, Amendment 1 carried.
9:31:08 AM
SENATOR GREEN said she doesn't see where a gift certificate is
defined under gift card. It looks like it only applies to gift
cards, she stated.
MS. BANNISTER said gift card is a broad definition, and it means
a device-any kind of device. It could be a certificate. By its
terms, the gift card definition includes gift certificates.
SENATOR FRENCH said line 26 defines the device as including an
electronic card but doesn't say it could be a hand-written piece
of paper issued by a store.
MS. BANNISTER said, "You may want to do that." The language uses
the term "includes," so it is not limited to an electronic card.
9:33:17 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE suggested the following: includes a paper
certificate or an electronic card.
9:34:20 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked about any other material that a certificate
could be written on besides paper. "Should we just say
certificate?" There may be another kind of material, and she
noted a business card made out of metal.
SENATOR FRENCH said he liked using the term "paper."
MS. BANNISTER said since the language starts with "includes," it
does not exclude a metal certificate.
CHAIR MCGUIRE offered Amendment 2, as follows:
Page 2, line 26, following "includes":
Insert "a paper certificate or"
Hearing no objection, Amendment 2 carried.
SENATOR FRENCH moved SB 115, as amended, from committee with
individual recommendations and the attached zero fiscal note.
There being no objection, CSSB 115(STA) moved from the Senate
State Affairs Committee.
SB 16-EXTEND REGULATORY COMMISSION OF ALASKA
9:36:10 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the consideration of SB 16. This is the
first hearing and the bill would not move today.
SENATOR GENE THERRIAULT, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor of SB
16, said the original bill contained the auditor's suggestion of
an eight-year sunset extension for the Regulatory Commission of
Alaska (RCA), but CSSB 16(CRA) is before the committee, and it
rolls the extension back to six years and adds a two-year report
card. The report card would not be a full-fledged audit but
simply information on the RCA meeting its timelines. The two-
year report card makes it important to keep the extension at
multiples of two. He noted that regulated entities have
requested changes to the RCA, but he suggested extending the RCA
first. Without the RCA, all the issues will end up in the
legislature's lap. "We do need to extend the RCA; the bill that
is before you is that specific policy call." He said he has been
working on the proposed changes, and he hoped the administration
would support a separate package of changes to the way the RCA
operated, but the administration is too busy so he will look for
a sponsor.
9:40:22 AM
SENATOR THERRIAULT said there is growing consensus to make
changes including commissioner salaries, adding an executive
director, and adding statutory timelines. If the regulated
community doesn't get too greedy, a package can be created with
broad support. He said he is working on that. The legislature
may want to bundle the two issues together, but keeping the
sunset extension clean is his preference, he stated.
9:41:43 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked what the two-year report does, and asked
if changes can occur at that time.
SENATOR THERRIAULT said certainly the legislature can introduce
a bill at any year if it thinks the RCA has gone way off course.
The report card provides that information to the legislature to
indicate if something is going astray, like missing timelines or
increasing the number of appealed cases. It is useful
information to have before the sunset, he said. The RCA is a
quasi-judicial entity overseeing a lot of dollars, he noted.
9:43:37 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked if the report would just go to the Budget
and Audit committee.
SENATOR THERRIAULT said it would be done by the "audit shop" and
submitted to the legislature.
SENATOR STEVENS asked how it will arrive and who will see it.
SENATOR THERRIAULT it would just be a report that is presented
to the bodies with the secretary reading it across. He noted
that anyone in the regulated community with a concern will
certainly bring it to the attention of legislators.
9:44:44 AM
SENATOR FRENCH asked why Sections 2 and 3 are repealers and
reenactments, and what has changed or been lost.
KATE GIARD, Chair, Regulatory Commission of Alaska, said there
was language that changed a reporting date. November 15 is far
timelier and gives auditors a chance to look at it and report to
the legislature by January. There was also language that
required the RCA to report on things that it did not actually
do, including the status of the development of utilities, which
it has never done. Repealing that will clean things up.
9:46:57 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE read the statute that is being eliminated. AS 42.05.211
currently states:
The commission shall by February 15 of each year publish an
annual report reviewing its work and notify the legislature
that the report is available. The report must contain
information and data that bear a significant relationship
to the development and regulation of public utility
services in the state and include an outline of the
commission's program for the development and regulation of
public utility services in the forthcoming year.
MS. GIARD said the RCA doesn't develop the public utilities, so
it took the language out. "We've never obeyed that law in our
annual report," she explained
9:47:53 AM
SENATOR FRENCH said the language has a forward-looking aspect
about plans for the following year. "It certainly looks like
that is being lost."
MS. GIARD said this year the RCA annual report shows the new
cases that were filed, and that hasn't been done before. There
is a great amount of time that goes by, she stated. "We put it
in here because the time was so different we wanted you to know
what's happening today."
9:49:10 AM
MS. GIARD said the RCA regulates approximately $1.5 billion
worth of commerce, and decisions can impact one entity for
hundreds of millions of dollars. Its decisions can impact the
state's economy, as well. If the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) follows the decisions of the RCA on the TAPS
pipeline case, it will have an impact of $818 million a year on
royalty revenue, so the RCA should be held accountable and
transparent. She appreciates that the legislature checks on the
RCA. Since Ms. Giard became chair three years ago, the RCA has
been working with utilities to bring deep institutional change.
The effort requires the help of the legislature and the RCA
going out to the utilities to listen to complaints and fix them.
The companies will not say they love all of the decisions, but
she hopes they will say that the RCA is getting better. That was
said in the audit report, and 55 percent of the regulated
utilities and pipeline carriers said the RCA had improved. She
said the RCA is comfortable with the six-year extension. A four-
year extension is too short and too challenging to a new
governor. "We put in the two-year audits because we believe we
should be held accountable for the transparency, and we're going
to put it in our annual report, and we want it audited."
9:53:45 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said she would like the committee to look at the
information and consider rolling the substantive changes into
the sunset bill. She said she wants to have time to formulate
meaningful questions.
9:54:56 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked if the issues of concern are addressed in
the committee packet.
MS. GIARD said the RCA provided information from a public
process that the utilities participated in. It has all of their
comments of what they would like see changed. The RCA held
public hearings, "and then voted on some to bring forward to
you." She said the governor's office was unable to sponsor a
second piece of legislation, so she combined what she thought
the public wanted with SB 16 and HB 209. She said it is balanced
and addresses timelines, "and there's conversations we need to
have about those. I am really excited about shortening those
timelines." Commissioner salaries are also addressed, she said.
9:57:12 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked committee members to read RO6-10 and
distinguish between what the public commented on and what was
included. This committee could create a bill or add it to the
current one. It is incumbent on the Senate to come up with
concerns and the method to deal with them.
GEORGE GORDON, Director, Regulatory Affairs, Utility Services of
Alaska, said he was once President and CEO of College Utilities
Corporation and Golden Heart Utilities that provided water and
waste water service to Fairbanks. He supports the legislation,
and he agrees with the RCA on many issues. It is necessary to
reduce the statutory time allowed for rate cases, he said, from
16 months down to 9 months. It is important to limit discovery
during regulatory matters. He said the RCA is considering
opening up a rule-making docket that would limit discovery. It
is too open ended and not in the public interest, he stated. The
salary and qualifications of the RCA need to be raised. The
commissioners should earn what superior court judges earn. He
supports having a staff person to exercise staff control and to
act as a liaison to utilities. He said he doesn't care if the
issues are addressed in the sunset bill or a separate bill.
10:01:09 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said visitors to her office have made those points
to her.
DEAN THOMPSON, Attorney, Alaska Power Association (APA), said
the APA is a trade association for electric utilities throughout
Alaska. The APA has 39 member utilities, and it supports the
reauthorization of the RCA. The general perception is that the
RCA has improved significantly over the past few years in terms
of docket management and seeking input from the industry. He
said Chair Giard is doing a good job of improving efficiency and
effectiveness, but there are further improvements as promoted by
Mr. Gordon. The regulated entities have to interact with the
RCA, so continuity and predictability are important. He said the
APA has not taken a position on the term for the extension, but
it doesn't oppose CSSB 16(CRA). Members of APA might support
some of the proposed changes but would like to see them first.
10:05:42 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said she would like to hear more detail from the
APA next week. She thanked Chair Giard. Regarding public input,
she said, "What a difference a few years makes."
CHAIR MCGUIRE held SB 16 over.
SB 33-DNA FROM PERSONS CHARGED WITH FELONIES
10:07:25 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced consideration of SB 33.
SENATOR BUNDE, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor of SB 33, said
he would prefer that DNA samples be taken at the time of arrest
of an individual, which is when fingerprints are taken, instead
of only when the person is charged. He said he assumes that the
Department of Public Safety would also have that preference.
Most people who are arrested are charged with something. "I'm
asking the committee to review the two options: whether the
sample be taken at arrest or at the charging."
10:09:36 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said Version E requires DNA when arrested, and
Version C is when charged. Both are on the table, she said.
KAREN FORREST, Deputy Director, Division of Juvenile Justice,
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS), suggested a
minor clarification. Existing law makes a distinction between
DNA collection for persons and minors, so she suggested adding
"or minors" following "the persons".
10:11:38 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said she sees what she means. For Version C, the
change will be on page 1, lines 15, 18 and 19. In version E, the
change will be on lines 14, 17, and 18.
SENATOR FRENCH asked if two versions of a bill can be before the
committee.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said Version E was adopted and is technically
before the committee as a working document. She then said, "So
we had C before us, and it is a bit unorthodox, I don't
disagree, but in the interest of time…we will be working from C,
but E is a version that is pro-offered by the sponsor just to be
considered."
10:14:33 AM
DAVID SCHADE, Director, Division of Statewide Services,
Department of Public Safety (DPS), said the department supports
the bill. DNA is already required for convicted persons. That
sample doesn't always get collected or it's delayed, he noted.
This bill will give the state another opportunity to make sure
that that requirement is completed.
10:15:33 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked which version he supports.
MR. SCHADE said DPS prefers collecting the DNA when a person is
arrested because there is not a good mechanism for collecting it
when a person is charged.
SENATOR BUNDE said an arrest is a physical activity with an
enforcement officer present. Being charged is a paper
transaction, and the arrestee may not even be present.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said it is a policy call. An arrest is a point
when someone thinks a person might have done something and
probable cause is there. The charge is a higher standard, and
conviction is higher yet-so it's just a policy call.
SENATOR STEVENS asked when the DNA sample is shared in the
database.
10:17:58 AM
MR. SCHADE said the sample will be analyzed and put in the CODIS
database to see if any matches occur.
SENATOR STEVENS said it is better to get that information sooner
rather than later.
SENATOR BUNDE noted that John Dillinger wasn't arrested for
murder but for tax evasion. People committing petty crimes are
often involved in larger crimes. The opportunity at arrest,
while it is a broad net, serves to solve crimes, he said.
10:19:18 AM
SENATOR FRENCH said physical arrest is the most efficient time
to collect a sample, but he is philosophically more comfortable
with a prosecutor reviewing a charge before taking the sample.
Most states are going with DNA collection at the time of arrest,
he noted. He agreed that a person may not be present when being
charged.
SENATOR GREEN moved to adopt the committee substitute for SB 33,
labeled 25-LS0260\E, Luckhaupt, as the working document. Hearing
no objection, Version E was before the committee.
SENATOR BUNDE said 34 states are considering expanding or
initiating the use of DNA for fighting crime, and 19 are
choosing arrest as the point of collection.
10:21:24 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE said she wants a strong letter of intent that
those wrongly arrested will have their DNA information retrieved
from CODIS. There is a severe penalty for the misuse of the DNA,
but she would like to emphasize that intent.
SENATOR STEVENS offered to move the bill.
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked, "Did we make those changes?"
SENATOR FRENCH said they were conceptual and the bill can be
cleaned up in the judiciary committee.
CHAIR MCGUIRE suggested Amendment 1 on behalf of Senator Bunde,
as follows:
Page 2, lines 14, 17, and 18, following "persons":
Insert "or minor's"
Hearing no objections, Amendment 1 carried.
SENATOR STEVENS moved the committee substitute to SB 33, labeled
25-LS0260\E, as amended, with attached fiscal notes and
individual recommendations. Hearing no objections, CSSB 33(STA)
passed from committee.
CHAIR MCGUIRE adjourned the Senate State Affairs Committee at
10:23:38 AM.
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