04/08/2021 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s) | |
| SB25 | |
| SB102 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 39 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 25 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 102 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
April 8, 2021
3:33 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Mike Shower, Chair
Senator Lora Reinbold, Vice Chair (via Teams)
Senator Mia Costello (via Teams)
Senator Roger Holland (via Teams)
Senator Scott Kawasaki (via Teams)
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
Alaska Police Standards Council
Justin Doll, Chief - Anchorage
Lance Shane Nicholson - Kodiak
- CONFIRMATIONS ADVANCED
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Richard Stillie - Delta Junction
- CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
Military Appeals Commission
Robin Barrett - Fairbanks
- CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
SENATE BILL NO. 25
"An Act relating to the establishment and maintenance of an
Internet website providing information on state government
financial transactions and specifying the information to be made
available on the website."
- MOVED CSSB 25(STA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 102
"An Act relating to the Compact for a Balanced Budget."
- MOVED SB 102 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 39
"An Act relating to elections; relating to voter registration;
relating to ballots and a system of tracking and accounting for
ballots; establishing an election offense hotline; designating
as a class A misdemeanor the collection of ballots from other
voters; designating as a class C felony the intentional opening
or tampering with a sealed ballot, certificate, or package of
ballots without authorization from the director of the division
of elections; and providing for an effective date."
- SCHEDULED BUT NOT HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 25
SHORT TITLE: STATE GOV'T FINANCES: WEBSITE
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) WIELECHOWSKI
01/22/21 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/8/21
01/22/21 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/22/21 (S) STA, FIN
02/02/21 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/02/21 (S) Heard & Held
02/02/21 (S) MINUTE(STA)
02/11/21 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/11/21 (S) Scheduled but Not Heard
02/25/21 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/25/21 (S) Heard & Held
02/25/21 (S) MINUTE(STA)
04/08/21 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: SB 102
SHORT TITLE: AMEND COMPACT FOR A BALANCED BUDGET
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) HUGHES
03/10/21 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/10/21 (S) STA, FIN
03/25/21 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
03/25/21 (S) Heard & Held
03/25/21 (S) MINUTE(STA)
04/08/21 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
RICHARD STILLIE, Appointee
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Department of Administration (DOA)
Delta Junction, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified for reappointment to the Alaska
Public Offices Commission.
JUSTIN DOLL, Appointee
Alaska Police Standards Council (APSC)
Department of Public Safety (DPS)
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified for reappointment to the Alaska
Police Standards Council.
LARRY NICHOLSON, Appointee
Alaska Police Standards Council
Department of Public Safety (DPS)
Kodiak, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified for reappointment to the Alaska
Police Standards Council.
ROBIN BARRETT, Appointee
Military Appeals Commission
Department of Military & Veterans Affairs (DMVA)
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Military
Appeals Commission.
SENATOR BILL WIELECHOWSKI
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SB 25.
BUDDY WHITT, Staff
Senator Shelley Hughes
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information related to SB 102 on
behalf of the sponsor.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:33:42 PM
CHAIR MIKE SHOWER called the Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:33 p.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Costello, Reinbold, Holland, (all via Teams)
and Chair Shower. Senator Kawasaki joined the committee (via
Teams) soon thereafter.
CHAIR SHOWER explained the process for remote meeting including
the roll call that showed the presence and location of the
following members:
SENATOR COSTELLO, Capitol room 119, SENATOR HOLLAND, Capitol
room 113, SENATOR REINBOLD, Capitol room 427, and CHAIR SHOWER,
in the Butrovich room, Capitol 205.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
Alaska Police Standards Council
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Military Appeals Commission
3:37:34 PM
CHAIR SHOWER announced the consideration of Governor Appointees
to Boards and Commissions. He stated his intention to hear from
all appointees referred to the committee as a matter of due
diligence.
He asked Richard Stillie to introduce himself, provide a brief
overview, and tell the committee why he would like to continue
to serve on the Alaska Public Offices Commission
3:38:59 PM
RICHARD STILLIE, Appointee, Alaska Public Offices Commission,
Department of Public Safety (DPS), Delta Junction, Alaska,
stated that he would like to continue to serve on the commission
because he believes in volunteering at both the community and
state levels. Further, he believes in APOC's mission to garner
the public's trust and ensure transparency for elected and
appointed officials.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had read and was familiar with the
state ethics laws.
MR. STILLIE answered yes.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had any criminal or civil issues in his
background that the committee might want to know about.
MR. STILLIE answered no.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had any skeletons in the closet to
declare.
MR. STILLIE answered no; he has had extensive background checks,
and he holds a security clearance.
CHAIR SHOWER found no questions or comments from the committee.
3:41:47 PM
CHAIR SHOWER opened public testimony on the appointment of
Richard Stillie to the Alaska Public Offices Commission; finding
none, he closed public testimony.
CHAIR SHOWER asked Justin Doll to introduce himself, provide a
brief overview, and tell the committee why he would like to
continue to serve on the Alaska Police Standards Council
3:43:03 PM
JUSTIN DOLL, Appointee, Alaska Police Standards Council (APSC),
Department of Public Safety (DPS), Anchorage, Alaska, stated
that he is the Chief of Police in Anchorage, and he is seeking
reappointment to the APSC. He said he currently is serving as
the chair of the council and would like to continue this service
for as long as possible.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had read and was familiar with the
state ethics laws.
CHIEF DOLL answered yes
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had any criminal or civil issues in his
background that the committee might want to know about.
CHIEF DOLL answered no.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had any skeletons in the closet to
declare.
CHIEF DOLL answered no.
CHAIR SHOWER asked for his thoughts on the movements nationwide
to look at and potentially change police procedures, including
online postings of police policies.
CHIEF DOLL said the APD already posts its policies online. He
said he suspects that many of the bills related to policing are
based on the way that APD operates, but some may need polishing
to reflect real world police operations and the way communities
want the police to serve. He stated support for police
transparency and accountability and noted that those are in the
APSC mission as the certifying body of the state.
3:45:37 PM
At ease for technical difficulties with Microsoft Teams.
3:45:48 PM
CHAIR SHOWER reconvened the meeting and advised that he and the
committee members could see Chief Doll, but his audio was not
working.
He noted that Senator Kawasaki had joined the committee (via
Teams).
CHAIR SHOWER asked Larry Nicholson to introduce himself, give a
brief overview, and tell the committee why he would like to
serve on the Alaska Police Standards Council.
3:46:59 PM
LARRY NICHOLSON, Appointee, Alaska Police Standards Council,
Department of Public Safety (DPS), Kodiak, Alaska, stated that
he has been with the Alaska State Troopers for 21 years and his
rank is sergeant. He is currently with the Alaska Wildlife
Troopers as the post supervisor in Kodiak and the Bristol Bay
region. He related he wants to serve on the APSC is because it
is an honor to uphold the standards for law enforcement officers
set by the state and the legislature. He is currently a trooper
trainer and has been an instructor at the Public Safety Academy
in Sitka. He looks forward to continuing to serve on the Alaska
Police Standards Council.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had any criminal or civil issues to
disclose and if he had read the state's ethics laws.
MR. NICHOLSON answered that he had read the state's ethics laws
and there is nothing in his background to report.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had any skeletons in the closet that
the committee might want to know about.
MR. NICHOLSON answered no.
CHAIR SHOWER referred to the current strife nationwide over
policing methods and asked if he had any ideas or strategies
that might help make things better. He also asked if he had two
or three areas he would like to improve upon.
MR. NICHOLSON said he believes that transparency in law
enforcement is critical and that continuing the education and
training of law enforcement officers and increasing the use of
technology could be beneficial. He noted that it has also been
beneficial that the Alaska State Troopers have publicized their
use of force policy. Law enforcement needs the public's support
to be successful in upholding the laws of the state and nation,
he said.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had identified things he would like to
accomplish while on the council to make things better.
MR. NICHOLSON answered that he would like to increase training
throughout the year. To that end, APSC is looking at
implementing various areas of online training for agencies.
Improving communication to ensure that agencies of all sizes are
aware of the standards.
CHAIR SHOWER found no questions or comments from committee
members.
3:52:09 PM
CHAIR SHOWER opened public testimony on the appointment of Larry
Nicholson to the Alaska Police Standards Council; finding none,
he closed public testimony.
CHAIR SHOWER returned attention to APD Chief Justin Doll and
asked if he would continue answering the question about his
ideas for potential improvements to policing policies and
procedures.
3:53:39 PM
CHIEF DOLL said he believes that the policing bills making their
way to the legislative process are based on existing APD
policies and procedures, which are posted online. This includes
APD's use of force policy. He reiterated that he believes that
the current proposals may need some fine-tuning to ensure that
they match the real world and reflect the service the community
expects. He concluded, "Overall I'm supportive of transparency
and accountability for law enforcement and I recognize that the
council's primary purpose as the certifying body and the body
responsible for revocation of certificates is to ensure that
those standards are being met."
CHAIR SHOWER asked him to highlight any areas of concern or
goals he wanted to achieve while on the council.
CHIEF DOLL answered that training to meet current and future
standards for law enforcement should always be at the forefront.
To that end, he said the council is continuing to look at
proposed regulation changes. He suggested modernizing officer
certifications because somebody currently can serve as a police
office with a badge and gun for up to a year with no training.
He said he has also been pushing the council to implement better
applicant tracking between agencies. The concern, particularly
in rural Alaska, is that somebody can work for different
agencies without certification and the council is never aware of
those individuals. The council needs to do everything it can to
protect communities from people who try to work in law
enforcement but are not qualified, he said.
SENATOR REINBOLD asked if he understands that policies come from
the legislative branch and that the executive branch executes
the law; and that the constitution is not suspended during
crises.
CHIEF DOLL answered yes.
SENATOR REINBOLD offered her belief that APD has done a good job
staying in its lane.
3:59:03 PM
CHAIR SHOWER opened public testimony on the appointment of Chief
Justin Doll to the Alaska Police Standards Council; finding
none, he closed public testimony.
CHAIR SHOWER asked Robin Barrett to introduce herself, provide a
brief overview, and tell the committee why she is interested in
serving on the Military Appeals Commission.
3:59:43 PM
ROBIN BARRETT, Appointee, Military Appeals Commission,
Department of Military & Veterans Affairs (DMVA), Fairbanks,
Alaska, advised that Major General Tory Saxe asked her to apply
for a seat on the Military Appeals Commission. She related that
she worked as a judge advocate from 1986 to 1990 while on active
duty at Eielson Air Force Base. She returned to active-duty
service in 2003 with the Alaska Air National Guard and retired
in 2019. She served as staff judge advocate for the 168th Wing.
She offered her understanding that the Military Appeals
Commission was established recently to hear appeals from courts
martial if any are held in the Air and Army National Guard. She
said she has the experience and is willing to serve. Responding
to the chair's general questions, she said she has no skeletons
in the closet, no criminal or civil issues to disclose, she
holds a security clearance, and she is aware of and will abide
by the ethics laws.
CHAIR SHOWER found no questions or comments from committee
members.
4:02:04 PM
CHAIR SHOWER opened public testimony on the appointment of Robin
Barrett to the Military Appeals Commission; finding none, he
closed public testimony.
CHAIR SHOWER solicited a motion to forward the names of the
nominees.
4:03:03 PM
SENATOR REINBOLD stated that in accordance with AS 39.05.080,
the Senate State Affairs Standing Committee reviewed the
following and recommends the appointments be forwarded to a
joint session for consideration:
Alaska Police Standards Council
Justin Doll - Anchorage
Larry Nicholson - Kodiak
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Richard Stillie - Delta Junction
Military Appeals Commission
Robin Barrett - Fairbanks
Signing the reports regarding appointments to boards and
commissions in no way reflects individual members' approval or
disapproval of the appointees; the nominations are merely
forwarded to the full legislature for confirmation or rejection.
CHAIR SHOWER found no objection and the names were forwarded.
SB 25-STATE GOV'T FINANCES: WEBSITE
4:04:04 PM
CHAIR SHOWER announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 25
"An Act relating to the establishment and maintenance of an
Internet website providing information on state government
financial transactions and specifying the information to be made
available on the website."
CHAIR SHOWER stated his intention to move the bill and asked the
sponsor if he had any final comments.
4:04:30 PM
SENATOR BILL WIELECHOWSKI, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau,
Alaska, sponsor of SB 25, said he had nothing to add.
CHAIR SHOWER found no questions or comments from the committee
and solicited a motion.
4:05:05 PM
SENATOR REINBOLD moved to report [CSSB 25], work order 32-
LS0217\B, from committee with individual recommendations and
attached fiscal note(s). [The committee adopted version B on
2/25/21 and it was not amended.]
CHAIR SHOWER found no objection and CSSB 25(STA) was reported
from the Senate State Affairs Standing Committee.
SB 102-AMEND COMPACT FOR A BALANCED BUDGET
4:05:26 PM
CHAIR SHOWER announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 102
"An Act relating to the Compact for a Balanced Budget."
He asked Mr. Whitt to confirm that there were no amendments for
the bill at this time.
4:06:20 PM
BUDDY WHITT, Staff, Senator Shelley Hughes, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, stated that the sponsor's office
did not have any amendments or change requests for the bill at
this time.
CHAIR SHOWER listed the individuals available to answer
questions. Finding no questions or comments, he solicited a
motion.
4:07:07 PM
SENATOR REINBOLD moved to report SB 102, work order 32-LS0569\A,
from committee with individual recommendations and attached
fiscal note(s). [The original version of the bill passed from
committee. There were no amendments.]
CHAIR SHOWER found no objections and SB 102 was reported from
the Senate State Affairs Standing Committee.
4:08:24 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Shower adjourned the Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting at 4:08 p.m.
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