Legislature(2001 - 2002)
02/20/2001 01:34 PM Senate TRA
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE
February 20, 2001
1:34 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator John Cowdery, Chair
Senator Jerry Ward, Vice Chair
Senator Robin Taylor
Senator Gary Wilken
Senator Kim Elton
MEMBERS ABSENT
None
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 79
"An Act naming the Fred Zharoff Memorial Bridge."
MOVED SB 79 OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 79
"An Act designating a portion of the Eagle River Loop Road as the
Eagle River Veterans' Memorial Highway."
MOVED SCS HB 79 (TRA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 59
"An Act relating to awards of federal funds to municipalities for
road projects; and providing for an effective date."
HEARD AND HELD
SENATE BILL NO. 88
"An Act relating to metropolitan planning organizations and to
establishment of a metropolitan planning organization for the
Anchorage metropolitan area; and providing for an effective date."
MOVED SB 88 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action.
WITNESS REGISTER
Senator Alan Austerman
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SB 79
Mr. Dennis Poshard, Legislative Liaison
Department of Transportation &
Public Facilities
3132 Channel Dr.
Juneau, AK 99801-7898
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on SB 79, SB 59 and SB 88
Mr. Roger Wortman
Staff to Representative Pete Kott
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Introduced HB 79 for the sponsor
Ms. Mary Jackson
Staff to Senator John Torgerson
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Introduced SB 59
Mr. Thomas B. Brigham, Director
Division of Statewide Planning
Department of Transportation &
Public Facilities
3132 Channel Dr.
Juneau, AK 99801-7898
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on SB 59 and SB 88
Senator Randy Phillips
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SB 88
Mr. William Cummings, Assistant Attorney General
Department of Law
PO Box 110300
Juneau, AK 99811-0300
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on SB 88
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 01-4, SIDE A
Number 001
CHAIRMAN JOHN COWDERY called the Senate Transportation Committee
meeting to order at 1:34 p.m. Present were Senator Ward, Senator
Wilken, Senator Elton and Chairman Cowdery. Senator Taylor arrived
at 1:46 p.m. Chairman Cowdery announced the first order of
business would be SB 79.
SB 79-FRED ZHAROFF MEMORIAL BRIDGE
SENATOR ALAN AUSTERMAN, sponsor of SB 79, introduced SB 79 by
saying that Fred Zharoff had been in the Senate for twelve years
and in the House of Representatives for six years. Senator
Zharoff's efforts helped bring about the "Bridge to Nowhere" [Near
Island Bridge]. The completion of the bridge has led to a number
of changes on Near Island, such as the Fishery Industrial
Technology Center, a new boat harbor, and the Kodiak Fisheries
Research Center. Senator Austerman felt that renaming the bridge
after Senator Zharoff would give him the public exposure he
deserves.
MR. DENNIS POSHARD, Department of Transportation and Public
Facilities (DOTPF), said DOTPF supports SB 79. The department has
a maintenance budget for installing signs, but the budget has been
cut the last six out of seven years and there will be another cut
this year. A zero fiscal note has been submitted.
SENATOR WARD said he hoped the committee would privatize the
maintenance department because it is not spending the money
properly.
SENATOR ELTON moved SB 79 from committee with the accompanying
fiscal note. There being no objection, SB 79 moved from committee.
Number 448
HB 79-EAGLE RIVER VETERANS' MEMORIAL HIGHWAY
MR. ROGER WORTMAN, staff to Representative Pete Kott, said HB 79 is
just one way to honor and recognize the men and women who served
and died for our country. Representative Kott's constituents have
requested an extension of the Eagle River Loop Road. Therefore,
Representative Kott is recommending the Old Glenn Highway through
Eagle Road and to the Anchorage Regional Landfill be designated as
the Eagle River Veterans' Memorial Highway.
SENATOR WARD moved HB 79 (TRA) out of committee with individual
recommendations and the accompanying fiscal note and asked for
unanimous consent. There being no objection, HB 79 (TRA) moved
from committee.
Number 581
SB 59-FEDERAL FUNDS TO MUNICIPALITIES FOR ROADS
MS. MARY JACKSON, staff to Senator John Torgerson, said the
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) is the
federal program that provides transportation funds to states.
Alaska receives a great deal of this money and has never given any
of it as a direct pass-through to municipalities. SB 59 would
directly award municipalities, with $20 million being the initial
amount.
MS. JACKSON said SB 59 establishes a new Municipal Road Project
Program (MRPP). The bill authorizes the Department of
Transportation and Public Facilities (DOTPF) to develop a project
application for municipalities. Municipalities would be required
to come up with a match for the federal funds. DOTPF is to develop
priorities on how the funds would be dispersed, with the exception
that a higher priority would be assigned if a municipality comes
forward with an application to take over the maintenance of a state
road, reducing maintenance costs for the state.
MS. JACKSON noted that boroughs and municipalities have many roads
under their jurisdiction, and SB 59 proposes that federal funds be
provided to the municipalities. Ms. Jackson commented that DOTPF
is concerned that municipalities would not be able to administer
the program appropriately.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY asked what the administration fees might be.
Number 767
MS. JACKSON replied DOTPF would take a percentage for
administration costs but she does not know the amount.
SENATOR WILKEN asked if money from the federal government comes
tagged for certain communities.
MS. JACKSON said DOTPF would have to amend the Statewide
Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) and put into it the $20
million that would go to the local municipalities. Municipalities
would know the money is there and apply for it. If municipalities
are able to match the funds and comply with the federal reporting
requirements, they will receive the funds.
SENATOR WILKEN asked who will decide where the money goes.
MS. JACKSON said DOTPF would establish a process for
prioritization. If a municipality is willing to take over a state
road and maintain it, that municipality would have top priority.
Number 949
SENATOR ELTON asked where the $20 million comes from.
MS. JACKSON replied that the money comes from the TEA-21 program.
SENATOR ELTON asked if the money comes from a component of TEA-21,
such as community transportation, or would it be up to DOTPF to
make that determination.
MS. JACKSON said it would come from DOTPF.
SENATOR ELTON asked who would have liability - the state or the
municipality.
MS. JACKSON said the local municipality would but this has not been
tested. The local government would have to ascribe to the
regulations DOTPF develops. The caveat is that if DOTPF develops
regulations saying it would do the paperwork and certification,
then it would be responsible.
SENATOR ELTON gave an example of a Community Transportation Program
(CTP) and wondered why this project, in the STIP, would be
different from a TEA-21 project.
MS. JACKSON said a TEA-21 project gives funds to municipalities for
building roads. CTP projects are rated and DOTPF would build the
road.
SENATOR ELTON asked if the priorities created in SB 59 would affect
the existing STIP.
MS. JACKSON said she did not think it would affect the STIP because
the STIP is not in statute. The STIP is an internal mechanism that
DOTPF uses to rate communities depending on whether or not a
community would take over maintenance of a road. SB 59 just puts
in a new program for municipalities.
Number 1140
SENATOR TAYLOR said he would like to give municipalities control
over the money they receive.
Number 1240
MS. JACKSON said writing this type of priority into statute is
difficult - regulations will administer the program.
SENATOR TAYLOR asked if it would be possible, within the federal
funding mechanism, to establish an entity other than DOTPF to
prioritize projects.
MS. JACKSON said her sense is there is a lot of discretion with the
funds.
SENATOR TAYLOR said it is important to him that the communities
themselves build the projects.
Number 1337
MR. THOMAS BRIGHAM, Director for the Division of Statewide
Planning, DOTPF, said DOTPF's concern with SB 59 is of a practical
nature based on its experience with locally administered federal
projects.
MR. BRIGHAM addressed earlier concerns that DOTPF is only funding
state or federal projects. According to Mr. Brigham, this is not
the case. In 1999 the department funded $49.5 million on roads
owned by local governments. DOTPF also funded $45 million in the
year 2000 and about the same amount for 2001. DOTPF also has an
Improve and Transfer Program whereby if local governments are
willing to take over a local road owned by the state, that road is
then owned and operated by the local government. This program
averages $2.5 to $4.0 million per year.
MR. BRIGHAM said DOTPF is working on regulations for STIP. The
final draft should be available in early March.
MR. BRIGHAM noted in the past DOTPF has passed-through federal
funds to boroughs and cities giving them the responsibility to do
the project. DOTPF does not have a philosophical problem with
local governments doing their own projects, but DOTPF's experience
is that the strings attached to the federal funds cause problems
for local governments. A Code of Federal Regulations, which
governs how highway projects are to be done, comes with the federal
money - it is complicated and hard to administer. Because of this,
most local governments, especially the small ones, will have a hard
time administering federal projects. Overhead would also be
substantially greater because there would be overhead for both
local and state government. Even the projects earmarked by the
federal government have to go through DOTPF.
Number 1776
CHAIRMAN COWDERY asked how DOTPF determines the administrative
charges.
MR. BRIGHAM replied that direct, onsite administration is called
construction engineering and is capped at 15 percent. As a
percentage of the project, big jobs are less and small jobs are
more.
Number 1810
SENATOR WARD asked if DOTPF took a percentage of the pass-through
money for the port project in Wasilla.
MR. BRIGHAM said he did not know but he assumed DOTPF had because
one of its employees works full time on the project.
SENATOR WARD asked if the percentage is taken at the beginning of a
project and if it is always 15 percent.
MR. BRIGHAM said if it is a local project, DOTPF does not charge 15
percent. If it is DOTPF's project, 15 percent is the limit for
construction engineering.
MR. POSHARD said what is possibly being referred to is the Indirect
Cost Allocation Program (ICAP). ICAP is an arrangement with the
Federal Highway Administration (FHA). There is a two percent cost
on every project that DOTPF takes for ICAP, rather than charging
for specific projects. The two percent pays for DOTPF's
participation and administration of a project. Even though local
governments do the actual work, DOTPF does all of the paperwork,
reimbursements, and things of this nature.
MR. POSHARD said he would provide the committee with a memorandum
from the FHA, which outlines the ICAP program.
Number 1953
SENATOR ELTON said that under the program envisioned by SB 59,
several things happen: 1) municipalities will have to assume
liability either for project failure or regulation violation; 2)
municipalities will have to pay a match; 3) in some cases,
municipalities would have to take over maintenance; and 4)
municipalities would have to deal with the Code of Regulations.
Given this, Senator Elton asked if DOTPF anticipated municipalities
taking advantage of this type of program.
MR. BRIGHAM said there might be a rush in the beginning, but then
it would be a case of "once bitten, twice shy." Dealing with the
Code of Federal Regulations has not been a pleasant experience for
local governments. A state grant is a much different process and
much less burdensome, which local governments can handle without
much trouble.
MR. POSHARD added that it is difficult to determine what
difficulties municipalities would be willing to take on.
Municipalities that already have projects in the CTP, in this or
the next fiscal year, would likely not take advantage of the
program because their project is already scheduled for funding.
Municipalities that have projects further down the list might want
to participate, trying to move their project up. In addition,
there are only a handful of municipalities that have the financial
ability to match federal funds.
SENATOR ELTON asked if the $20 million would be coming from the
Community Transportation Program (CTP).
Number 2070
MR. BRIGHAM replied yes, this type of project is in community
transportation or Trails and Recreational Access for Alaskans
(TRAAK) program.
SENATOR ELTON asked how large the CTP program is now.
MR. BRIGHAM said it is about $120 million.
SENATOR ELTON asked what SB 59 does that DOTPF does not now have
the capability of doing, or is it just the magnitude of money.
MR. POSHARD said that now under the CTP program, if a municipality
puts up a local match, additional points are added for a project in
the scoring and ranking system, allowing the project to move up
higher in the funding process. SB 59 requires a local match to
participate.
SENATOR ELTON said SB 59 creates a program that only a few
municipalities could take advantage of, allowing them to move up
the STIP, causing other municipalities to drop down in the STIP.
MR. BRIGHAM said this is accurate. SB 59 also takes a piece of the
community transportation program and says a certain amount of money
has to go to local government for administration of their own
project.
SENATOR ELTON said before moving SB 59 he would like to know if
Juneau has the ability to move up the STIP process thereby forcing
other communities down. He sees this as a real problem - giving
large communities the ability to push smaller communities down.
Number 2182
SENATOR WARD asked if DOTPF's new regulations would accomplish what
the sponsor of SB 59 is trying to accomplish.
MR. BRIGHAM said the new regulations would not accomplish the same
thing. The regulations would take the existing system and put it
into regulation. This is something a number of legislators have
wanted.
SENATOR WARD said the sponsor is also concerned with how
municipalities would get on the list and stay on without being
passed over.
MR. BRIGHAM said projects that score with middle or low scores do
not move up very fast or they stay where they are. Higher scoring
projects are built. New projects that score well go in line ahead
of other projects.
SENATOR WARD asked if there had ever been a discussion about
creating a road commission that would be independent of DOTPF.
MR. BRIGHAM said a bill was introduced three or four years ago but
it did not move forward because it created more problems than it
would have solved.
Number 2289
MR. POSHARD said there are states that use commissions to run their
programs and this works fine. A commissioner, director, or CEO
runs other state programs and this also works well.
Number 2340
SENATOR TAYLOR asked if DOTPF had a position on SB 59.
MR. BRIGHAM said DOTPF is concerned about how it would function.
SENATOR TAYLOR asked who does the ranking in the STIP process.
MR. BRIGHAM replied there are three regional directors - Southeast,
Southcentral and Northern, Mr. Boyd Brownfield, Deputy
Commissioner, DOTPF, Mr. Brigham, Director, Division of Statewide
Planning, DOTPF and Mr. Michael Downing, Director, Division of
Statewide Design and Engineering Services, DOTPF.
SIDE B
SENATOR TAYLOR asked what is done with excess funds and who makes
the decision where a project is placed on the STIP.
Number 2288
MR. BRIGHAM noted the gross amount of money, over the course of a
year that is created by projects coming in under bid is
"deobligated" from one project to another. The number is exceeded
by the total amount of projects that come in over-bid and projects
whose estimates change in the STIP. Mr. Brigham said DOTPF's
"overages consistently exceed our underages."
MR. POSHARD said DOTPF has a problem with underestimations, not
over-estimations. When bids come in higher than projects were
estimated DOTPF has to ask for additional legislative authority, or
the project has to be put further down the STIP. DOTPF cannot
spend money on anything it does not have legislative authority on.
Number 2090
SENATOR ELTON asked if DOTPF had a fiscal note for SB 59.
MR. POSHARD noted that DOTPF is in the process of developing a
fiscal note.
SENATOR WILKEN referred back to a statement that Mr. Poshard made
in reference to SB 79 concerning cuts in DOTPF's maintenance budget
over the last seven years. He referred to a chart that showed
DOTPF's maintenance budget had not been cut as much as Mr. Poshard
had indicated. He asked Mr. Poshard to look at that and get back
to the committee on the discrepancy.
SENATOR WARD said he does not believe that "maintenance hasn't been
cut to the bone, it's not being done properly."
SENATOR TAYLOR asked what the design problem was on the Third
Avenue bypass in Ketchikan.
MR. BRIGHAN said a portion of the Third Avenue route was in very
steep terrain. This area was intended to be bulwarked with an
earth retaining wall but it was determined that this would not be
successful, from an engineering standpoint, and that a bridge was
needed.
Number 1877
SENATOR WARD said it was amazing that a designer would be
instructed to design a structure for an airport in Alaska without
taking into consideration that there might be an earthquake
someday.
MR. BRIGHAM said the bypass retaining wall design was a
professional embarrassment but in the case of the airport, the
contract engineer did take into account seismic concerns. The
issue was simply an argument between the municipalities as to
whether the extent to which those concerns were taken into account
was adequate.
Number 1815
SENATOR WARD said the municipality felt the state was incompetent.
He asked Mr. Brigham to speak with the municipality on this issue
and get back to the committee.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY said it was his understanding the municipality
felt it was getting closer to a solution.
MR. POSHARD agreed.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY said SB 59 would be held in committee until a
fiscal note was furnished.
Number 1725
SB 88-METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATIONS
SENATOR RANDY PHILLIPS, sponsor of SB 88, said SB 88 just adds two
voting members to the Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation
Study (AMATS). One of the new members would be a member of the
senate who resides in Anchorage and the other would be a member of
the house of representatives who also resides in Anchorage.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said there was a two-tier step for the AMATS
process. AMATS consists of a policy committee and a technical
committee. The technical committee goes to the community, takes
input, and then makes recommendations to the policy committee.
There are five members on the policy committee. Two members are
appointed by the governor - commissioner or designee of the
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), and designee from
the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOTPF),
there are two elected officials who are assembly members, and the
Anchorage mayor.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said the legislature was expected to put five to
ten percent of the monies into AMATS without any say about the
process. He said it was frustrating to have a project make it up
the AMATS process and the next year see the project go back to the
bottom. Senator Phillips felt that having elected officials on
AMATS would give the legislature some say in how the priorities are
set and how the money is spent.
Number 1545
SENATOR ELTON said it may be easier for people to "grab the sleeves
of their local government person rather than to grab the sleeve of
a state legislator." He said it also seems that a system is being
created whereby a legislator from the house and from the senate
have "two bites at the apple." They have the legislative bite and
then they have the local government bite.
Number 1443
SENATOR PHILLIPS said the legislature does approve AMATS projects
but it has no say in the priorities. AMATS is a federal program,
through regulation, that was set up between the state and federal
government, but legislators are the ones who get beat up by their
constituents if a project is not there. The AMATS policy committee
prioritizes the projects without accountability.
Number 1321
SENATOR ELTON said this was not a unique problem, other legislators
have the same frustration with the Statewide Transportation
Improvement Program (STIP). He said the fundamental
misunderstanding might be that the pressure Senator Phillips has to
not make changes is coming from the municipality - the only
constraint is that he might not want to go against the wishes of
the municipality, although he has every right to do so.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said wishes could be conveyed to the AMATS
committee but that does not mean they would be heard.
SENATOR ELTON said this is also the case with anything that goes
before the finance committee.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said he would agree if the legislature were not
paying anything into AMATS. He said a park and ride program was
installed next to the landfill at Eagle River. No one from his
community requested this program and yet it passed over another
project that had been requested.
SENATOR ELTON commented that the argument being used to have
legislative representation on spending could also be used for
municipal assistance revenue sharing or safe community. He
wondered why this would be different than other problems.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said no one else in the state has this problem.
SENATOR ELTON said other communities felt the same frustration with
the STIP.
Number 1156
SENATOR TAYLOR said he applauds Senator Phillips for trying to get
some rationality back into the process.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY asked if there had been any thought of replacing
the two non-elected members.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said the two state members could not be replaced
because of federal regulation. He said he liked the make up of
AMATS but believed it needs legislative representation.
Number 900
MR. DENNIS POSHARD, Department Of Transportation and Public
Facilities (DOTPF), noted that DOTPF and the Anchorage municipality
realize there is a high sense of frustration with the AMATS
planning process, and DOTPF understands Senator Phillips'
frustration.
MR. POSHARD said the Anchorage municipality sought a grant from the
federal government specifically for the purposes of reviewing
transportation planning in the Anchorage area and recommending
changes to the AMATS public and planning process. Mr. Poshard had
just received a draft of this study and that the study would
recommend ways to change the AMATS process.
MR. POSHARD commented that it is by design that the legislature not
have much say on AMATS' projects. When the Intermodal Surface
Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) formed municipal planning
organizations it was a negotiated position on how to divvy up the
federal funding. Because the federal government did not want to be
involved with this process, it came up with the Municipal Planning
Organization (MPO). The MPO would be responsible for planning and
devising a process on how to spend federal transportation dollars
within a municipality. The funds would still have to flow through
the state for programming in the STIP, but there would be control
on how the funds were spent. This is why the legislature is not
heavily involved but there is nothing preventing it from being
involved.
MR. POCHARD said in the past, staff has dealt with changes in the
program and this has been cause for frustration. New rules require
that changes now go before either the technical committee or the
policy committee.
MR. POSHARD said the administration does not support SB 88 mainly
because it feels this is a local issue and should be solved at that
level.
Number 584
SENATOR WARD said tax dollars are being taken out of peoples'
pockets to fund projects that are not following a public process.
Number 168
SENATOR ELTON asked if the study had recommended changing the
membership of the AMATS board.
MR. POSHARD said he had not had time to read the study in detail
but it did not appear to have a recommendation for adding
legislators. The study was focused on communication efforts and
the public and planning processes of AMATS.
SENATOR ELTON said SB 88 is the second iteration of this
legislation, and in the past the municipality has opposed adding
legislators. Senator Elton asked if the new assembly and new mayor
had been asked for their position on this.
MR. POSHARD said he has heard nothing from the current
administration or the current assembly.
TAPE 01-5, Side A
Number 001
SENATOR TAYLOR asked how much money is allocated to AMATS.
MR. BRIGHAM said about $30 million in the Community Transportation
Program (CTP) and about $6 million in Trails and Recreational
Access for Alaskans (TRAAK).
SENATOR TAYLOR said that means $36 million is allocated every year
by the legislature to the Anchorage area.
MR. BRIGHAM said that was correct in terms of the community
transportation and TRAAK projects. There are also national highway
system projects that go beyond that amount. Some years there are
no projects and other years there are several.
SENATOR TAYLOR asked if the projects, when completed, belong to the
state or to Anchorage.
MR. BRIGHAM said it depends on the road. There are state roads
that function as local roads, but are state owned. There are
national highway system routes, such as the Seward Highway, that
are state owned, and there are municipal roadways - all three are
funded by the AMATS process.
SENATOR TAYLOR said that Anchorage gets its local roads paved and
rebuilt with federal money and the state pays the match.
MR. BRIGHAM said that was correct, but this is also done for
projects outside of AMATS. DOTPF funds approximately $45 million
of locally owned streets and roads each year. It also pays the
match unless the local government has proposed to pay some of the
match as a way of getting its project elevated in the process.
Number 248
SENATOR PHILLIPS said there are no "local, local" roads that AMATS
has taken over.
SENATOR TAYLOR asked if part of the federally allocated money was
for mass transit.
MR. BRIGHAM said that mass transit could be funded as part of the
service transportation program.
SENATOR ELTON asked if the AMATS money comes from the community
transportation program.
MR. BRIGHAM responded yes, both CTP and TRAAK.
SENATOR ELTON said that half of the CTP funds are being reserved
for AMATS projects or for very large municipalities.
Number 782
MR. BRIGHAM said SB 59 would not require local match, it would
prioritize, giving communities an advantage in the scoring if the
local government provided local match.
SENATOR ELTON asked if the prioritization could take $20 million
out of the CTP.
MR. BRIGHAM said that large municipalities with the capability to
do the engineering would have an advantage - Anchorage could do a
federal aid project. SB 59 would be a way for Anchorage to get
more of the CTP money.
Number 850
MR. WILLIAM CUMMINGS, Assistant Attorney General, Department of Law
(DOL), noted that DOL had two observations to make concerning SB
88. First, SB 88 takes AMATS, which is a municipal organization,
and turns it into something more akin to "Big Brother" - with the
state taking over a local function. This is a policy call to be
made, but it is a profound thing to do to a local way of dealing
with a problem. Second, there are constitutional concerns about
the appointment of legislators to this board. There are strong
provisions in the constitution prohibiting dual office holding. SB
88 very likely would violate this provision, which could result in
a member of the legislature, who took a seat on the AMATS board,
losing his or her seat in the legislature.
MR. CUMMINGS said DOL cautions the legislature on SB 88, and a
review would certainly say that these two provisions do violate the
state constitution.
SENATOR WARD said he would like to obtain a written legal opinion.
SENATOR TAYLOR moved SB 88 out of committee with individual
recommendations.
SENATOR ELTON objected and a roll call vote was taken. Senators
Taylor, Wilken, Ward and Chairman Cowdery voted "yea." Senator
Elton voted "nay." The motion carried, and SB 88 passed out of
committee.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY noted that there was an error in HB 79. A
typographical error was brought to his attention so a committee
substitute was drafted to correct it.
SENATOR TAYLOR moved that the committee rescind its previous action
in adopting HB 79 and supplement it with SCS HB 79(TRA), Utermohle,
22-LS0369\F as the new Senate Transportation Committee substitute.
There being no objection, the motion carried.
There being no further business to come before the committee,
CHAIRMAN COWDERY adjourned the meeting at 3:27 p.m.
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