Legislature(2001 - 2002)
02/19/2002 02:03 PM Senate TRA
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE
FEBRUARY 19, 2002
2:03 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator John Cowdery, Chair
Senator Robin Taylor
Senator Gary Wilken
Senator Kim Elton
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Jerry Ward, Vice Chair
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CS FOR SPONSOR SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 68(JUD)(efd am)
"An Act relating to accidents involving the vehicle of a person
under the influence of an alcoholic beverage; and providing for
an effective date."
MOVED CSSSHB 68 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 265
"An Act relating to physician assistants; providing that a
physician assistant is a health care provider covered by certain
laws relating to medical malpractice actions; adding physician
assistants to the list of providers against whom unfair
discrimination relating to health care insurance is prohibited
and to the list of providers who can provide proof of disablement
or handicap for the purpose of obtaining a special parking
permit; and providing for an effective date."
MOVED CSSB 265 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 260
"An Act relating to historic and antique motor vehicles; and
providing for an effective date."
MOVED SB 260 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record.
WITNESS REGISTER
Representative Norman Rokeberg
Alaska State Capitol, Rm. 118
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor SSHB 68
Kac'e McDowell, Executive Director
Alaska Cabaret, Hotel, Restaurant and Retailers Association
th
1111 East 80 Ave. Suite 3
Anchorage, AK 99518
POSITION STATEMENT: Supports CSSSHB 68 (JUD) (efd am)
Senator Donny Olson
Alaska State Capitol, Rm. 510
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor SB 265
Ed Hall, Board of Directors
Alaska Academy of Physician Assistants
P.O. Box 74187
Anchorage, AK 99707-4187
POSITION STATEMENT: Supports SB 265
Susan Mason Bouterse, Executive Director
Sunshine Community Health Center
Talkeetna, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supports SB 265
Mary Marshburn, Director
Division of Motor Vehicles
3300B Fairbanks St.
Anchorage, AK 99503
POSITION STATEMENT: No opposition to CSSB 265 and no opposition
to SB 260
Senator Randy Phillips
Alaska State Capitol, Rm. 103
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor SB 260
Bruce Campbell, President
Model T Ford Club
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supports SB 260
Dick Hemmingsen, Vice President
Antique Auto Mushers Association
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Supports SB 260
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 02-06, SIDE A
CHAIRMAN JOHN COWDERY called the Senate Transportation Committee
meeting to order at 2:03 p.m. Present were Senator Wilken,
Senator Elton and Chairman Cowdery. Senator Taylor arrived at
2:15 p.m. Chairman Cowdery announced they would be addressing HB
68, SB 265 and SB 260.
HB 68-IMMUNITY: CABBIE DRIVING DRUNK'S CAR HOME
REPRESENTATIVE NORMAN ROKEBERG, sponsor of HB 68, thanked the
committee for hearing the bill. He said the bill was requested
by:
· Alaska Cabaret, Hotel, Restaurant and Retailers Association
(CHARR)
· Anchorage Downtown Partnership Association
· Downtown Licensed Beverage Association in Anchorage.
It would allow implementation of the "Off the Road Program"
commonly know as the "Tipsy Taxi Provisions". This program would
allow two taxi drivers to take an inebriated drinker home along
with his vehicle.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG explained many drinkers are reluctant to
leave their vehicle at the premise where they were drinking.
When it comes to that crucial decision about whether or not they
should drive home their judgment may be swayed by the fact they
do not want to leave their nice new vehicle in the parking lot.
They might make that decision improperly.
The Anchorage Downtown Partnership put together a program that
allows a cab driver to take an inebriate home in one cab and
allows another cab driver to drive that persons car home. This
service is provided for a fee of $40, a very reasonable fee in
the Anchorage bowl area. The problem is they believe it would
cost an excess of $1000 per month for taxi's to insure this
service. They came forward with this legislation that provides
for limited immunity in these circumstances. The bill grants
immunity typical of defendants of Dram Shop liability cases.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said the bill protects potential third
party right of action by the implied consent subsection on page
2, line 13 (d). If the cab driver driving the inebriates car
hits another car the subsection allows for the person who was
damaged to seek the insurance claim against that car even though
the cab driver was driving it rather than the owner. It does not
preclude liability in cases of gross negligence, reckless or
intentional misconduct.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said this is a good samaritan bill. It
allows a small program that could have some lasting effects on
the safety of streets in Alaska to go forward.
KAC'E McDOWELL, Executive Director, Alaska Cabaret, Hotel,
Restaurant and Retailers Association (CHARR), said this bill
would be utilized state wide, not just in Anchorage. They
started the program in Anchorage because it was such a necessity
for getting people's cars home from downtown where they cannot
leave their cars. She was working on programs all over the state
for the Safe Drive Program and the Off the Road Program was going
to be incorporated in those programs. Affiliates around the
state sent letters attesting to the fact they would like to
incorporate this in their Safe Drive Program. She talked to
several cab drivers that have been utilizing this program but
they fear the insurance is not going with the car as it would in
the case of someone too intoxicated to make that decision.
She said this is not just for inebriated people. Responsible
drivers want to get home and get their car home at a reasonable
fee. They want to know their car will be safe and not leave it
in a place where it will be towed or vandalized.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY said he was under the impression if he drives
someone else's car, liability insurance is furnished for the car
whether the driver is insured or not. He asked Representative
Rokeberg how that fit in with this legislation.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said he believed Chairman Cowdery was
correct. He thought insurance followed the car not the driver in
Alaska. This bill would make sure that was the case and would
allow for recovery on the part of an injured third party in case
there was an accident caused by the taxi driver driving the
person's car.
He said Ms. McDowell made a good point and he had used the word
inebriate when he should not have. It is really a person who is
under the influence. In Alaska, that would be to have a .08
Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). He said the committee should
be aware the definition of impairment had been lowered all the
way down to .04 BAC. You could be impaired or legally under the
influence of alcohol if you only had .04 BAC, which may be only
one or two drinks. This service would be available to anybody
who had a couple of drinks and was concerned about whether or not
they had their full faculties.
SENATOR ELTON asked about page 1, line 10. He wanted to know why
they restricted the provisions of the bill to people who start
driving from or near licensed premises. He said they were
excluding a large class of instances in which people may drink to
excess such as wedding receptions, retirement parties and other
kinds of events that are not at or near a licensed premise.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said with a grant of tort immunity they
want to make sure the scope is very narrow and it can be
administered under the law properly. There is potential to allow
two cab drivers to come to a home but they should walk before
they run. They need to make sure the program is workable and
adopted throughout the state rather than expand its immunity. If
they were to do that it might kill the program because economics
are limited. The $40 rate in downtown Anchorage is going to be
subsidized by the premise owners or the participating groups.
Two cab drivers may be very expensive. There is an implicit
subsidy of the rate from or near licensed premises. The rate for
the general public would not be subsidizing and the fees would go
up substantially. Expanding it would probably kill the bill.
SENATOR ELTON said if a person is in a licensed premise in Palmer
but lives in south Anchorage that would be a greater cost than
somebody that needs to get from a wedding reception in mid
Anchorage to College Park. He asked to meet with the sponsor or
his staff to talk about some of the restrictions. He thought it
was a good idea but did not deal with the whole problem.
MS. McDOWELL explained their Off the Road Program is through
Anchorage Against Drunk Driving. The bill would relieve the taxi
cab driver from liability and then the Off the Road Program will
be a separate entity. Whether this will be available to someone
in Eagle River will have to do with whether Eagle River gets
involved in the program. These are two separate entities the
passing of the bill to lift the liability then they can do the
program. They ran into a problem doing the program because they
were afraid they might put the liability on the taxi cab drivers.
Taxi drivers were charging four times the meter to take a car
home and now through grants and money from the bars and
restaurants there will be a $40 charge.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said it was a tort issue and would be
going to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
SENATOR WILKEN moved CSSSHB 68 (JUD) from committee with
individual recommendations and attached zero fiscal note. There
being no objection, the motion carried.
SB 265-PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS/NURSE PRACTITIONERS
SENATOR OLSON, sponsor of SB 265, introduced the bill on the
advice and request of the Alaska Academy of Physician Assistants.
He said he could answer questions on Section 1 and Section 2 but
the section that was of most interest was Section 3 under the
Committee Substitute (CS). This would allow physician assistants
to provide proof of eligibility for a disabled veteran license
plate and for issuance of a parking permit for a handicapped or
disabled person. Currently physicians, other mid-level
practitioners and specifically advanced nurse practitioners
provide eligibility.
ED HALL, Physician Assistant, Alaska Academy of Physician
Assistants, said all three of the issues in Sections 1, 2 and 3
were very important to physician assistants. He said they
probably had been excluded because the statutes were written
before physician assistants were a recognized presents in Alaska.
SUSAN MASON BOUTERSE, Executive Director of Sunshine Community
Health Center, expressed her support of SB 265. She addressed
the first two statutes being amended to add physician assistants
as being critical to health care in Alaska. Sunshine Community
Health Center is a mid-level clinic with four physician
assistants providing primary health care. They work under a
collaborative agreement with a physician in Wasilla. They are
critical to health care of residents in the community and the
ongoing functioning of the health center.
Because the current state statute denies inclusion of physician
assistants to the listing of health care providers they
periodically have their billing for medical services by those
providers denied by third party payers. This represents a
significant barrier to health care for individuals that have
health insurance as well as for clinics to be able to maximize
potential revenue. For all rural health clinics every potential
revenue source is critical to ongoing support.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY asked Senator Olson to elaborate on duties taken
care of by physician assistants.
SENATOR OLSON explained physician assistants work with a
collaborative physician and do many things a physician would do.
Because they do not have the training of a medical doctor they
are at times not accorded some of the privileges allowed
physicians and in this case advanced nurse practitioners. For
example they are not included in some of the medical liability
statutes as well as recognition by some third party payment
recipients. He said that was the reason the bill was being
presented and specifically the CS that has the provision that
allows physician assistants to give specially disabled veterans
license plates and parking permits for those people that are
handicapped.
SENATOR TAYLOR said the concern he had was the impact this would
have on the ability of physician assistants to get reimbursement.
He asked if that was part of the purpose of the bill because the
insurance company would recognize them as a full service provider
and they can bill directly.
SENATOR OLSON said that was exactly what they were specifically
trying to do in Section 2. That was the intent of the bill.
SENATOR TAYLOR said the bill mentioned medical malpractice. He
asked if adding them to the list would require them to provide
medical malpractice insurance or did it give them the opportunity
to come under the medical malpractice insurance of the hospital
or the physician they work with.
SENATOR OLSON said that question was part of the whole issue of
trying to recognize physician assistants as professionals and
with that came responsibility. If they make a mistake they need
to be named as a defendant in a malpractice case. That does not
mean they are guilty it just means they need to be able to be
named by the plaintiff's attorney. He said with this also comes
the ability for them to bill. He said being required to have
malpractice insurance was not addressed in the bill and not the
intent of the sponsor.
MR. HALL said the other aspect of Section 2, brought to their
attention by an attorney, was when dealing with malpractice
claims sometimes there is an arbitration board put together. The
definition of who can participate on that arbitration board
placed a limitation on physician assistants because they were not
listed as a health care provider within that statute. Another
reason they were asking to have their name recognized within that
statute was so they could avail themselves to be on the
arbitration board if called upon.
MARY MARSHBURN, Director, Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), said
she had not seen the CS. She had called Senator Olson's office
and suggested the CS. She asked Senator Olson if the CS
addressed AS 28.10.181 rather than Section 3 from the original
bill.
SENATOR OLSON said yes, section 3 relating to AS 28.10.181(d) was
amended and they did have her concern addressed.
MS. MARSHBURN said with that knowledge DMV had no opposition to
the bill. They think including physician assistants is a
reasonable and good thing. The CS would allow them to have the
same authority as physicians, nurse practitioners, and
chiropractors in terms of signing the permit for disability
placards or plates. If the CS is not substituted the bill in its
current form only allowed the physician assistants to sign the
evidence for permits and not for plates. DMV felt they should be
able to sign for both.
SENATOR WILKEN moved to amend the Committee Substitute for SB
265. Hearing no objection, CSSB 265 (TRA) was moved from
committee.
SB 260-HISTORIC/ANTIQUE MOTOR VEHICLES
SENATOR RANDY PHILLIPS, sponsor SB 260, explained this bill
related to restored and antique vehicles and would allow the
vehicle owners to pay a one-time fee for the vehicle as opposed
to what they are paying now on a biannual basis.
Secondly, the bill would allow for the owner of the vehicle to
get an Alaskan license plate in the year the vehicle was
manufactured. He said for example he has a 1969 Plymouth
Roadrunner and if this bill were to pass and he desired to have a
plate from 1969 it would be a white plate. A lot of other states
have similar provisions in their laws to allow antique or classic
car owners to have this.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY asked if you identify it as an antique vehicle
on the plate.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said that was correct.
He said the Antique Auto Mushers Association had endorsed this
legislation. It has a zero fiscal note.
BRUCE CAMPBELL, President, Model T Ford Club, member Antique Auto
Mushers of Alaska, said they wanted to be able to use senior
license plates on antique or historic vehicles for several years.
They worked with Mary Marshburn, Director of DMV, to come up with
this legislation. It would allow them to complete restoring old
cars and put them back in the exact shape they were when they
came out of the factory. Putting on the same year license plate
makes the restoration complete and identifies the year of the car
for people who are admiring it. He said this is not going to be
a big thing because the bill specified the plates used for the
antique vehicles have to be supplied by the owner and acquiring
those plates can be quite a task. With this bill the historic
vehicle owner will have two options, he can continue on with the
existing law and the existing historic plate or he can elect to
get the same year plate.
DICK HEMMINGSEN, Vice President, Antique Auto Mushers Association
Anchorage Chapter, said they are in support of SB 260. They are
active all over Alaska. Some of their recent activities included
cars traveling to Kodiak Island, Fairbanks and Denali. They
participated in the Anchorage Fur Rendezvous, the Alaska State
Fair, the Bear Paw Festival in Eagle River and the Senior Center
in Palmer. They take their cars quite seriously and this bill
would allow them to complete their restoration process. He owns
two 1956 Fords.
SENATOR WILKEN asked where the $10 in the bill came from.
MR. CAMPBELL said existing law provided for historic license
plates and the fee for an historic license was $10. With this
bill they would still pay the $10 for the historic license plate
but if they elect to use the same year license plate they would
have to pay an additional fee of $30.
SENATOR TAYLOR said that is a one-time fee and the only time you
would have to pay it again is if you replace the plates. He said
on page 2, line 9, where it says "one time only upon initial
registration" only related to the payment of the fee not the use
of the vehicle. Page 2, line 16, says "driven or moved on a
highway for the primary purpose of historical exhibition or
similar activity" restricts the use of the vehicle. He said he
wanted to make sure they were not in any way further restricting
how the vehicle could be used. He has a 1935 Ford pickup he
fully restored and uses two or three times a year, usually in
parades.
MARY MARSHBURN, Director, Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), said
Deputy Director Chuck Hosack was with her. He had followed the
bill in 2001. DMV had no objection to the bill.
SENATOR ELTON said he was struggling with the concept that a car
24 years younger than he could be designated an historical
vehicle. He would have preferred it if they made it any car
produced before 1948.
SENATOR TAYLOR said he was excited because the current vehicle he
drives is only two years away from being historical.
SENATOR ELTON said in his family they call that a junker.
SENATOR TAYLOR said that is what they call it in his family too
but as long as it runs he keeps using it.
SENATOR TAYLOR moved SB 260 from committee with individual
recommendations and attached zero fiscal note. There being no
object, the motion carried.
CHAIRMAN COWDERY adjourned the meeting at 2:41 p.m.
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