SENATE BILL NO. 55 "An Act relating to criminal law and procedure; relating to controlled substances; relating to sentencing; relating to the period of probation; relating to revocation, termination, suspension, cancellation, or restoration of a driver's license; relating to parole; relating to the duties of the Department of Corrections and the Department of Health and Social Services; and providing for an effective date." 9:54:01 AM Senator Coghill offered a sponsor statement for SB 55: Senate Bill 55 makes technical revisions to the criminal justice reform package passed by the legislature in 2016, pursuant to recommendations made by the Alaska Criminal Justice Commission. Technical revisions are necessary to provide clarity and improve implementation. 9:54:58 AM Mr. Shilling reviewed the document "Senate Bill 55 Sectional Summary - Omnibus Crime/Corrections": Section 1  AS 11.46.280(d) - Issuing a bad check. Removes inadvertent inflation-adjustment of $25,000. Section 2  AS 11.46.285(b) - Fraudulent use of an access device. Removes inadvertent inflation-adjustment of $25,000. Section 3  AS 11.46.730(c) - Defrauding creditors. Removes inadvertent inflation-adjustment of $25,000. Section 4  AS 11.71.050(a) - Misconduct involving controlled substances in the fourth degree Eliminates penalty overlap for possession of less than an ounce of a VIA controlled substance and excludes two forms of felony possession of a controlled substance from the offense of misconduct involving a controlled substance in the fourth degree, to conform to MICS 2 and 3. Section 5  AS 12.55.011(b) - Victim and community involvement in sentencing. Clarifies that the court shall only provide the form to the victim if practicable. Section 6  AS 12.55.015(a) - Authorized sentences; forfeiture. Provides explicit authority to the court to suspend an entry of judgment. Section 7  AS 12.55.045(l) - Restitution and compensation. Ensures that a restitution order is not discharged and remains enforceable when a proceeding is dismissed under a suspended entry of judgment. 9:56:57 AM Mr. Shilling continued to discuss the Sectional Summary: Section 8  AS 12.55.078(a) - Suspended entry of judgment. Clarifies that the court may not impose a sentence of imprisonment in a suspended entry of judgment. Section 9  AS 12.55.078(d) - Suspended entry of judgment. Clarifies when the court shall discharge and dismiss proceedings in a suspended entry of judgment and clarifies that a person who has successfully completed probation and the requirements of a suspended entry of judgment is not convicted of a crime. Section 10  AS 12.55.078(f) - Suspended entry of judgment. Clarifies that the crimes for which SEJ may not be used are the crimes currently charged, not prior convictions. Section 11  AS 12.55.090(c) - Granting of probation Clarifies that the maximum probation term for a felony sex offense is 15 years, while all other unclassified felonies have a maximum probation term of 10 years. Section 12  AS 18.65.865(b) - Service of process; forms for petitions and orders; fees; warnings; notification; and pending civil or criminal actions. Updates the maximum fine that may be imposed under this section to conform to an increase in the maximum fine for a class A misdemeanor. Section 13  AS 18.66.130(d) - Specific protective orders. Updates the maximum fine that may be imposed under this section to conform to an increase in the maximum fine for a class A misdemeanor. Section 14  AS 28.15.165(e) - Administrative revocations and disqualifications resulting from chemical sobriety tests and refusals to submit to tests. Clarifies that the dismissal of all charges, regardless of prejudice, serves to meet the requirement of this section. Section 15  AS 44.19.645(g) - Powers and duties of the commission Requires the Department of Corrections to report certain data to the Alaska Criminal Justice Commission regarding earned compliance credits for parolees.   Section 16  AS 47.37.040 - Duties of the department. Authorizes the Alcohol Safety Action Program to accept referrals from the court for minor consuming/possession and similar offenses.   Section 17  AS 33.16.120(h) - Rights of certain victims in connection with parole. Resolves a drafting error that requires the Department of Corrections to provide notifications for hearings that will not occur. Section 18  Uncodified law - applicability This section contains applicability provisions.   Section 19  Uncodified law - applicability This section contains applicability provisions clarifying that no decisions made by the Board of Parole prior to January 1, 2017 that extended the period of supervision beyond the maximum release date are to be construed as invalidated by the passage of SB 91 (2016). There is further clarification that the earned compliance credit for parolees does not apply to time served prior to January 1, 2017. Section 20  Uncodified law - effective date This bill takes effect immediately. 9:59:43 AM Senator von Imhof asked about Section 5 and wondered whether the section referred to the form being provided to victims at the beginning of the sentencing process, or anytime during the process. Mr. Shilling assumed that the provision pertained to the time the sentence was imposed. Senator von Imhof understood that there could be circumstances where it would be difficult to contact victims for notification. She wondered how a victim's constitutional right to know about changes in an offender's status would be upheld. Mr. Shilling agreed that a victim did have the right to be appraised of the status of their offender. He informed the committee the Department of Corrections did notify victims of a change in offender custody status through the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) automated system. He clarified that the section in question was a new requirement under SB 91 for the court to provide the form if practicable. He believed that the language was meant to accommodate for the fact that many victims did not show up to, or be any part of, sentencing hearings. He said that it was not the primary function of the court system to keep contact information for victims, which made providing the form a challenge. 10:03:42 AM Senator Micciche referred to Section 4, and relayed that there had been complaints in his community of the increase in drug related crime, which he understood had begun long before the passage of SB 91. He noted that SB 91 was designed to rely on treatment and reinvestment but wondered how a person possessing a controlled substance could stand before a judge and be offered treatment, without first being arrested. Mr. Shilling explained that SB 91 did not prevent a person from being charged or convicted for misdemeanor drug possession. He furthered active imprisonment was not necessary for the court to impose a requirement that someone go to treatment. He added that there were mechanisms in place that allowed the court to require that someone get treatment and have consequences if they did not. He said that research had shown that enhancing criminal penalties was not an effective way of addressing drug epidemics. 10:05:39 AM Senator Micciche clarified his statement as being about a plan of action for dealing with the drug epidemic in the state. He stated that people being caught with small quantities of drugs should be offered treatment because it was only a matter of time before they turned to crime to support their addiction. 10:06:49 AM Co-Chair MacKinnon solicited further questions. Vice-Chair Bishop discussed the fiscal notes for SB 55. There was a new fiscal note from the Judiciary (OMB component 768), which was a zero-fiscal note. He reviewed additional zero fiscal notes: FN1 from the Department of Public Safety, FN 2 from the Department of Corrections, FN 3 from the Department of Administration, FN 4 from the Department of Health and Social Services, FN 5 from the Department of Administration, FN 6 from the Department of Administration, and FN 7 from the Department of Law. SB 55 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further consideration. Co-Chair MacKinnon discussed housekeeping.