SENATOR TAYLOR brought  HB 122  (CHILD CUSTODY PROCEDURES) before the    he   
 committee as the final order of business.                                     
                                                                               
 CHRIS CHRISTENSEN, Legal Counsel, Alaska Court System, explained              
 that AS 25.20.090 provides a laundry list of factors that a judge             
 is supposed to consider when awarding shared custody of child.  One           
 of those is the findings and recommendations of a neutral mediator.           
 However, the person drafting that statute confused mediation with             
 arbitration.  Mediators are not supposed to make recommendations to           
 a judge, and HB 122 deletes that particular requirement from the              
 statute.                                                                      
                                                                               
 Mr. Christensen clarified that there can still be mediation in                
 child custody cases, however, the mediator just won't make a                  
 recommendation to the judge.                                                  
                                                                               
 SENATOR HALFORD moved that HB 122 be passed out of committee with             
 individual recommendations.  Hearing no objection, it was so                  
 ordered.