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.