00 HOUSE BILL NO. 269                                                                                                    
01 "An Act related to the videotaping of interviews with children who are alleged                                          
02 to have been abused or neglected."                                                                                      
03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04    * Section 1.  The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new                                 
05 section to read:                                                                                                        
06  VIDEOTAPING PILOT PROJECT.  (a)  Not later than January 1, 2001, the                                                   
07 Department of Health and Social Services shall select one municipality and, in that                                     
08 municipality, shall establish a pilot project to study the use of videotaping of interviews with                        
09 children who are alleged to have been abused or neglected.  In the municipality selected,                               
10 unless it is determined that an interview is immediately necessary because of exigent                                   
11 circumstances or that, due to extraordinary circumstances, videotaping equipment is                                     
12 unavailable or is inoperable, an employee of the Department of Health and Social Services,                              
13 the Department of Law, the Department of Public Safety, or a municipal law enforcement                                  
14 agency may not interview a child who is alleged to have been abused or neglected unless the                             
01 interview is videotaped.  The Department of Health and Social Services shall coordinate the                             
02 purchase of videotape equipment and the distribution of that equipment to state and municipal                           
03 officials who may be expected to interview children who are alleged to have been abused or                              
04 neglected.  The pilot project shall continue for not less than 18 months.  The Department of                            
05 Health and Social Services shall prepare a written interim report for submission to the Twenty-                         
06 Second Alaska State Legislature not later than the 10th day of the second regular session, and                          
07 a final report for submission to the Twenty-Third Alaska State Legislature not later than the                           
08 10th day of the first regular session.  The report must discuss the pilot project, problems                             
09 encountered, benefits discovered, and other information the Department of Health and Social                             
10 Services determines is relevant to a determination of whether a videotaping requirement such                            
11 as that imposed for the pilot project should be implemented for the entire state.                                       
12  (b)  In selecting the municipality under (a) of this section, the municipality must have                               
13 a population, based upon the most recent population statistics available from the Department                            
14 of Community and Economic Development, of not less than 40,000 and not more than                                        
15 150,000.                                                                                                                
16  (c)  The failure to videotape an interview of a child as required under (a) of this                                    
17 section does not affect the admissibility of the interview or the authority or ability of a state                       
18 or municipal law enforcement or prosecution agency to use the interview or information                                  
19 obtained from it.                                                                                                       
20    * Sec. 2.  This Act is repealed January 31, 2003.