00 Enrolled SB 177                                                                                                         
01 Relating to an exception for professional fishing guide services in the Kenai River Special                             
02 Management Area; relating to the licensing and regulation of sport fishing operators and sport                          
03 fishing guides and licensing and registration of sport fishing vessels; and providing for an                            
04 effective date.                                                                                                         
05                           _______________                                                                               
06    * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section                          
07 to read:                                                                                                                
08       PURPOSE. The purpose of sec. 2 of this Act is to allow employers of professional                                  
09 fishing guides in the Kenai River Special Management Area to hire a licensed guide who has                              
10 not completed the course requirement listed in 11 AAC 20.885(c)(9) if the employer has lost                             
11 the services of an employee because of unforeseen circumstances and is unable to hire an                                
12 available replacement guide who has completed the course.                                                               
13    * Sec. 2. AS 41.21.506(b) is amended to read:                                                                      
14            (b)  The commissioner shall adopt regulations under AS 44.62 (Administrative                                 
01       Procedure Act) that are necessary to achieve the purposes of AS 41.21.500 - 41.21.514                             
02       and to implement the plan adopted under (a) of this section. The regulations must                                 
03                 (1)  designate incompatible uses and prohibit or restrict them; [,] and                             
04                 (2)  establish a registration, licensing, or comparable procedure for                                   
05       professional fishing guides and such additional fishing guide controls as the                                     
06       commissioner considers necessary; notwithstanding the requirements established                                
07       by the commissioner to implement this paragraph, the commissioner shall                                       
08       establish a procedure by which the holder of a valid sport fishing operator license                           
09       issued under AS 16.40.260 may petition for, and the director of the division of                               
10       parks, or the director's designee, shall expeditiously issue, a waiver to allow the                           
11       sport fishing operator license holder to use the services in the Kenai River Special                          
12       Management Area of a guide licensed under AS 16.40.270 who has not completed                                  
13       the procedures and additional controls that are required by the department                                    
14       under this paragraph; the waiver authorized in this paragraph applies only for                                
15       the duration of the sport fishing season during which the waiver application is                               
16       submitted and only if the sport fishing operator license holder                                               
17                      (A)  employing the licensed guide has lost the services of a                                   
18            licensed guide because of unforeseen circumstances; and                                                  
19                      (B)  is unable to hire as a replacement an available licensed                                  
20            guide who has satisfied all the requirements of this paragraph, including                                
21            those required by regulation.                                                                          
22    * Sec. 3. Section 8, ch. 70, SLA 2004, is amended to read:                                                         
23            Sec. 8. AS 16.05.340(a)(26); AS 16.40.260, 16.40.270, 16.40.280, 16.40.290,                                  
24       16.40.299; AS 25.27.244(s)(2)(A)(xviii), and 25.27.244(s)(2)(A)(xix) are repealed                                 
25       January 1, 2011 [2010].                                                                                       
26    * Sec. 4. This Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).