HJR 34: Asking the Secretary of the United States Department of Transportation to redefine the time zones in Alaska.
00 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 34 01 Asking the Secretary of the United States Department of Transportation to redefine the 02 time zones in Alaska. 03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 WHEREAS Alaska currently is divided into two time zones, the Alaska standard time 05 zone and the Hawaii-Aleutian standard time zone; and 06 WHEREAS, while most of Alaska is placed in the Alaska standard zone, that part of 07 the Aleutian Islands that is located west of 169 degrees 30 minutes West longitude is placed 08 in the Hawaii-Aleutian standard time zone; and 09 WHEREAS federal law at 15 U.S.C. 260 - 267 regulates time in the United States and 10 establishes standard time zones for the United States; and 11 WHEREAS the limits of each standard zone are defined by order of the United States 12 Secretary of Transportation with regard for the convenience of commerce and existing 13 junction points and division points of common carriers engaged in interstate or foreign 14 commerce; and 15 WHEREAS the Railbelt area of Alaska, with its financial centers in Anchorage and 16 Fairbanks, has always enjoyed close business and financial relationships with the West Coast
01 of the United States; and 02 WHEREAS the Southeast area of Alaska also has long-established business and 03 financial relationships with the West Coast of the United States; and 04 WHEREAS the Kodiak Island Borough in Alaska has close connections to 05 Anchorage and would like to stay in the same standard time zone as Anchorage; and 06 WHEREAS the Railbelt and Southeast areas of Alaska and the Kodiak Island 07 Borough of Alaska are in a different standard time zone than the West Coast of the United 08 States, which is in the Pacific standard time zone; and 09 WHEREAS, because of their business and financial ties, it is desirable for the 10 Southeast and Railbelt areas of Alaska to operate in the same time zone as the West Coast of 11 the United States, and being in different standard time zones makes it difficult to handle 12 business and financial matters with the West Coast of the United States; and 13 WHEREAS being in a different standard time zone from Anchorage would be 14 difficult for the Kodiak Island Borough; and 15 WHEREAS Western Alaska, including the western Aleutian Islands, does not have 16 the same ties to the West Coast of the United States as do the Railbelt and Southeast areas of 17 Alaska and, as a result, does not share those areas' need to change standard time zones; and 18 WHEREAS the Railbelt and Southeast areas of Alaska are east of 154 degrees West 19 longitude, but the Kodiak Island Borough is bifurcated by that longitude; 20 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests the United States 21 Secretary of Transportation to redefine the boundaries of the standard time zones in which 22 Alaska is located by 23 (1) placing into the Pacific standard time zone those portions of the state that 24 are located east of 154 degrees West longitude and that part of the Kodiak Island Borough 25 that lies west of 154 degrees West longitude; 26 (2) leaving in the Alaska standard time zone that part of Alaska that is west of 27 154 degrees West longitude and currently in the Alaska standard time zone, but excluding that 28 part of the Kodiak Island Borough that lies west of 154 degrees West longitude; and 29 (3) leaving in the Hawaii-Aleutian standard time zone that portion of Alaska 30 that is west of 169 degrees 30 minutes West longitude and currently in the Hawaii-Aleutian 31 standard time zone.
01 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Raymond L. LaHood, 02 United States Secretary of Transportation; and to the Honorable Lisa Murkowski, the 03 Honorable Mark Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, 04 members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.