CSSB 81(CRA): "An Act requiring background investigations of village public safety officer applicants by the Department of Public Safety; relating to the village public safety officer program; and providing for an effective date."
00 CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 81(CRA) 01 "An Act requiring background investigations of village public safety officer applicants 02 by the Department of Public Safety; relating to the village public safety officer program; 03 and providing for an effective date." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. AS 12.62.400(a) is amended to read: 06 (a) To obtain a national criminal history record check for determining a 07 person's qualifications for a license, permit, registration, employment, or position, a 08 person shall submit the person's fingerprints to the department with the fee established 09 by AS 12.62.160. The department may submit the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau 10 of Investigation to obtain a national criminal history record check of the person for the 11 purpose of evaluating a person's qualifications for 12 (1) a license or conditional contractor's permit to manufacture, sell, 13 offer for sale, possess for sale or barter, traffic in, or barter an alcoholic beverage 14 under AS 04.11;
01 (2) licensure as a mortgage lender, a mortgage broker, or a mortgage 02 loan originator under AS 06.60; 03 (3) admission to the Alaska Bar Association under AS 08.08; 04 (4) licensure as a collection agency operator under AS 08.24; 05 (5) a certificate of fitness to handle explosives under AS 08.52; 06 (6) licensure as a massage therapist under AS 08.61; 07 (7) licensure to practice nursing or certification as a nurse aide under 08 AS 08.68; 09 (8) certification as a real estate appraiser under as 08.87; 10 (9) a position involving supervisory or disciplinary power over a minor 11 or dependent adult for which criminal justice information may be released under 12 AS 12.62.160(b)(9); 13 (10) a teacher certificate under AS 14.20; 14 (11) a registration or license to operate a marijuana establishment 15 under AS 17.38; 16 (12) admittance to a police training program under AS 18.65.230 or for 17 certification as a police officer under AS 18.65.240 if that person's prospective 18 employer does not have access to a criminal justice information system; 19 (13) licensure as a security guard under AS 18.65.400 - 18.65.490; 20 (14) a concealed handgun permit under AS 18.65.700 - 18.65.790; 21 (15) licensure as an insurance producer, managing general agent, 22 reinsurance intermediary broker, reinsurance intermediary manager, surplus lines 23 broker, or independent adjuster under AS 21.27; 24 (16) serving and executing process issued by a court by a person 25 designated under AS 22.20.130; 26 (17) a school bus driver license under AS 28.15.046; 27 (18) licensure as an operator or an instructor for a commercial driver 28 training school under AS 28.17; 29 (19) registration as a broker-dealer, agent, investment adviser 30 representative, or investment adviser under AS 45.56.300 - 45.56.350; 31 (20) licensure, license renewal, certification, certification renewal, or
01 payment from the Department of Health and Social Services of an individual and an 02 entity subject to the requirements for a criminal history check under AS 47.05.310, 03 including 04 (A) a public home care provider described in AS 47.05.017; 05 (B) a provider of home and community-based waiver services 06 financed under AS 47.07.030(c); 07 (C) a case manager to coordinate community mental health 08 services under AS 47.30.530; 09 (D) an entity listed in AS 47.32.010(b), including an owner, 10 officer, director, member, partner, employee, volunteer, or contractor of an 11 entity; or 12 (E) an individual or entity not described in (A) - (D) of this 13 paragraph that is required by statute or regulation to be licensed or certified by 14 the Department of Health and Social Services or that is eligible to receive 15 payments, in whole or in part, from the Department of Health and Social 16 Services to provide for the health, safety, and welfare of persons who are 17 served by the programs administered by the Department of Health and Social 18 Services; 19 (21) employment as a village public safety officer under 20 AS 18.65.672 or certification as a village public safety officer under AS 18.65.682. 21 * Sec. 2. AS 18.65.080 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 22 (b) The Department of Public Safety shall investigate an individual who 23 applies to be employed as a village public safety officer under AS 18.65.672 or 24 certified as a village public safety officer under AS 18.65.682 upon receipt of the 25 materials listed in AS 18.65.674(a)(1) from a village public safety officer grant 26 recipient to determine whether the individual has been convicted of a disqualifying 27 crime listed in AS 18.65.672(b). 28 * Sec. 3. AS 18.65.670 is repealed and reenacted to read: 29 Sec. 18.65.670. Village public safety officer program. (a) The village public 30 safety officer program is created in the department, with funding appropriated to the 31 department and disbursed by the commissioner through grants made under this
01 section. The purpose of the program is to appoint, train, supervise, and retain persons 02 to serve as village public safety officers. 03 (b) With funds appropriated for that purpose, the commissioner shall provide 04 grants to nonprofit regional corporations and Alaska Native organizations for training 05 and employment of village public safety officers. If a nonprofit regional corporation 06 for a village or Alaska Native organization declines a grant under this subsection, the 07 commissioner may provide the grant to a municipality with a population of less than 08 10,000 willing to administer the grant for the village. Before awarding a grant to a 09 municipality, the commissioner shall consult with the nonprofit regional corporation 10 or Alaska Native organization that declined the grant. 11 (c) The commissioner shall annually accept applications from entities 12 described in (b) of this section for village public safety officer grants. Grant applicants 13 may apply to employ village public safety officers in participating villages located in 14 the applicant's region. An application must include 15 (1) a projected budget, including administrative costs; 16 (2) a list of villages in which the applicant plans to employ village 17 public safety officers; and 18 (3) other information required by the commissioner. 19 (d) The commissioner shall enter into a written agreement with a grant 20 recipient before providing grant funding. The agreement must require the grant 21 recipient to 22 (1) comply with state and federal law; 23 (2) provide a salary and benefit schedule for the village public safety 24 officer; 25 (3) be named as the employer of the village public safety officer; and 26 (4) maintain insurance, independently, or with the assistance of the 27 department, that includes coverage for premiums as follows: 28 (A) workers' compensation insurance as required under 29 AS 23.30; 30 (B) comprehensive general liability insurance, including 31 professional practice insurance for police with
01 (i) a limit not less than $1,000,000; and 02 (ii) the state, including an officer, employee, or agent of 03 the state, listed as an additional named insured. 04 (e) An award of grant funding, depending on the funds awarded, must provide 05 for at least one village public safety officer for each village included in a grant 06 agreement entered into under (d) of this section. A grant recipient may assign more 07 than one village public safety officer to a village and request additional funding for the 08 additional village public safety officer. The commissioner may approve the request for 09 additional funding if the grant recipient provides justification reasonably related to the 10 duties of a village public safety officer and other public safety needs. 11 (f) A grant recipient may assign a traveling village public safety officer to 12 serve multiple villages within the grant recipient's region. 13 (g) A grant recipient shall 14 (1) keep original financial, personnel, and other records relating to a 15 village public safety officer for at least three years after the officer's termination of 16 employment and, upon request, provide that information to the department; 17 (2) provide annual financial audits to the commissioner; 18 (3) facilitate site visits by the department to monitor public safety 19 officer performance and compliance with state and federal law; 20 (4) notify the commissioner if the grant recipient fails to comply with 21 state or federal law; 22 (5) timely notify the department if a village public safety officer 23 resigns or vacates a position; and 24 (6) timely notify and submit a written report to the department if a 25 village public safety officer points a firearm in the direction of another person or 26 discharges a firearm while on duty. 27 (h) The commissioner may, in consultation with grant recipients, as provided 28 in (k) of this section, adopt regulations related to village public safety officers, 29 including establishing minimum standards and training, physical fitness requirements, 30 criteria for participation by a community, a municipality, an Alaska Native 31 organization, or a corporation, and the interaction between the department and village
01 public safety officers. If the commissioner adopts regulations regarding training for 02 village public safety officers, the training must be consistent with the standards in 03 AS 18.65.676 and disability training under AS 18.65.220(3). The commissioner of 04 corrections may, in consultation with grant recipients, adopt regulations related to the 05 functions of village public safety officers providing pretrial, probation, and parole 06 supervision. 07 (i) A grant recipient may charge its federally approved indirect costs to the 08 village public safety officer program grant if the statewide average of indirect costs 09 does not exceed 35 percent. 10 (j) The commissioner may not withhold, without reason, approval of a funding 11 request made under a grant award. The commissioner shall timely disburse grant 12 funds. A grant recipient may use funding for items reasonably related to public safety 13 and village public safety officer duties under AS 18.65.670 - 18.65.688. 14 (k) The commissioner and the commissioner of corrections shall 15 (1) ensure all relations with a federally recognized tribal government 16 that is the incorporator of a nonprofit regional corporation are conducted on a 17 government-to-government basis; 18 (2) ensure the department consults with a grant recipient 19 (A) before implementing a policy or regulation that affects the 20 recipient and as early as possible in the development of a new or revised policy 21 or regulation; 22 (B) on the state policies and regulations the grant recipient 23 considers necessary, as well as the substance of the policies and regulations; 24 (3) to the extent possible, use consensual mechanisms to develop 25 policies and regulations, including negotiated rulemaking processes; 26 (4) respect tribal sovereignty in consultations with grant recipients; 27 (5) ensure consultations with grant recipients are open and candid to 28 enable interested parties to accurately assess potential effects; and 29 (6) ensure the removal of procedural impediments to working directly 30 and effectively with grant recipients on programs that affect the governmental rights 31 of a tribe.
01 (l) The commissioner shall designate an official within the department who 02 has the primary responsibility for compliance with this section. The official shall 03 develop and annually review departmental procedures for compliance with this 04 section. The department shall provide to all grant recipients the results of the annual 05 review and post the results on the Internet website of the department. 06 * Sec. 4. AS 18.65 is amended by adding new sections to read: 07 Sec. 18.65.672. Village public safety officer qualifications. (a) A grant 08 recipient may employ a person as a village public safety officer if the individual 09 (1) is at least 21 years of age; 10 (2) is a citizen of the United States or a resident alien; 11 (3) is of good moral character; 12 (4) has obtained a high school diploma or a general education 13 development diploma or its equivalent; 14 (5) satisfies the physical requirements established in regulation by the 15 department; 16 (6) has not been previously convicted 17 (A) of a felony; 18 (B) of a sex offense as defined in AS 12.63.100; 19 (C) of a misdemeanor crime involving domestic violence 20 unless at least 10 years have passed since the date of the conviction, the 21 conviction was not for an offense against an intimate partner, spouse, child, or 22 parent, and the department grants a waiver allowing the individual to access 23 the criminal justice information system; 24 (D) of a misdemeanor if less than five years has elapsed since 25 the individual's date of conviction for the offense; 26 (E) two or more times of 27 (i) misdemeanor operating a vehicle, aircraft, or 28 watercraft while under the influence of an alcoholic beverage, inhalant, 29 or controlled substance under AS 28.35.030; 30 (ii) misdemeanor refusal to submit to a chemical test 31 under AS 28.35.032; or
01 (iii) a combination of the offenses in (i) and (ii) of this 02 subparagraph; 03 (F) of manufacturing, transporting, or delivering an alcoholic 04 beverage in violation of a local option under AS 04.11 or a municipal 05 ordinance or a controlled substance, unless at least 10 years has elapsed; or 06 (G) of possession of a controlled substance as defined in 07 AS 11.71.900, other than marijuana, unless the individual was under 21 years 08 of age at the time of the possession and the possession occurred more than 10 09 years before the date of hire; 10 (7) has not been denied a village public safety officer certification or 11 had a certification revoked; and 12 (8) has not been denied police officer certification, had a certificate 13 revoked, or surrendered a certificate in this state or another jurisdiction. 14 (b) A grant recipient may not use grant money to employ a village public 15 safety officer for a period of more than 24 months unless the officer obtains a village 16 public safety officer certificate from the department under AS 18.65.682. Upon 17 written application from a grant recipient, the department may, in its discretion, extend 18 this period up to six months to permit the officer to complete the training required 19 under AS 18.65.676, if the officer is unable to do so in the first 24 months of 20 employment because of an illness, injury, or emergency. 21 (c) In this section, 22 (1) "good moral character" means the absence of acts or conduct that 23 would cause a reasonable person to have substantial doubts about an individual's 24 honesty, fairness, and respect for the rights of others and for the laws of this state and 25 the United States; for purposes of this section, a determination of lack of good moral 26 character may be based on a consideration of all aspects of a person's character; 27 (2) "previously convicted" means having been convicted of a crime 28 described in (a) of this section or a law or ordinance of another jurisdiction with 29 elements similar to the crimes listed in (a) of this section. A conviction for which the 30 person received a suspended entry of judgment, suspended imposition of sentence, 31 expungement, or pardon is a conviction for purposes of this section, unless the
01 conviction was for a misdemeanor crime committed by the individual when the 02 individual was under 21 years of age. 03 Sec. 18.65.674. Background investigations. (a) Before employing an 04 individual as a village public safety officer, a grant recipient shall 05 (1) submit to the commissioner the individual's 06 (A) completed application and personal and medical history, on 07 forms prepared by the department; 08 (B) proof of age, citizenship status, and education; and 09 (C) fingerprints, the fees required by the department under 10 AS 12.62.160 for criminal justice information and a national criminal history 11 record check, and other information sufficient to complete a background check 12 consisting of a fingerprint check of national criminal records and criminal 13 records of the state or states in which the individual has resided for the past 10 14 years; the department shall conduct a criminal justice information and national 15 criminal history record check under AS 12.62; 16 (2) review the criminal justice information and national criminal 17 history record check completed by the department; and 18 (3) review the results of the individual's physical examination and 19 physician certification. 20 (b) Personnel and training information that the department or a grant recipient 21 receives about a village public safety officer is confidential and available only for 22 review by a grant recipient, the department, or that officer. A village public safety 23 officer or an individual who applies for employment as a village public safety officer 24 may not review information that another individual supplied with the understanding 25 that the information or its source would remain confidential, unless the information 26 serves as the basis for a decision to deny or revoke a certificate under AS 18.65.684. 27 Sec. 18.65.676. Training. (a) A village public safety officer basic training 28 program must provide 29 (1) a physical training program that includes instruction in physical 30 methods of arrest, use of batons, use of chemical defensive weapons, and electronic 31 control weapons;
01 (2) at least 826 hours of instruction as follows: 02 (A) 650 hours of instruction in 03 (i) Alaska criminal and procedural law; 04 (ii) the Alaska criminal justice system; 05 (iii) police procedures; 06 (iv) disabilities under AS 18.65.220(3); 07 (v) domestic violence and sexual assault prevention and 08 response procedures; and 09 (B) 176 hours of instruction in 10 (i) emergency trauma technician training; 11 (ii) search and rescue training; 12 (iii) rural fire protection specialist training. 13 (b) An individual seeking a village public safety officer certificate under 14 AS 18.65.682 shall attend all sessions of the basic training required under (a) of this 15 section, unless the director of the training program approves an absence. An individual 16 who is absent for more than 10 percent of the total hours of instruction has not 17 successfully completed basic training. 18 (c) An individual who fails to comply with the attendance and performance 19 requirements of the training program may be dismissed from the training. The 20 department may not consider a dismissed individual to have successfully completed 21 basic training. 22 (d) If a village public safety officer receives training that department did not 23 provide and the entity conducting the training provides a description of the training to 24 the department, the department may take that training into account in determining the 25 completion of basic training and accept other police officer or firefighter training and 26 experience that equals or exceeds the hours and covers the subject matter required 27 under (a) of this section. 28 Sec. 18.65.678. Firearms training. (a) A village public safety officer may not, 29 except in an emergency, carry a firearm in the performance of the officer's duties until 30 the officer has successfully completed 31 (1) a basic firearms training program that is certified by the Alaska
01 Police Standards Council or substantially similar training as determined by the 02 department; 03 (2) a psychological examination conducted by a mental health 04 professional; and 05 (3) all annual firearm qualification requirements. 06 (b) In determining the successful completion of basic firearms training, the 07 department may consider previous training and experience that is substantially similar 08 to the training required under (a) of this section. 09 Sec. 18.65.682. Village public safety officer certification. The department 10 shall issue a village public safety officer certificate to an individual who 11 (1) has satisfactorily completed 12 months as a full-time paid village 12 public safety officer without a break in service longer than 90 consecutive days or 13 nonconsecutive breaks in service totaling 120 or more days; 14 (2) meets the standards in AS 18.65.672; 15 (3) has successfully completed 16 (A) a basic training program that meets the requirements under 17 AS 18.65.676; and 18 (B) a background information check under AS 18.65.674(a); 19 and 20 (4) attests to the law enforcement code of ethics. 21 Sec. 18.65.684. Denial, revocation, or lapse of certificate. (a) The 22 department may deny an individual's application for a village public safety officer 23 certificate or revoke a village public safety officer certificate in accordance with 24 AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act) if 25 (1) the individual knowingly makes a false statement in an application 26 or other document required for employment or certification; or 27 (2) after the date of hire, has 28 (A) been convicted of a 29 (i) felony; 30 (ii) misdemeanor crime involving domestic violence; or 31 (iii) misdemeanor crime of dishonesty, a crime that
01 resulted in serious physical injury to another person, or of operating a 02 vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft while under the influence of an alcoholic 03 beverage, inhalant, or controlled substance two or more times; 04 (B) illegally used, possessed, manufactured, transported, or 05 delivered an alcoholic beverage in violation of a local option under AS 04.11 06 or a municipal ordinance or a controlled substance; or 07 (C) used, sold, cultivated, transported, manufactured, or 08 distributed marijuana. 09 (b) The department is not required to deny an individual's application for a 10 certificate or revoke a certificate if the individual or holder of the certificate 11 establishes by clear and convincing evidence that, in connection with a conviction for 12 a misdemeanor crime involving domestic violence, the individual or holder of the 13 certificate 14 (1) was not represented by counsel and did not, by guilty plea or 15 otherwise, knowingly waive the right to counsel; 16 (2) was entitled to a jury trial, did not receive a jury trial, and did not, 17 by guilty plea or otherwise, knowingly waive the right to a jury trial; or 18 (3) is not subject to a court order that expressly prohibits the officer 19 from shipping, transporting, possessing, or receiving firearms, and the underlying 20 conviction 21 (A) has been expunged or set aside; 22 (B) is for an offense for which the officer has been pardoned; 23 or 24 (C) is for an offense for which the officer has had civil rights 25 restored that were lost upon the conviction. 26 (c) The holder of a certificate shall immediately return the certificate to the 27 department upon notification of the revocation. 28 (d) An individual who is denied a certificate or a holder whose certificate is 29 revoked may appeal to the commissioner for reversal of the denial or revocation. The 30 appeal must be received in writing within 30 days after the date of the notice of denial 31 or revocation and must set out the reasons for the appeal. The commissioner or the
01 commissioner's designee shall issue a written decision within 45 days after receipt of 02 the appeal. 03 (e) A certificate lapses if the holder is not employed as a full-time village 04 public safety officer for a period of 12 consecutive months. 05 (f) An individual may request reinstatement of a lapsed certificate after 06 undergoing additional training as determined by the department and serving an 07 additional probationary period of up to 12 months, at the discretion of the 08 commissioner in consultation with the grant recipient. A certificate may not be 09 reinstated if the certificate has lapsed for more than 10 years. 10 Sec. 18.65.686. Powers and duties of village public safety officers. A village 11 public safety officer who is certified under AS 18.65.682 has the power of a peace 12 officer of the state or a municipality and is charged with 13 (1) the protection of life and property in the state, including through 14 (A) fire prevention and suppression; 15 (B) provision of emergency medical services; and 16 (C) participation in and coordination of search and rescue 17 efforts for missing or injured persons; 18 (2) providing pretrial, probation, and parole supervision to persons 19 under supervision by communicating with and monitoring the activities and progress 20 of these persons at the direction of pretrial services, probation, and parole officers; 21 (3) conducting investigations; 22 (4) enforcing 23 (A) the criminal laws of the state or a municipality; 24 (B) statutes or ordinances of the state or municipality 25 punishable as a violation if the certified village public safety officer has 26 completed training in that field of violation enforcement; 27 (5) providing local training programs on public safety; and 28 (6) the powers usually and customarily exercised by a peace officer. 29 Sec. 18.65.688. Definitions. In AS 18.65.670 - 18.65.688, 30 (1) "Alaska Native organization" means an organization listed in 31 AS 47.27.070(a);
01 (2) "commissioner" means the commissioner of public safety; 02 (3) "crime involving domestic violence" has the meaning given in 03 AS 18.66.990; 04 (4) "department" means the Department of Public Safety; 05 (5) "marijuana" has the meaning given in AS 11.71.900; 06 (6) "village" means a community with a population less than 2,500 07 based on the most recent federal census. 08 * Sec. 5. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 09 read: 10 TRANSITION. Notwithstanding the requirements in AS 18.65.672 and 18.65.676, 11 enacted by sec. 4 of this Act, a person employed as a village public safety officer on the day 12 before the effective date of sec. 4 of this Act may continue to be employed as a village public 13 safety officer without meeting the requirements in AS 18.65.672 and 18.65.676. 14 * Sec. 6. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 15 read: 16 TRANSITION. In implementing AS 18.65.670(h), added by sec. 3 of this Act, the 17 Department of Public Safety shall continue to comply with regulations adopted under 18 AS 18.65.670(c) regarding interactions between the Department of Public Safety and the 19 village public safety officers. 20 * Sec. 7. AS 18.65.670(b) - (g), as repealed and reenacted by sec. 3 of this Act, take effect 21 July 1, 2021. 22 * Sec. 8. Except as provided in sec. 7 of this Act, this Act takes effect immediately under 23 AS 01.10.070(c).