SSHB 29: "An Act relating to group insurance coverage and self-insurance coverage for school district employees, employees of the University of Alaska, and employees of other governmental units in the state; and providing for an effective date."
00 SPONSOR SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 29 01 "An Act relating to group insurance coverage and self-insurance coverage for school 02 district employees, employees of the University of Alaska, and employees of other 03 governmental units in the state; and providing for an effective date." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. AS 14.08.101 is amended to read: 06 Sec. 14.08.101. Powers. A regional school board may 07 (1) sue and be sued; 08 (2) contract with the department, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, or any 09 other school district, agency, or regional board for the provision of services, facilities, 10 supplies, or utilities; 11 (3) determine its own fiscal procedures, including policies and 12 procedures for the purchase of supplies and equipment; the regional school boards are 13 exempt from AS 37.05 (Fiscal Procedures Act) and AS 36.30 (State Procurement 14 Code);
01 (4) appoint, compensate, and otherwise control all school employees in 02 accordance with this title; these employees are not subject to AS 39.25 (State 03 Personnel Act); 04 (5) adopt regulations governing organization, policies, and procedures 05 for the operation of the schools; 06 (6) establish, maintain, operate, discontinue, and combine schools 07 subject to the approval of the commissioner; 08 (7) recommend to the department projects for construction, 09 rehabilitation, and improvement of schools and education-related facilities as specified 10 in AS 14.11.011(b), and plan, design, and construct the project when the responsibility 11 for it is assumed under AS 14.11.020; 12 (8) by resolution adopted by a majority of all the members of the board 13 and provided to the commissioner of the department, assume ownership of all land and 14 buildings used in relation to the schools in the regional educational attendance area, as 15 provided for in AS 14.08.151(b); 16 (9) provide housing for rental to teachers, by leasing existing housing 17 from a local agency or individual, by entering into contractual arrangements with a 18 local agency or individual to lease housing that will be constructed by the local agency 19 or individual for that purpose, or, without using for the purpose that portion of public 20 school funding that consists of state aid provided under AS 14.17, by constructing or 21 otherwise acquiring housing that is owned and managed by the regional educational 22 attendance area for rental to teachers; 23 (10) employ a chief school administrator; 24 (11) apply for and use the proceeds of a loan from the Alaska energy 25 efficiency revolving loan fund (AS 18.56.855); 26 (12) establish and maintain participation in a policy of insurance 27 as authorized by AS 14.27.010; 28 (13) exercise those other functions that may be necessary for the 29 proper performance of its responsibilities. 30 * Sec. 2. AS 14.14.090 is amended to read: 31 Sec. 14.14.090. Duties of school boards. In addition to other duties, a school
01 board shall 02 (1) determine and disburse the total amount to be made available for 03 compensation of all school employees and administrative officers, including, when 04 applicable, the amount necessary to pay for the district's participation in a policy 05 of insurance under AS 14.27.010; 06 (2) provide for, during the school term of each year, an educational 07 program for each school age child who is enrolled in or a resident of the district; 08 (3) withhold the salary for the last month of service of a teacher or 09 administrator until the teacher or administrator has submitted all summaries, statistics, 10 and reports that the school board may require by bylaws; 11 (4) transmit, when required by the assembly or council but not more 12 often than once a month, a summary report and statement of money expended; 13 (5) keep the minutes of meetings and a record of all proceedings of the 14 school board in a pertinent form; 15 (6) keep the records and files of the school board open to inspection by 16 the public at the principal administrative office of the district during reasonable 17 business hours; 18 (7) establish procedures for the review and selection of all textbooks 19 and instructional materials at least once every 10 years, including textbooks and 20 curriculum materials for statewide correspondence programs, before they are 21 introduced into the school curriculum; the review includes a review for violations of 22 AS 14.18.060; nothing in this paragraph precludes a correspondence study student, or 23 the parent or guardian of a correspondence study student, from privately obtaining or 24 using textbooks or curriculum material not provided by the school district; 25 (8) provide prospective employees with information relating to the 26 availability and cost of housing in rural areas to which they might be assigned, and, 27 when possible, assist them in locating housing; however, nothing in this paragraph 28 requires a school district to provide teacher housing, whether district owned, leased, 29 rented, or through other means, nor does it require a school board to engage in a 30 subsidy program of any kind regarding teacher housing; 31 (9) train persons required to report under AS 47.17.020, in the
01 recognition and reporting of child abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse of a minor; 02 (10) provide for the development and implementation of a preventive 03 maintenance program for school facilities; in this paragraph, "preventive maintenance" 04 means scheduled maintenance actions that prevent the premature failure or extend the 05 useful life of a facility, or a facility's systems and components, and that are cost- 06 effective on a life-cycle basis; 07 (11) establish procedures for providing the training under 08 AS 14.18.060, AS 14.20.149, 14.20.680, AS 14.30.355, 14.30.356, 14.30.362, 09 AS 14.33.100, AS 18.66.310, and AS 47.17.022; the procedures established under this 10 paragraph must include a training schedule that ensures that not less than 50 percent of 11 the total certificated staff employed by the district receive all of the training not less 12 than every two years and that all of the certificated staff employed by the district 13 receive all of the training not less than every four years. 14 * Sec. 3. AS 14 is amended by adding a new chapter to read: 15 Chapter 27. University and School District Employee Health Insurance. 16 Sec. 14.27.010. University and school district employee group health 17 insurance. (a) A school employer may elect to participate in a policy of insurance 18 selected by the commissioner of administration that includes health insurance 19 coverage of school employees. If a school employer makes that election, the 20 commissioner of administration shall select either a policy of group insurance under 21 AS 39.30.090 that covers state employees and school employees, or a policy of self- 22 insurance, provided by the Department of Administration under AS 39.30.091, that 23 provides insurance coverage to state employees and school employees. 24 (b) Subject to (e) of this section, a participating school employer shall 25 contribute to the group health and life benefits fund established under AS 39.30.095 an 26 amount equal to the rate of employer contribution and the rate of employee 27 contribution set by the commissioner of administration under AS 39.30.095. 28 (c) In addition to the contribution required under (b) of this section and the 29 reimbursement required under (d) of this section, a participating school employer shall 30 reimburse the Department of Administration an amount equal to the state's cost, if any, 31 of procuring necessary excess loss insurance in connection with coverage of the
01 school employees under AS 39.30.091. 02 (d) In addition to the contribution required under (b) of this section and the 03 reimbursement required under (c) of this section, a participating school employer shall 04 reimburse the Department of Administration the cost of paying insurance claims for 05 the first four months school employees are covered by a policy of self-insurance under 06 AS 39.30.091. The commissioner of administration shall allow the reimbursement to 07 be made in equal installments over a period not to exceed 10 years from the date the 08 school employer's participation in the policy begins. 09 (e) Subject to AS 23.40.070 - 23.40.260 (Public Employee Relations Act), a 10 participating school employer may require school employees to pay some or all of the 11 school employer's contribution under (b) of this section and reimbursement under (c) 12 and (d) of this section. 13 (f) In this section, 14 (1) "school employee" means a person employed by a municipal 15 school district, a regional educational attendance area, or the University of Alaska; 16 (2) "school employer" means a municipal school district, a regional 17 educational attendance area, or the University of Alaska. 18 * Sec. 4. AS 14.40.170(b) is amended to read: 19 (b) The Board of Regents may 20 (1) adopt reasonable rules, orders, and plans with reasonable penalties 21 for the good government of the university and for the regulation of the Board of 22 Regents; 23 (2) determine and regulate the course of instruction in the university 24 with the advice of the president; 25 (3) set student tuition and fees; 26 (4) receive university receipts and, subject to legislative appropriation, 27 expend university receipts in accordance with AS 37.07 (Executive Budget Act); 28 (5) apply for and use the proceeds of a loan from the Alaska energy 29 efficiency revolving loan fund (AS 18.56.855); 30 (6) establish and maintain participation in an insurance policy that 31 includes health insurance, as authorized under AS 14.27.010, to cover persons
01 employed by the university. 02 * Sec. 5. AS 39.30.090(a) is amended to read: 03 (a) The Department of Administration may obtain a policy or policies of group 04 insurance covering state employees, persons entitled to coverage under AS 14.25.168, 05 14.25.480, AS 22.25.090, AS 39.35.535, 39.35.880, or former AS 39.37.145, 06 employees of other participating governmental units, or persons entitled to coverage 07 under AS 23.15.136, subject to the following conditions: 08 (1) a group insurance policy shall provide one or more of the following 09 benefits: life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, weekly 10 indemnity insurance, hospital expense insurance, surgical expense insurance, dental 11 expense insurance, audiovisual insurance, or other medical care insurance; 12 (2) each eligible employee of the state or other participating 13 governmental unit and [,] the spouse and the unmarried children chiefly dependent 14 on the eligible employee for support [, AND EACH ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEE OF 15 ANOTHER PARTICIPATING GOVERNMENTAL UNIT] shall be covered by the 16 group policy, unless exempt under regulations adopted by the commissioner of 17 administration; 18 (3) a governmental unit may participate under a group policy if 19 (A) its governing body adopts a resolution authorizing 20 participation and payment of required premiums; 21 (B) a certified copy of the resolution is filed with the 22 Department of Administration; and 23 (C) the commissioner of administration approves the 24 participation in writing; 25 (4) in procuring a policy of group health or group life insurance as 26 provided under this section or excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091, the 27 Department of Administration shall comply with the dual choice requirements of 28 AS 21.86.310, and shall obtain the insurance policy from an insurer authorized to 29 transact business in the state under AS 21.09, a hospital or medical service corporation 30 authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87, or a health maintenance 31 organization authorized to operate in this state under AS 21.86; an excess loss
01 insurance policy may be obtained from a life or health insurer authorized to transact 02 business in this state under AS 21.09 or from a hospital or medical service corporation 03 authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87; 04 (5) the Department of Administration shall make available bid 05 specifications for desired insurance benefits or for administration of benefit claims and 06 payments to (A) all insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state 07 under AS 21.09 and all hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact 08 business under AS 21.87 who are qualified to provide the desired benefits; and (B) 09 insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09, hospital 10 or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87, and 11 third-party administrators licensed to transact business in this state and qualified to 12 provide administrative services; the specifications shall be made available at least once 13 every five years; the lowest responsible bid submitted by an insurance carrier, hospital 14 or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator with adequate servicing 15 facilities shall govern selection of a carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or 16 third-party administrator under this section or the selection of an insurance carrier or a 17 hospital or medical service corporation to provide excess loss insurance as provided in 18 AS 39.30.091; 19 (6) if the aggregate of dividends payable under the group insurance 20 policy exceeds the governmental unit's share of the premium, the excess shall be 21 applied by the governmental unit for the sole benefit of the employees; 22 (7) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25.110, AS 22.25, 23 AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may continue the life insurance coverage that was in 24 effect under this section at the time of termination of employment with the state or 25 participating governmental unit; 26 (8) a person electing to have insurance under (7) of this subsection 27 shall pay the cost of this insurance; 28 (9) for each permanent part-time employee electing coverage under 29 this section, the state shall contribute one-half the state contribution rate for permanent 30 full-time state employees, and the permanent part-time employee shall contribute the 31 other one-half;
01 (10) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, 02 or former AS 39.37 may obtain auditory, visual, and dental insurance for that person 03 and eligible dependents under this section; the level of coverage for persons over 65 04 shall be the same as that available before reaching age 65 except that the benefits 05 payable shall be supplemental to any benefits provided under the federal old age, 06 survivors, and disability insurance program; a person electing to have insurance under 07 this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance; the commissioner of administration 08 shall adopt regulations implementing this paragraph; 09 (11) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, 10 or former AS 39.37 may obtain long-term care insurance for that person and eligible 11 dependents under this section; a person who elects insurance under this paragraph 12 shall pay the cost of the insurance premium; the commissioner of administration shall 13 adopt regulations to implement this paragraph; 14 (12) each licensee holding a current operating agreement for a vending 15 facility under AS 23.15.010 - 23.15.210 shall be covered by the group policy that 16 applies to governmental units other than the state. 17 * Sec. 6. AS 39.30.090(b)(2) is amended to read: 18 (2) "governmental unit" means the state, a municipality, a school 19 district, the University of Alaska, or other political subdivision of the state, and the 20 North Pacific Fishery Management Council; 21 * Sec. 7. AS 39.30.090(b) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 22 (4) "school district" means a municipal school district or regional 23 educational attendance area. 24 * Sec. 8. AS 39.30.090 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 25 (c) When the Department of Administration receives a resolution from a 26 governmental unit authorizing participation under a state group insurance policy, 27 before the commissioner of administration approves the participation, the department 28 shall investigate the potential cost of admitting the unit, including whether as a result 29 of admitting the unit the rates of eligible employees will increase or decrease, and 30 provide actuarial analysis to the legislature. 31 * Sec. 9. AS 39.30.091 is amended to read:
01 Sec. 39.30.091. Authorization for self-insurance and excess loss insurance. 02 Notwithstanding AS 21.86.310 or AS 39.30.090, the Department of Administration 03 may provide, by means of self-insurance, one or more of the benefits listed in 04 AS 39.30.090(a)(1) for [STATE] employees eligible under AS 39.30.090(a) [FOR 05 THE BENEFITS BY LAW] or under a collective bargaining agreement and for 06 persons receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37, 07 and their dependents. The department shall procure any necessary excess loss 08 insurance under AS 39.30.090. 09 * Sec. 10. AS 39.30.091 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 10 (b) If the department is required by (a) of this section to procure excess loss 11 insurance in connection with coverage of employees who are not state employees, the 12 department may allocate the cost of that insurance across all employers, other than the 13 state, that participate in self-insurance provided by the department under this section. 14 * Sec. 11. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 15 read: 16 APPLICABILITY. Sections 1 - 10 of this Act apply to a contract or collective 17 bargaining agreement that becomes legally binding on or after the effective date of secs. 1 - 18 10 of this Act. 19 * Sec. 12. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 20 read: 21 TRANSITION. Not later than 30 days after enrolling in a health care plan 22 administered by the state under AS 39.30.090 or 39.30.091, a governmental unit that, before 23 the effective date of this section, maintains a self-funded insurance reserve for the purpose of 24 paying employee health insurance claims shall transfer the closing balance of that reserve to 25 the group health and life benefits fund established under AS 39.30.095. An amount 26 transferred under this section by a governmental unit that is a school district shall be applied 27 to offset reimbursement owed by that school district under AS 14.27.010(d), enacted by sec. 3 28 of this Act. If the amount transferred exceeds the amount necessary to offset the 29 reimbursement owed, the excess shall be applied to reduce the rate of employee contribution 30 set by the commissioner of administration under AS 39.30.095 and required under 31 AS 14.27.010(b). In this section, "governmental unit" has the meaning given in
01 AS 39.30.090(b). 02 * Sec. 13. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 03 read: 04 REGULATIONS. The commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations 05 necessary to implement the changes made by this Act. The regulations may not take effect 06 before the effective date of the law implemented by the regulation. 07 * Sec. 14. Sections 12 and 13 of this Act take effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c). 08 * Sec. 15. Except as provided in sec. 14 of this Act, this Act takes effect July 1, 2025.