2001-06-07                     House Journal                      Page 1802
HB 149                                                                                            
The following letter, dated May 29, 2001, was received:                                             
                                                                                                    
"Dear Speaker Porter:                                                                               
                                                                                                    
On this date I have signed the following bill passed by the first session                           
of the Twenty-second Alaska State Legislature and am transmitting                                   
the engrossed and enrolled copies to the Lieutenant Governor's Office                               
for permanent filing:                                                                               
                                                                                                    
              SENATE CS FOR CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 149(FIN) am S                                    
     "An Act expressing legislative intent regarding correctional                                   
     facility space; relating to correctional facility space; authorizing                           
     the Department of Corrections to enter into an agreement to lease                              
     facilities for the confinement and care of prisoners within the                                
        Kenai Peninsula Borough; and providing for an effective date."                             
                                                                                                    
     Chapter No. 32, SLA 2001                                                                       
     [Effective Date:  June 1, 2001]                                                                
                                                                                                    

2001-06-07                     House Journal                      Page 1803
My action on this legislation will enable the Department of                                         
Corrections to continue working with the Kenai Peninsula Borough to                                 
help meet the State's need for prison beds in Alaska.                                               
                                                                                                    
In deciding to sign this bill, I have weighed the five long-standing                                
principles by which my Administration has measured proposed prison                                  
expansion in Alaska.  They are:                                                                     
                                                                                                    
     · Protecting the public's safety;                                                              
     · Consistency with best correctional practices;                                                
     · Community participation through government-to-government                                     
          transactions;                                                                             
     · Addressing statewide and regional needs; and                                                 
     · Cost-effectiveness.                                                                          
                                                                                                    
                                                                                                    
If this proposed prison is to proceed, it will do so only if the Kenai                              
Peninsula Borough continues the government-to-government                                            
relationship it has established with the state on this project.  In turn,                           
those negotiations will proceed only if the state Department of                                     
Corrections is assured the public safety will be protected through the                              
use of best correctional practices.  It is important to note that this bill                         
says the commissioner may order the Borough to terminate its contract                               
with a private, third-party prison vendor if that vendor is not operating                           
a safe or secure facility.                                                                          
                                                                                                    
As for statewide and regional needs, this bill represents a step in the                             
right direction but is far from complete.  My Administration will                                   
continue to advocate jail and prison expansion in other regions of                                  
Alaska.  However, the Kenai area is on the Department's list for more                               
needed beds.  In addition, because the state has contracted for years                               
with a private prison operator in Arizona to house Alaska inmates, I                                
believe it is of statewide interest and importance to bring those dollars,                          
those jobs, and those inmates back to Alaska.  If this project is                                   
completed, the Legislature and this and subsequent administrations                                  
must continue to work together to build more beds, find alternatives to                             
prison where appropriate, and do all we can to reduce future inmate                                 
populations through well-funded early childhood and education                                       
programs.                                                                                           
                                                                                                    

2001-06-07                     House Journal                      Page 1804
The cost-effectiveness of this project is protected through another                                 
clause in the bill that says the Department of Corrections "may" enter                              
into an agreement with the Borough to lease prison beds.  As the                                    
Department has stated, any such agreement must describe how to                                      
maximize the purchasing value of public funds spent on the design,                                  
construction and operation of the proposed prison.  Negotiations on                                 
such an agreement, should the project move forward, will involve the                                
good-faith efforts of both the Department and the Borough to protect                                
the financial interests of the citizens of the State of Alaska and the                              
Kenai Peninsula Borough.  Borough Mayor Dale Bagley, in a May 25                                    
letter to Corrections Commissioner Margaret Pugh, acknowledges                                      
their mutual responsibilities: "Once HB 149 is signed into law, we                                  
could then continue the discussion we began earlier this week                                       
concerning how we can meet your five principles, as well as our                                     
mutual fiduciary duties."                                                                           
                                                                                                    
My signature on this bill continues the process by which a prison                                   
could be built.  Many steps remain to accomplish this goal, including                               
development of an intergovernmental agreement as well as negotiation                                
of necessary agreements regarding the lease and operation of such a                                 
prison facility.  Those steps, coupled with the permissive nature of the                            
legislation and the fact that the local assembly and Legislature have                               
voted favorably for the project, all lead me to the conclusion to                                   
proceed with the possibility of a new prison facility being constructed                             
in the Kenai Peninsula Borough.                                                                     
                                                                                                    
                                  Sincerely,                                                       
                                 /s/                                                                
                                 Tony Knowles                                                       
                                  Governor"