Legislature(2017 - 2018)
2017-03-13 House Journal
Full Journal pdf2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0471 HB 23 The following, which was held to today's calendar (page 456), was read the second time: HOUSE BILL NO. 23 "An Act relating to major medical insurance coverage under the Public Employees' Retirement System of Alaska for certain surviving spouses and dependent children of peace officers and firefighters; and providing for an effective date." with the: Journal Page FIN RPT CS(FIN) NT 7DP 3AM 288 FN1: ZERO(ADM) 289 FN2: ZERO(DPS) 289 FN3: (GOV/FUND CAP) 289 Representative Tuck moved and asked unanimous consent that the following committee substitute be adopted in lieu of the original bill: 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0472 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 23(FIN) "An Act creating a fund in the Department of Public Safety; providing for payment of certain medical insurance premiums for surviving dependents of certain peace officers or firefighters who die in the line of duty; and providing for an effective date." There being no objection, it was so ordered. Amendment No. 1 was offered by Representative Wilson: Page 1, line 2 (title amendment): Following "of certain": Insert "state employees," Following "officers": Insert "," Page 1, following line 4: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Section 1. AS 39.30.090(a) is amended to read: (a) The Department of Administration may obtain a policy or policies of group insurance covering state employees, persons entitled to coverage under AS 14.25.168, 14.25.480, AS 22.25.090, AS 39.35.535, 39.35.880, or former AS 39.37.145, employees of other participating governmental units, or persons entitled to coverage under AS 23.15.136, subject to the following conditions: (1) a group insurance policy shall provide one or more of the following benefits: life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, weekly indemnity insurance, hospital expense insurance, surgical expense insurance, dental expense insurance, audiovisual insurance, or other medical care insurance; (2) each eligible employee of the state, the spouse and the unmarried children chiefly dependent on the eligible employee for support, [AND] each eligible employee of another participating governmental unit, and each person who is eligible for coverage under (13) of this subsection shall be covered by the group policy, unless exempt under regulations adopted by the commissioner of administration; (3) a governmental unit may participate under a group policy if 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0473 (A) its governing body adopts a resolution authorizing participation and payment of required premiums; (B) a certified copy of the resolution is filed with the Department of Administration; and (C) the commissioner of administration approves the participation in writing; (4) in procuring a policy of group health or group life insurance as provided under this section or excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091, the Department of Administration shall comply with the dual choice requirements of AS 21.86.310, and shall obtain the insurance policy from an insurer authorized to transact business in the state under AS 21.09, a hospital or medical service corporation authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87, or a health maintenance organization authorized to operate in this state under AS 21.86; an excess loss insurance policy may be obtained from a life or health insurer authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09 or from a hospital or medical service corporation authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87; (5) the Department of Administration shall make available bid specifications for desired insurance benefits or for administration of benefit claims and payments to (A) all insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09 and all hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87 who are qualified to provide the desired benefits; and (B) insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09, hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87, and third-party administrators licensed to transact business in this state and qualified to provide administrative services; the specifications shall be made available at least once every five years; the lowest responsible bid submitted by an insurance carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator with adequate servicing facilities shall govern selection of a carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator under this section or the selection of an insurance carrier or a hospital or medical service corporation to provide excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091; (6) if the aggregate of dividends payable under the group 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0474 insurance policy exceeds the governmental unit's share of the premium, the excess shall be applied by the governmental unit for the sole benefit of the employees; (7) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25.110, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may continue the life insurance coverage that was in effect under this section at the time of termination of employment with the state or participating governmental unit; (8) a person electing to have insurance under (7) of this subsection shall pay the cost of this insurance; (9) for each permanent part-time employee electing coverage under this section, the state shall contribute one-half the state contribution rate for permanent full-time state employees, and the permanent part-time employee shall contribute the other one-half; (10) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may obtain auditory, visual, and dental insurance for that person and eligible dependents under this section; the level of coverage for persons over 65 shall be the same as that available before reaching age 65 except that the benefits payable shall be supplemental to any benefits provided under the federal old age, survivors, and disability insurance program; a person electing to have insurance under this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance; the commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations implementing this paragraph; (11) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may obtain long-term care insurance for that person and eligible dependents under this section; a person who elects insurance under this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance premium; the commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations to implement this paragraph; (12) each licensee holding a current operating agreement for a vending facility under AS 23.15.010 - 23.15.210 shall be covered by the group policy that applies to governmental units other than the state; (13) each person who is eligible to receive a benefit under AS 39.35.430 or 39.35.892 as the surviving spouse or dependent child of an employee is eligible for employee 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0475 coverage under the policy of group insurance under this subsection, AS 39.30.091, or 39.30.095 that covered the employee not withstanding a provision of those sections to the contrary; this paragraph does not apply to a surviving spouse who is eligible for Medicare. * Sec. 2. AS 39.30.095 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: (g) Notwithstanding (b) and (e) of this section, for the cost of providing benefits under AS 39.30.090(a)(13), the commissioner of administration shall set the rate of employer contribution at 100 percent." Page 1, line 5: Delete "Section 1" Insert "Sec. 3" Renumber the following bill sections accordingly. Page 1, line 6, following "of": Insert "Municipal" Page 1, line 13, following "firefighter": Insert "who was employed by a municipality" Page 2, line 12: Delete "The" Insert "Subject to AS 39.60.050 - 39.60.070, the" Page 2, lines 13 - 14: Delete "medical insurance premiums for a surviving dependent of a state employee who is eligible under AS 39.60.040," Page 2, lines 25 - 26: Delete all material and insert: "(1) at the time of death, the employee was not covered by a policy obtained under AS 39.30.090 or 39.30.095 that provided major medical coverage, and was a full-time employee of a municipality that has elected to participate under AS 39.60.050;" 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0476 Page 3, line 16, following "made": Insert ", for an employee of a municipality that has elected to participate under AS 39.60.050 and complies with AS 39.60.050 - 39.60.070," Page 3, lines 18 - 22: Delete all material and insert: "(1) the commissioner shall pay 50 percent for an eligible surviving dependent of a deceased employee of a small municipality;" Page 3, following line 26: Insert new sections to read: "Sec. 39.60.050. Municipal election to participate in peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund. (a) A municipality may elect to participate in the fund by entering into an agreement with the commissioner that is consistent with AS 39.60.070. If a municipality elects to participate in the fund, the commissioner shall determine the amount and frequency of the municipality's required contributions to the fund based on the anticipated cost of the municipality's participation, including the department's cost of administering the agreement under this subsection. (b) The commissioner shall administer agreements entered into under (a) of this section. (c) A surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter who died while employed by a municipality is not eligible for payments from the fund unless the municipality elects to participate in the fund and is in compliance with an agreement entered into under (a) of this section. Sec. 39.60.060. Eligibility of municipal peace officers and firefighters. (a) Notwithstanding AS 39.60.050(c), the commissioner may determine that a surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter who was employed by a municipality is eligible for premium payments under AS 39.60.040(b), if the municipality elects to participate in the fund after the employee's death and is in compliance with the terms of an agreement entered into under AS 39.60.050(a). (b) If a municipality enters into an agreement under AS 39.60.050(a) and fails to meet a requirement of that agreement, including a requirement under AS 39.60.070, the 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0477 commissioner may determine that a surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter employed by a municipality who would otherwise be eligible for payments from the fund under AS 39.60.040(b) is ineligible and deny payment from the fund until the commissioner determines all requirements of the agreement are satisfied. Sec. 39.60.070. Terms of agreement by municipality to participate in fund. An agreement under AS 39.60.050(a) for a municipality to participate in the fund must require that the municipality (1) contribute to the fund as determined by the commissioner under AS 39.60.050(a); (2) is current with contributions required under this section; and (3) complies with applicable regulations adopted by the commissioner." Page 4, line 27: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 3 and 4" Page 4, line 28: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 3 and 4" Page 4, line 30: Delete "Section 3" Insert "Section 5" Page 4, line 31: Delete "sec. 4" Insert "sec. 6" Representative Wilson moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 1 be adopted. Representative Josephson objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 1 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0478 CSHB 23(FIN) Second Reading Amendment No. 1 YEAS: 10 NAYS: 30 EXCUSED: 0 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Chenault, Eastman, Johnson, Rauscher, Reinbold, Saddler, Talerico, Thompson, Tilton, Wilson Nays: Birch, Claman, Drummond, Edgmon, Fansler, Foster, Gara, Grenn, Guttenberg, Johnston, Josephson, Kawasaki, Kito, Knopp, Kopp, Kreiss-Tomkins, LeDoux, Millett, Neuman, Ortiz, Parish, Pruitt, Seaton, Spohnholz, Stutes, Sullivan-Leonard, Tarr, Tuck, Westlake, Wool And so, Amendment No. 1 was not adopted. Amendment No. 2 was offered by Representative Eastman: Page 1, lines 2 - 3 (title amendment): Delete "certain peace officers or firefighters" Insert "law enforcement employees, firefighters, and public safety support employees" Page 1, line 6: Delete "Peace Officers and Firefighters" Insert "Law Enforcement Employees, Firefighters, and Public Safety Support Employees" Page 1, line 7: Delete "Peace officer and firefighter" Insert "Law enforcement employee, firefighter, and public safety support employee" Page 1, line 9: Delete "peace officers and firefighters" Insert "law enforcement employees, firefighters, and public safety support employees" Page 1, line 10: Delete "Peace officer and firefighter" Insert "Law enforcement employee, firefighter, and public safety support employee" 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0479 Page 1, line 11: Delete "peace officer and firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, and public safety support employee" Page 1, line 13: Delete "peace officer or firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, or public safety support employee" Page 2, line 1: Delete "peace officer or firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, or public safety support employee" Page 2, line 17 - 18: Delete "peace officers and firefighters" Insert "law enforcement employees, firefighters, or public safety support employees" Page 2, line 19: Delete "peace officer or firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, or public safety support employee" Page 2, lines 23 - 24: Delete "peace officer or firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, or public safety support employee" Page 4, following line 6: Insert a new paragraph to read: "(7) "investigator" means an employee, other than a firefighter, in a position that requires the employee to investigate matters of law enforcement or public safety regularly for a law enforcement agency or fire department;" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 4, following line 9: 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0480 Insert a new paragraph to read: "(9) "law enforcement employee" means an employee occupying a position as a (A) probation officer; (B) parole officer; (C) prosecutor; (D) peace officer; (E) investigator; (F) fire marshal or deputy fire marshal; (G) University of Alaska public safety officer with general police powers authorized under AS 14.40.043; (H) officer or employee of the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities who is stationed at an international airport and has been designated to have the general police powers authorized under AS 02.15.230(a);" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 4, following line 12: Insert a new paragraph to read: "(11) "public safety support employee" means an employee occupying a position (A) as a law enforcement or public safety dispatcher; (B) as a crime law technician; (C) that requires the employee (i) regularly to serve at a duty station at a state or municipal park; and (ii) to assist a peace officer or firefighter with enforcing the law;" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 4, lines 19 - 20: Delete "peace officer and firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, and public safety support employee" Page 4, lines 22 - 23: Delete "peace officer and firefighter" Insert "law enforcement employee, firefighter, and public safety support employee" 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0481 Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 2 be adopted. Representative Josephson objected. Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent to withdraw Amendment No. 2. There being no objection, it was so ordered. Amendment No. 3 was offered by Representative Wilson: Page 3, line 5: Delete "(1)" Page 3, line 6: Delete "; or" Insert "or 10 years after the date of the employee's death." Page 3, line 7: Delete all material. Representative Wilson moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 3 be adopted. Representative Millett objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 3 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 23(FIN) Second Reading Amendment No. 3 YEAS: 11 NAYS: 29 EXCUSED: 0 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Birch, Eastman, Johnson, Johnston, Knopp, Pruitt, Reinbold, Saddler, Sullivan-Leonard, Tilton, Wilson Nays: Chenault, Claman, Drummond, Edgmon, Fansler, Foster, Gara, Grenn, Guttenberg, Josephson, Kawasaki, Kito, Kopp, Kreiss-Tomkins, LeDoux, Millett, Neuman, Ortiz, Parish, Rauscher, Seaton, Spohnholz, Stutes, Talerico, Tarr, Thompson, Tuck, Westlake, Wool 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0482 And so, Amendment No. 3 was not adopted. Amendment No. 4 was offered by Representative Wilson: Page 1, line 8: Delete "the" Insert "participating" Page 2, line 16, following "fund.": Insert "The commissioner may not pay a premium for an eligible dependent of a municipal employee from the fund unless the municipal employer has paid the corresponding amount of premium payable by the municipality under AS 39.60.040(e)." Representative Wilson moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 4 be adopted. Representative Josephson objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 4 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 23(FIN) Second Reading Amendment No. 4 YEAS: 15 NAYS: 25 EXCUSED: 0 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Birch, Chenault, Eastman, Johnson, Johnston, Knopp, Neuman, Pruitt, Rauscher, Saddler, Sullivan-Leonard, Talerico, Thompson, Tilton, Wilson Nays: Claman, Drummond, Edgmon, Fansler, Foster, Gara, Grenn, Guttenberg, Josephson, Kawasaki, Kito, Kopp, Kreiss-Tomkins, LeDoux, Millett, Ortiz, Parish, Reinbold, Seaton, Spohnholz, Stutes, Tarr, Tuck, Westlake, Wool And so, Amendment No. 4 was not adopted. Amendment No. 5 was offered by Representative Eastman: 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0483 Page 1, line 2 (title amendment): Following "of certain": Insert "state employees," Following "officers": Insert "," Page 1, following line 4: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Section 1. AS 37.05.146(c) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: (90) receipts of the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund under AS 39.60. * Sec. 2. AS 39.30.090(a) is amended to read: (a) The Department of Administration may obtain a policy or policies of group insurance covering state employees, persons entitled to coverage under AS 14.25.168, 14.25.480, AS 22.25.090, AS 39.35.535, 39.35.880, or former AS 39.37.145, employees of other participating governmental units, or persons entitled to coverage under AS 23.15.136, subject to the following conditions: (1) a group insurance policy shall provide one or more of the following benefits: life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, weekly indemnity insurance, hospital expense insurance, surgical expense insurance, dental expense insurance, audiovisual insurance, or other medical care insurance; (2) each eligible employee of the state, the spouse and the unmarried children chiefly dependent on the eligible employee for support, [AND] each eligible employee of another participating governmental unit, and each person who is eligible for coverage as the result of an election made under (13) of this subsection shall be covered by the group policy, unless exempt under regulations adopted by the commissioner of administration; (3) a governmental unit may participate under a group policy if (A) its governing body adopts a resolution authorizing participation and payment of required premiums; (B) a certified copy of the resolution is filed with the Department of Administration; and (C) the commissioner of administration approves the 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0484 participation in writing; (4) in procuring a policy of group health or group life insurance as provided under this section or excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091, the Department of Administration shall comply with the dual choice requirements of AS 21.86.310, and shall obtain the insurance policy from an insurer authorized to transact business in the state under AS 21.09, a hospital or medical service corporation authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87, or a health maintenance organization authorized to operate in this state under AS 21.86; an excess loss insurance policy may be obtained from a life or health insurer authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09 or from a hospital or medical service corporation authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87; (5) the Department of Administration shall make available bid specifications for desired insurance benefits or for administration of benefit claims and payments to (A) all insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09 and all hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87 who are qualified to provide the desired benefits; and (B) insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09, hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87, and third-party administrators licensed to transact business in this state and qualified to provide administrative services; the specifications shall be made available at least once every five years; the lowest responsible bid submitted by an insurance carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator with adequate servicing facilities shall govern selection of a carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator under this section or the selection of an insurance carrier or a hospital or medical service corporation to provide excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091; (6) if the aggregate of dividends payable under the group insurance policy exceeds the governmental unit's share of the premium, the excess shall be applied by the governmental unit for the sole benefit of the employees; (7) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25.110, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may continue the life 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0485 insurance coverage that was in effect under this section at the time of termination of employment with the state or participating governmental unit; (8) a person electing to have insurance under (7) of this subsection shall pay the cost of this insurance; (9) for each permanent part-time employee electing coverage under this section, the state shall contribute one-half the state contribution rate for permanent full-time state employees, and the permanent part-time employee shall contribute the other one-half; (10) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may obtain auditory, visual, and dental insurance for that person and eligible dependents under this section; the level of coverage for persons over 65 shall be the same as that available before reaching age 65 except that the benefits payable shall be supplemental to any benefits provided under the federal old age, survivors, and disability insurance program; a person electing to have insurance under this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance; the commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations implementing this paragraph; (11) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may obtain long-term care insurance for that person and eligible dependents under this section; a person who elects insurance under this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance premium; the commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations to implement this paragraph; (12) each licensee holding a current operating agreement for a vending facility under AS 23.15.010 - 23.15.210 shall be covered by the group policy that applies to governmental units other than the state; (13) subject to (14) and (15) of this subsection, an employee of the state who is covered by a policy of group medical insurance under this section, AS 39.30.091, or 39.30.095 may elect coverage that extends the benefits provided beyond the date of the employee's death to cover a surviving spouse or dependent child of the employee who is eligible to receive a benefit under AS 39.35.530 or 39.35.892 and is not eligible for Medicare; 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0486 (14) an employee who elects extended coverage under (13) of this subsection shall contribute monthly, by automatic payroll deduction, an amount determined by the commissioner of administration under (15) of this subsection; (15) the commissioner of administration shall determine the amount of the employee contribution under (14) of this subsection based on the increase in the premium costs payable by the state as a result of including in a policy of group medical insurance under this section, AS 39.30.091, or 39.30.095, the benefit for persons eligible for coverage as the result of an election made under (13) of this subsection. * Sec. 3. AS 39.30.095 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: (g) Notwithstanding (b) and (e) of this section, for the cost of providing benefits to an eligible surviving spouse or dependent child under AS 39.30.090(a)(13), the commissioner of administration shall set the rate of employer contribution at 100 percent." Page 1, line 5: Delete "Section 1" Insert "Sec. 4" Renumber the following bill sections accordingly. Page 1, line 6, following "of": Insert "Municipal" Page 1, line 7: Delete "Peace" Insert "Municipal peace" Page 1, line 10: Delete "Peace" Insert "Municipal peace" Page 1, line 13: Following the first occurrence of "a": Insert "municipal" Following "firefighter": 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0487 Insert "who was employed by a municipality" Page 2, line 2: Delete "and other money" Page 2, line 3: Delete "The legislature may appropriate money to the fund." Page 2, line 12: Delete "The" Insert "Subject to AS 39.60.050 - 39.60.070, the" Page 2, lines 13 - 14: Delete "medical insurance premiums for a surviving dependent of a state employee who is eligible under AS 39.60.040," Page 2, lines 25 - 26: Delete all material and insert: "(1) at the time of death, the employee was not covered by a policy obtained under AS 39.30.090 or 39.30.095 that provided major medical coverage, and was a full-time employee of a municipality that has elected to participate under AS 39.60.050;" Page 3, following line 4: Insert a new paragraph to read: "(1) has received the premium payments for 10 years;" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 3, following line 10: Insert a new paragraph to read: "(1) has received the premium payments for 10 years;" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 3, line 14, following "(e)": Insert "A municipality that has elected to participate under AS 39.60.050 shall pay 100 percent of the premium payable under this section." 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0488 Page 3, lines 16 - 26: Delete "as follows: (1) the commissioner shall pay (A) 100 percent for an eligible surviving dependent of a deceased state employee; (B) 50 percent for an eligible surviving dependent of a deceased employee of a small municipality; (2) a large municipality shall pay 100 percent for an eligible surviving dependent of a deceased employee of that municipality; and (3) A small municipality shall pay 50 percent for an eligible surviving dependent of a deceased employee of that small municipality" Page 3, following line 26: Insert new sections to read: "Sec. 39.60.050. Municipal election to participate in peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund. (a) A municipality may elect to participate in the fund by entering into an agreement with the commissioner that is consistent with AS 39.60.070. If a municipality elects to participate in the fund, the commissioner shall determine the amount and frequency of the municipality's required contributions to the fund based on the anticipated cost of the municipality's participation, including the department's cost of administering the agreement under this subsection. (b) The commissioner shall administer agreements entered into under (a) of this section. (c) A surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter who died while employed by a municipality is not eligible for payments from the fund unless the municipality elects to participate in the fund and is in compliance with an agreement entered into under (a) of this section. Sec. 39.60.060. Eligibility of municipal peace officers and firefighters. If a municipality enters into an agreement under AS 39.60.050(a) and fails to meet a requirement of that agreement, including a requirement under AS 39.60.070, the commissioner may determine that a surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter employed by a municipality who would otherwise be eligible for payments from the fund under AS 39.60.040(b) is ineligible and deny payment from the fund 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0489 until the commissioner determines all requirements of the agreement are satisfied. Sec. 39.60.070. Terms of agreement by municipality to participate in fund. An agreement under AS 39.60.050(a) for a municipality to participate in the fund must require that the municipality (1) contribute to the fund as determined by the commissioner under AS 39.60.050(a); (2) is current with contributions required under this section; and (3) complies with applicable regulations adopted by the commissioner." Page 4, line 27: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 4 and 5" Page 4, line 28: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 4 and 5" Page 4, line 30: Delete "Section 3" Insert "Section 6" Page 4, line 31: Delete "sec. 4" Insert "sec. 7" Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 5 be adopted. Representative Josephson objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 5 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 23(FIN) Second Reading Amendment No. 5 YEAS: 12 NAYS: 28 EXCUSED: 0 ABSENT: 0 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0490 Yeas: Birch, Chenault, Eastman, Johnson, Johnston, Rauscher, Reinbold, Saddler, Talerico, Thompson, Tilton, Wilson Nays: Claman, Drummond, Edgmon, Fansler, Foster, Gara, Grenn, Guttenberg, Josephson, Kawasaki, Kito, Knopp, Kopp, Kreiss-Tomkins, LeDoux, Millett, Neuman, Ortiz, Parish, Pruitt, Seaton, Spohnholz, Stutes, Sullivan-Leonard, Tarr, Tuck, Westlake, Wool And so, Amendment No. 5 was not adopted. Amendment No. 6 was offered by Representative Eastman: Page 1, line 2 (title amendment): Following "of certain": Insert "state employees," Following "officers": Insert "," Page 1, following line 4: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Section 1. AS 37.05.146(c) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: (90) receipts of the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund under AS 39.60. * Sec. 2. AS 39.30.090(a) is amended to read: (a) The Department of Administration may obtain a policy or policies of group insurance covering state employees, persons entitled to coverage under AS 14.25.168, 14.25.480, AS 22.25.090, AS 39.35.535, 39.35.880, or former AS 39.37.145, employees of other participating governmental units, or persons entitled to coverage under AS 23.15.136, subject to the following conditions: (1) a group insurance policy shall provide one or more of the following benefits: life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, weekly indemnity insurance, hospital expense insurance, surgical expense insurance, dental expense insurance, audiovisual insurance, or other medical care insurance; (2) each eligible employee of the state, the spouse and the unmarried children chiefly dependent on the eligible employee for support, [AND] each eligible employee of another 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0491 participating governmental unit, and each person who is eligible for coverage under (13) of this subsection shall be covered by the group policy, unless exempt under regulations adopted by the commissioner of administration; (3) a governmental unit may participate under a group policy if (A) its governing body adopts a resolution authorizing participation and payment of required premiums; (B) a certified copy of the resolution is filed with the Department of Administration; and (C) the commissioner of administration approves the participation in writing; (4) in procuring a policy of group health or group life insurance as provided under this section or excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091, the Department of Administration shall comply with the dual choice requirements of AS 21.86.310, and shall obtain the insurance policy from an insurer authorized to transact business in the state under AS 21.09, a hospital or medical service corporation authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87, or a health maintenance organization authorized to operate in this state under AS 21.86; an excess loss insurance policy may be obtained from a life or health insurer authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09 or from a hospital or medical service corporation authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.87; (5) the Department of Administration shall make available bid specifications for desired insurance benefits or for administration of benefit claims and payments to (A) all insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09 and all hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87 who are qualified to provide the desired benefits; and (B) insurance carriers authorized to transact business in this state under AS 21.09, hospital or medical service corporations authorized to transact business under AS 21.87, and third-party administrators licensed to transact business in this state and qualified to provide administrative services; the specifications shall be made available at least once every five years; the lowest responsible bid submitted by an insurance carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator with adequate servicing facilities shall 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0492 govern selection of a carrier, hospital or medical service corporation, or third-party administrator under this section or the selection of an insurance carrier or a hospital or medical service corporation to provide excess loss insurance as provided in AS 39.30.091; (6) if the aggregate of dividends payable under the group insurance policy exceeds the governmental unit's share of the premium, the excess shall be applied by the governmental unit for the sole benefit of the employees; (7) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25.110, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may continue the life insurance coverage that was in effect under this section at the time of termination of employment with the state or participating governmental unit; (8) a person electing to have insurance under (7) of this subsection shall pay the cost of this insurance; (9) for each permanent part-time employee electing coverage under this section, the state shall contribute one-half the state contribution rate for permanent full-time state employees, and the permanent part-time employee shall contribute the other one-half; (10) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may obtain auditory, visual, and dental insurance for that person and eligible dependents under this section; the level of coverage for persons over 65 shall be the same as that available before reaching age 65 except that the benefits payable shall be supplemental to any benefits provided under the federal old age, survivors, and disability insurance program; a person electing to have insurance under this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance; the commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations implementing this paragraph; (11) a person receiving benefits under AS 14.25, AS 22.25, AS 39.35, or former AS 39.37 may obtain long-term care insurance for that person and eligible dependents under this section; a person who elects insurance under this paragraph shall pay the cost of the insurance premium; the commissioner of administration shall adopt regulations to implement this paragraph; (12) each licensee holding a current operating agreement 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0493 for a vending facility under AS 23.15.010 - 23.15.210 shall be covered by the group policy that applies to governmental units other than the state; (13) each person who is eligible to receive a benefit under AS 39.35.430 or 39.35.892 as the surviving spouse or dependent child of an employee is eligible for employee coverage under the policy of group insurance under this subsection, AS 39.30.091, or 39.30.095 that covered the employee notwithstanding a provision of those sections to the contrary; this paragraph does not apply to a surviving spouse who is eligible for Medicare. * Sec. 3. AS 39.30.095 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: (g) Notwithstanding (b) and (e) of this section, for the cost of providing benefits under AS 39.30.090(a)(13), the commissioner of administration shall set the rate of employer contribution at 100 percent." Page 1, line 5: Delete "Section 1" Insert "Sec. 4" Renumber the following bill sections accordingly. Page 1, line 6, following "of": Insert "Municipal" Page 1, line 7, following "Sec. 39.60.005.": Insert "Municipal" Page 1, line 10, following "Sec. 39.60.010.": Insert "Municipal" Page 1, line 13: Following the first occurrence of "a": Insert "municipal" Following "firefighter": Insert "who was employed by a municipality" Page 2, line 2: Delete "and other money" 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0494 Page 2, line 3: Delete "The legislature may appropriate money to the fund." Page 2, line 12: Delete "The" Insert "Subject to AS 39.60.050 - 39.60.070, the" Page 2, lines 13 - 14: Delete "medical insurance premiums for a surviving dependent of a state employee who is eligible under AS 39.60.040," Page 2, lines 25 - 26: Delete all material and insert: "(1) at the time of death, the employee was not covered by a policy obtained under AS 39.30.090 or 39.30.095 that provided major medical coverage, and was a full-time employee of a municipality that has elected to participate under AS 39.60.050;" Page 3, following line 4: Insert a new paragraph to read: "(1) has received the premium payments for 10 years;" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 3, following line 10: Insert a new paragraph to read: "(1) has received the premium payments for 10 years;" Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 3, line 16, following "made": Insert ", for an employee of a municipality that has elected to participate under AS 39.60.050 and complies with AS 39.60.050 - 39.60.070," Page 3, lines 18 - 22: Delete all material and insert: "(1) the commissioner shall pay 50 percent for an eligible surviving dependent of a deceased employee of a small municipality;" 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0495 Page 3, following line 26: Insert new sections to read: "Sec. 39.60.050. Municipal election to participate in peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund. (a) A municipality may elect to participate in the fund by entering into an agreement with the commissioner that is consistent with AS 39.60.070. If a municipality elects to participate in the fund, the commissioner shall determine the amount and frequency of the municipality's required contributions to the fund based on the anticipated cost of the municipality's participation, including the department's cost of administering the agreement under this subsection. (b) The commissioner shall administer agreements entered into under (a) of this section. (c) A surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter who died while employed by a municipality is not eligible for payments from the fund unless the municipality elects to participate in the fund and is in compliance with an agreement entered into under (a) of this section. Sec. 39.60.060. Eligibility of municipal peace officers and firefighters. (a) Notwithstanding AS 39.60.050(c), the commissioner may determine that a surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter who was employed by a municipality is eligible for premium payments under AS 39.60.040(b), if the municipality elects to participate in the fund after the employee's death and is in compliance with the terms of an agreement entered into under AS 39.60.050(a). (b) If a municipality enters into an agreement under AS 39.60.050(a) and fails to meet a requirement of that agreement, including a requirement under AS 39.60.070, the commissioner may determine that a surviving dependent of a peace officer or firefighter employed by a municipality who would otherwise be eligible for payments from the fund under AS 39.60.040(b) is ineligible and deny payment from the fund until the commissioner determines all requirements of the agreement are satisfied. Sec. 39.60.070. Terms of agreement by municipality to participate in fund. An agreement under AS 39.60.050(a) for a municipality to participate in the fund must require that the municipality (1) contribute to the fund as determined by the 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0496 commissioner under AS 39.60.050(a); (2) is current with contributions required under this section; and (3) complies with applicable regulations adopted by the commissioner." Page 4, line 27: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 4 and 5" Page 4, line 28: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 4 and 5" Page 4, line 30: Delete "Section 3" Insert "Section 6" Page 4, line 31: Delete "sec. 4" Insert "sec. 7" Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 6 be adopted. Representative Josephson objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 6 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 23(FIN) Second Reading Amendment No. 6 YEAS: 8 NAYS: 32 EXCUSED: 0 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Eastman, Neuman, Rauscher, Reinbold, Saddler, Talerico, Tilton, Wilson Nays: Birch, Chenault, Claman, Drummond, Edgmon, Fansler, Foster, Gara, Grenn, Guttenberg, Johnson, Johnston, Josephson, Kawasaki, Kito, Knopp, Kopp, Kreiss-Tomkins, LeDoux, Millett, 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0497 Ortiz, Parish, Pruitt, Seaton, Spohnholz, Stutes, Sullivan-Leonard, Tarr, Thompson, Tuck, Westlake, Wool And so, Amendment No. 6 was not adopted. Amendment No. 7 was offered by Representative Eastman: Page 1, line 3, following "duty;" (title amendment): Insert "relating to contributions from permanent fund dividends to the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund;" Page 4, following line 17: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Sec. 2. AS 43.23.062(a) is amended to read: (a) Notwithstanding AS 43.23.069, the Department of Revenue shall prepare the electronic Alaska permanent fund dividend application to allow an applicant who files electronically to direct that money be subtracted from the dividend payment and contributed to the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund or to one or more of the educational organizations, community foundations, or charitable organizations that appear on the contribution list contained in the application. A contribution to the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund or to an organization may be $25, $50, $75, $100, or more, in increments of $50, up to the total amount of the permanent fund dividend that the applicant is entitled to receive. If the total amount of contributions elected by an applicant exceeds the amount of the permanent fund dividend that the applicant is entitled to receive, contributions shall be deducted from the dividend in the order of priority elected by the applicant on the application until the entire amount of the dividend that the applicant is entitled to receive is allocated for contribution. The electronic dividend application form must include notice that seven percent of the money contributed will be used for administrative costs incurred in implementing this section, and money from the dividend fund will not be used for that purpose. * Sec. 3. AS 43.23.062(b) is amended to read: (b) The department shall list each educational organization, community foundation, or charitable organization eligible under (c) and (d) of this section, [AND] each university campus that 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0498 applies under (l) of this section, and the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund on the contribution list. The department shall maintain an electronic database for the contribution list that is accessible to the public and that permits searches by organization or fund name, geographic location, and type. The department shall provide a statement of the contributions made by an individual that is suitable for federal income tax purposes to each individual who elects to contribute under (a) of this section. * Sec. 4. AS 43.23.062(m) is amended to read: (m) In addition to the application fee in (f) of this section, the department shall withhold a coordination fee from each organization, foundation, or university campus that receives contributions under this section in the immediately preceding dividend year. The coordination fee for an organization, foundation, or university campus that receives contributions under this section shall be seven percent of the amount of contributions reported by the department under (j) of this section for the organization, foundation, or university campus for the immediately preceding dividend year. The coordination fee shall be separately accounted for under AS 37.05.142 and shall be accounted for separately from the application fee collected under (f) of this section. The annual estimated balance in the account maintained under AS 37.05.142 for coordination fees collected under this subsection may be appropriated for costs of administering this section. The department may not withhold a coordination fee for contributions to the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund. * Sec. 5. AS 43.23.062(n) is amended to read: (n) In this section, (1) "community foundation" means a nonprofit, autonomous, philanthropic institution that is organized and operated primarily as a permanent collection of endowed funds for the long-term benefit of a defined geographic area within one or more municipalities, that has a long-term goal of increasing its permanent unrestricted charitable endowment to benefit the area served, that primarily provides benefits by making grants and may also provide other forms of charitable services, that makes grants that are not limited to providing one type of benefit or to serving one population segment, and that makes grants to multiple 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0499 grantees; (2) "peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund" has the meaning given in AS 39.60.010(a)." Renumber the following bill sections accordingly. Page 4, line 27: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 1 and 6" Page 4, line 28: Delete "secs. 1 and 2" Insert "secs. 1 and 6" Page 4, line 30: Delete "Section 3" Insert "Section 7" Page 4, line 31: Delete "sec. 4" Insert "sec. 8" Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 7 be adopted. Representative Tarr objected and withdrew the objection. There being no further objection, Amendment No. 7 was adopted, and the new title follows: CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 23(FIN) am "An Act creating a fund in the Department of Public Safety; providing for payment of certain medical insurance premiums for surviving dependents of certain peace officers or firefighters who die in the line of duty; relating to contributions from permanent fund dividends to the peace officer and firefighter survivors' fund; and providing for an effective date." Representative Tuck moved and asked unanimous consent that CSHB 23(FIN) am be considered engrossed, advanced to third reading, and placed on final passage. There being no objection, it was so ordered. 2017-03-13 House Journal Page 0500 CSHB 23(FIN) am was read the third time. Representative LeDoux rose to a point of order. The Speaker cautioned the member to confine remarks to the bill. Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent to abstain from voting because of a conflict of interest. Objection was heard, and he was required to vote. The question being: "Shall CSHB 23(FIN) am pass the House?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 23(FIN) am Third Reading Final Passage YEAS: 40 NAYS: 0 EXCUSED: 0 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Birch, Chenault, Claman, Drummond, Eastman, Edgmon, Fansler, Foster, Gara, Grenn, Guttenberg, Johnson, Johnston, Josephson, Kawasaki, Kito, Knopp, Kopp, Kreiss-Tomkins, LeDoux, Millett, Neuman, Ortiz, Parish, Pruitt, Rauscher, Reinbold, Saddler, Seaton, Spohnholz, Stutes, Sullivan-Leonard, Talerico, Tarr, Thompson, Tilton, Tuck, Westlake, Wilson, Wool And so, CSHB 23(FIN) am passed the House. Representative Tuck moved and asked unanimous consent that the roll call on the passage of the bill be considered the roll call on the effective date clause. There being no objection, it was so ordered. CSHB 23(FIN) am was referred to the Chief Clerk for engrossment.