Legislature(2025 - 2026)GRUENBERG 120
05/17/2025 01:00 PM House STATE AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB4 | |
| HB1 | |
| HB133 | |
| HB82 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 82 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 133 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 100 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 4 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 1 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 1-SPECIE AS LEGAL TENDER
3:48:02 PM
CHAIR CARRICK announced that the next order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 1, "An Act relating to specie as legal tender in
the state; and relating to borough and city sales and use taxes
on specie." [The committee adopted two amendments to HB 1 on
5/15/25.]
CHAIR CARRICK noted that during its last consideration of the
bill, the committee had queried whether the definition of
"person" included a government entity. Her office broached the
question to Legislative Legal Services, which responded with a
memorandum [included in the committee file] advising that
governmental entities are not expressly included nor excluded
from the definition of "person" in the proposed legislation. To
address the concern, she said her office drafted an amendment.
CHAIR CARRICK began a motion but paused to call an at-ease.
3:50:38 PM
The committee took a brief at-ease at 3:50 p.m.
3:50:48 PM
CHAIR CARRICK moved to adopt [Conceptual] Amendment 3 to HB 1,
[as amended], [a handwritten amendment in the committee file],
which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
Page 3 line 8 following "person"
Insert: "or governmental entity"
3:51:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE objected for the purpose of discussion.
3:51:43 PM
REPRESENTATIVE MCCABE considered the amendment to be a friendly
amendment to HB 1. He said that definitions can often be
ambiguous, and the proposed amendment would make the bill
stronger.
3:52:08 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOLLAND said that he supported the amendment,
especially given discussions in previous bill hearings. The
proposed amendment would address the Alaska Municipal League's
(AML's) concerns regarding whether government agencies would be
required to accept gold and silver specie as tender.
3:52:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE withdrew her objection. There being no
further objection, Conceptual Amendment 3 was adopted.
3:52:57 PM
REPRESENTATIVE MCCABE expressed hope that the committee received
information pertaining to the proposed bill. He said that this
was the fourth or fifth year that this bill concept has been in
legislative works. He said that considerable research was made
on the bill topic, including clarification of any tax
implications that were part of AML's concerns in the committee's
previous bill hearing.
3:53:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE commented that she was unsure why she was
not yet listed as a co-sponsor for HB 1, as amended, indicating
that she would be soon. She said that one of the basic
functions of government is to provide a means for people to
manage their money and assets. She said that formalizing gold
and silver as legal tender would support individuals attempting
to retain value in an uncertain fiscal climate. She often said
the value of money changes more quickly than people realize, and
having gold and silver tender as an option would provide a sense
of security for people. She remarked that Alaska was a national
leader in gold and precious metal production. She expressed
optimism about passing the proposed bill into law.
3:55:41 PM
CHAIR CARRICK commented that the amendments to the bill had made
it even stronger and with more transparent intent. She noted
that many of the concerns from previous bill hearings were
addressed. She was confident that the bill could be passed to
the next committee of referral, the House Standing Committee on
Finance. Chair Carrick said that one reason that she was
supportive of the proposed legislation was because she
understood the sales tax dynamics. Furthermore, she said that
many Alaskans are currently using this type of tender as a
barter item, with no consumer protection in place. She said
that having a definition of specie would provide some
transactional protection. She understood the difference of
opinion regarding the proposed legislation, and remarked that
the committee had done a good job of addressing concerns.
3:58:21 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY said that she appreciated the information
made available to the committee [included in committee file].
She said that one of her outstanding questions pertained to
potential premiums charged when buying specie, and asked for
what a typical premium might be.
REPRESENTATIVE MCCABE replied that if specie were purchased
online from JM Bullion, it would be like purchasing any coin
online. There would be a precious metal spot price and a
premium attached. He reiterated that it would be similar when
changing United States Dollars (USD) at a foreign hotel. He
said that this is covered in the bill with reference to the
"melt value" of the gold and silver tender. He said Mr. Diaz
provided some clarifying information to the committee on this
topic [included in committee file].
4:00:14 PM
CHAIR CARRICK remarked that this was a good question to continue
discussions, since it was an outstanding concern regarding the
proposed legislation.
4:00:44 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOLLAND said that he enjoyed this bill discussion
very much and enjoyed the opportunity to work with
Representative McCabe, the prime sponsor of the proposed
legislation. He reminded the committee that the value of the
USD fluctuates every day, and mentioned gas stations as an
example. He said that it was important to recognize that there
is already a system of money in place that is prone to
fluctuations.
4:01:46 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY remarked that she appreciated the consumer
protection associated with the proposed legislation, but it was
important for the public to understand any attached premiums
when purchasing specie.
4:02:15 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOLLAND moved to report HB 1, as amended, out of
committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying
fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 1(STA) was
reported out of the House State Affairs Standing Committee.
4:02:54 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 4:03 p.m. to 4:06 p.m.