Legislature(2017 - 2018)SENATE FINANCE 532
04/04/2018 01:30 PM Senate FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB122 | |
| HB31 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HB 286 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 31 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 92 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 122 | TELECONFERENCED | |
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 31(FIN)
"An Act relating to law enforcement training in
domestic violence and sexual assault; relating to
sexual assault investigation protocols; requiring an
inventory and reports on untested sexual assault
examination kits; and providing for an effective
date."
2:18:45 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GERAN TARR, SPONSOR, discussed the bill. She
stated that the bill was a step in addressing the backlog
of rape kits in the state. Her office had been contacted by
a group by the name of 'End the Backlog.' The first step in
researching the bill was to complete a statewide audit
examining the number of untested rape kits in the state.
She stressed that Alaska had some of the worst rates in the
nation for sexual assault. She stated that working through
the process includes a process for improving efforts. She
shared that there had been a push on the national level to
examine various areas to improve. She stated that one of
the components in the bill was about training of law
enforcement officials. She stated that most law enforcement
officials went to the State Trooper Academy or to the
academy in Anchorage. Currently, there was a statutory
requirement for 12 hours of training on domestic violence,
but there was no requirement for training on sexual
assault. The bill added provisions to require the twelve
hours of training on sexual assault. She stated that people
working in the field had brought that issue to her
attention. She remarked that the response to victims of
sexual assault depended on your location in the state,
because there may be some differences in training. She felt
that formalizing an expectation would provide reassurance
that law enforcement would receive training.
2:22:23 PM
Representative Tarr stated that there would be a victim-
centered approach to the kit testing. She remarked that an
unfortunate situation that could occur is that the evidence
collected, must be collected within a short amount of time
- often within just 72 hours of the assault. She remarked
that someone may not be able to make a decision in that
time to move forward with the criminal justice system or
choose a different option. She wanted to ensure that a
victim had all the options available. She stressed that
there would be an anonymous reporting option written in
statute. She understood that it would be the option about
whether the victim wanted the kit performed, but chose to
not move forward with law enforcement at that time. She
remarked that an individual often needed a period of time
to process the trauma and develop support before making a
decision to move forward. She remarked that anonymous
reporting was available, so the evidence could be collected
in a timely fashion. She shared that there was a report
from the Justice Department that outlined the importance of
a victim-centered approach, so that the individual could
have a choice. She shared that she had worked closely with
organizations and individuals to receive knowledge from
advocates that work with victims on a daily basis.
Representative Tarr shared that it cost approximately $1500
to process a rape kit. She stated that continuing the audit
would not have any additional costs. She shared that the
audit would allow a way for the legislature to track the
effort, because it was a multi-year effort to improve the
system. She shared that the state currently had support
from two federal Department of Justice grants. The first
grant was used to form the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative
(SAKI). It was a group of law enforcement officials and
advocates that were working together to examine some of the
reforms that could be done without legislative action. She
stated that the kits had been sent from Anchorage with no
tracking information, so there was no way to know whether a
kit that left Anchorage and went to Bethel and there was no
chain of custody.
2:29:28 PM
DIANA RHOADES, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE TARR, discussed the
Sectional Analysis (copy on file):
HB 31 Version U (S STA) Sectional Analysis
Sections one and two mandates that all Alaska police
officers receive at least 12 hours of sexual assault
training, in addition to their existing domestic
violation training.
Section three defines sexual assault.
Section four mandates a unified, statewide, victim-
centered approach to reporting sexual assault. At the
request of the bill's sponsor, victim advocates and
the Alaska Department of Public Safety, the Senate
State Affairs Committee amended the legislation to
eliminate one of the three reporting options the
medical option. The two that remain the law
enforcement option and the anonymous option, meet the
standards of the US Dept. of Justice best practices.
Dept. of Justice White Paper language "Testing sexual
assault kits associated with victims who obtained
medical forensic exams but who have not consented to
having the kit tested by law enforcement, can result
in a sense of revictimization and can undermine
community trust."
Section five defines vulnerable adult.
Section six mandates that by November 1 of each year,
the Department of Public Safety must deliver a report
to the Legislature on the inventory of the untested
rape kits.
Section seven sets a July 1, 2018 effective date.
Co-Chair MacKinnon asked about Section 4.
Ms. Rhoads restated that Section 4 outlined the two
reporting options. The one option was the anonymous report
and the other was the police report.
Co-Chair MacKinnon OPENED public testimony.
2:32:14 PM
KEELEY OLSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, STAND TOGETHER AGAINST
RAPE (STAR), ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), testified in
support of the bill. She had worked closely with the
sponsor to develop the legislation. She understood that the
sponsor had worked with other organizations and the
Department of Public Safety (DPS) to make the bill as
effective as possible.
Co-Chair MacKinnon wondered whether there was a planning
for the upcoming spring tea for STAR
Ms. Olson replied in the affirmative.
2:33:51 PM
CARMEN LOWRY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ALASKA NETWORK ON
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT, JUNEAU, testified in
support of the bill. She expressed gratitude to the
committee for the opportunity to testify, as well as
gratitude to the sponsor. She pointed to the accountability
embedded in the legislation. She felt that the twelve-hour
training requirement meant that the response to victims
would be well-informed, victim-centered, and trauma-
informed. She highlighted the two options of anonymous and
law enforcement reporting. She stressed that the two
options for reporting would serve to provide a victim with
immediate opportunities to exercising self-determination.
She stressed that sexual assault eliminates the ability for
a person to make their own choices.
2:36:04 PM
NANCY PORTO, SELF, WASHINGTON (via teleconference), spoke
in support of the bill. She shared that she had provided
testimony from a previous legislature. She stated that she
had experienced a sexual assault. She shared that her rape
kit had yet to be fully processed. She remarked that she
was waiting on the biological evidence of her exam. She
stressed that over six months after her assault, she
learned that there was no sperm from her rape kit. She
remarked that it took over 18 months to learn her blood
panel, which showed that she had been drugged. She remarked
that the number that she was given after she was discharged
from her exam went straight to voicemail. She has left many
messages, and frequently did not receive a returned call.
She stated that five years after her assault she was still
waiting for her rape kit to be fully processed.
Co-Chair MacKinnon wondered whether Ms. Porto had provided
written testimony.
Ms. Porto replied that she had only provided verbal
testimony.
2:39:00 PM
JUDITH CAVANAUGH, SELF, JUNEAU, testified in support of the
bill. She was a retired emergency room (ER) nurse and had
collected evidence on dozens of women who had experienced
sexual assault. She shared that she had worked before the
time that there was a team to gather evidence, however
AWARE Inc. had always provided support. She felt that there
was a much better process, and that the legislation would
standardize the approach for care, treatment, evidence
collection, and rape kit testing in the state.
2:40:48 PM
ALYSON CURREY, LEGISLATIVE LIAISON, PLANNED PARENTHOOD
VOTES, JUNEAU, testified in support of the bill. She
remarked that the state had a duty to keep the community
safe, and the bill had a direct positive impact for victims
of sexual assault in the state who were waiting for closure
and justice. She stated that, as a reproductive and sexual
health care provider, Planned Parenthood was keenly aware
of the pervasiveness of sexual assault in the state and
country. She stressed that it was crucial that all sexual
assault examination kits were collected, submitted, and
tested in a timely manner with the victim's consent. She
stated that leaving the thousands of sexual assault kits
untested allowed sexual predators to evade justice and
reoffend; and left thousands of sexual assault victims
without closure.
2:42:23 PM
Co-Chair MacKinnon CLOSED public testimony.
Co-Chair MacKinnon referenced Section 1, and asked for
confirmation that there would be an additional 12 hours of
training or whether it would be combined with the training
for domestic violence.
RANDI BREAGER, CRIMINAL JUSTICE TRAINER, DEPARTMENT OF
PUBLIC SAFETY, ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), replied that
the training was currently a 12-hour requirement for
domestic violence. She stated that there would be an
additional 12 hours for sexual assault investigation
training. She stressed that the training would not be
combined.
Co-Chair MacKinnon surmised that there would be no
additional cost. She remarked that sometimes domestic
violence was described as sexual assault.
Ms. Breager replied that she currently provided 24 hours of
domestic violence only training, and remarked that she
already provided 12 hours of sexual assault training
separately in the academy. She remarked that there would be
a total of 36 hours of training between sexual assault and
domestic violence, and were two separate courses. She
remarked that other police academies would need to adjust
their training do add in their additional twelve hours of
sexual assault training.
2:46:03 PM
Co-Chair MacKinnon asked if the requirement would be an
unfunded mandate for other organizations that trained
public safety officers.
Ms. Breager believed that Representative Tarr had
conversations with the police department. They currently
offered portions of sexual assault training, and she felt
that there needed to be an evaluation of the current
offerings to ensure that they were meeting the
requirements.
Co-Chair MacKinnon requested the committee members contact
their local agencies to determine the impact.
Vice-Chair Bishop asked how many trainers would conduct the
additional 12 hours of training.
Ms. Breager stated that two instructors provided the
training.
Co-Chair MacKinnon wondered whether advocacy services were
included in the training, or if the training was provided
as a standalone service from the state.
Ms. Breager stated that the training was developed in
partnership with advocates, and was approved by the Council
on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. Historically, the
person providing the training had advocacy experience.
There was also a partnership with the Office of Victim's
Rights to provide a portion of that training. She felt that
the advocacy portion was well represented. Training was in
partnership with corporal at the academy who was a law
enforcement officer.
Co-Chair MacKinnon asked if there was follow-up with
victims to ascertain the effectiveness of the training.
Ms. Breager answered in the negative.
2:49:38 PM
Vice-Chair Bishop asked how long it would take to process a
kit.
ORIN BYM, CHIEF OF FORENSIC LABORATORIES, DEPARTMENT OF
PUBLIC SAFETY, ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), stated that
the typical kit's round of DNA work was a six-week process
from the time all the evidence was collected until a report
was released to an agency.
Co-Chair MacKinnon wondered whether Mr. Bym said that it
took six weeks to process a kit.
Mr. Bym replied that it was six weeks from the time that a
case began until there was a report.
Co-Chair MacKinnon stated that when she had accompanied a
victim to the hospital with a victim's advocacy team, she
learned that the process of collecting evidence for the kit
could take anywhere from a few hours to a day. She stressed
that it was painful and frustrating to hear whether
bloodwork was complete.
2:54:12 PM
Co-Chair MacKinnon noted there was no staff from the
Legislative Legal available online. She remarked that she
had pointed to the two options for reporting, and she would
reach out to law enforcement. She remarked that the state
has and should step into the footsteps of the victim. She
remarked that the notion of anonymous reporting was
foreign, because of her experience. She hoped to understand
how the victim could control the situation. S
Co-Chair MacKinnon noted that there were two zero fiscal
notes, and was concerned the notes may be understated.
Vice-Chair Bishop discussed a previously published zero
fiscal note
Vice-Chair Bishop discussed a Statement of Zero Fiscal
Impact.
Co-Chair MacKinnon set the bill aside.
Representative Tarr stated that there had been a repeated
conversation about testing rape kits for multiple offenders
while allowing for anonymity of the victim.
Co-Chair MacKinnon wanted to hear from the Department of
Law regarding the anonymity concern.
HB 31 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further
consideration.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| CS HB 31 FIN Sponsor Statement 2.13.18.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |
| DPS SB55 Rape Kit Inventory Report and Plan-signed.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
SB 55 |
| CS HB 31 FIN Supporting Document DNA Evidence leads to conviction AK Dispatch 3.1.17.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |
| HB 31 Public Safety Q A Sexual Assault Kits.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |
| HB 31 summary of changes 3-22-18.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |
| HB 31 Version U Sectional Analysis 3.23.18.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |
| HB 31 JHF_Testimony_AK_HB31_TAR_SEN_FIN.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |
| HB 31_sexual assault kits_letter of support.pdf |
SFIN 4/4/2018 1:30:00 PM |
HB 31 |