03/20/2025 01:30 PM House FINANCE

HOUSE BILL NO. 36                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
     "An Act  relating to the  placement of  foster children                                                                    
     in  psychiatric  hospitals;  relating to  the  care  of                                                                    
     children  in   state  custody  placed   in  residential                                                                    
     facilities  outside   the  state;  and   amending  Rule                                                                    
     12.1(b),  Alaska   Child  in  Need  of   Aid  Rules  of                                                                    
     Procedure."                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
3:37:57 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  ANDREW   GRAY,  SPONSOR,  offered   a  brief                                                                    
overview  of the  bill. The  bill would  make it  so that  a                                                                    
foster child (child  in custody of the  Office of Children's                                                                    
Services [OCS])  would have  a hearing in  front of  a judge                                                                    
within seven  days if they  had been admitted into  an acute                                                                    
psychiatric facility. He explained  that in these cases, OCS                                                                    
was acting as  the "parent," yet it had not  played the same                                                                    
role  as  a parent  would  have  played  for its  child.  He                                                                    
asserted  that  children had  been  held  for too  long  and                                                                    
sometimes without good  reason. The bill aimed  to close the                                                                    
loophole. There  were no guidelines in  statute that covered                                                                    
when a such a case would be reviewed.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
3:39:26 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Foster OPENED public testimony.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Foster CLOSED public testimony.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
3:40:09 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Representative  Tomaszewski liked  the bill,  and he  had no                                                                    
objection to moving the bill from committee.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Josephson  also liked  the  bill  and agreed  with                                                                    
Representative  Tomaszewski's  suggestions.  He  noted  that                                                                    
there had  been three audits of  OCS and there was  a myriad                                                                    
of  ways  that the  office  had  not  followed the  law.  He                                                                    
referenced  HB 151  sponsored by  former Representative  Les                                                                    
Gara.  He  referenced  a  provision   that  stated  that  if                                                                    
children  were not  taken into  custody,  parents should  be                                                                    
given referrals  for services. He  asked how the  bill would                                                                    
get enforced.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
Representative Gray referenced Kwinhagak  v. State of Alaska                                                                    
[a 2024 case where the  Alaska Supreme Court found delays in                                                                    
child welfare proceedings  violated procedural due process],                                                                    
which  found the  current  way of  doing  the hearings  were                                                                    
incorrect.  He  noted  that  the  courts  were  hearing  the                                                                    
decision in seven to ten days  after a change of practice in                                                                    
the  previous year.  He  explained that  the  bill would  be                                                                    
putting  into   statute  what  was  already   happening.  He                                                                    
understood  that   sometimes  laws   were  passed   but  not                                                                    
enforced.  He   pondered  that  the   topic  needed   to  be                                                                    
revisited.  He  thought the  issue  should  be revisited  to                                                                    
ensure the  children were getting  hearings in the  time the                                                                    
bill dictated.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
Representative  Bynum appreciated  the sponsor  bringing the                                                                    
bill forward.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
Representative Allard thanked the sponsor.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
3:44:07 PM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
3:44:41 PM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Representative  Tomaszewski MOVED  to  REPORT HB  36 out  of                                                                    
committee   with   individual    recommendations   and   the                                                                    
accompanying previously published  fiscal notes. There being                                                                    
NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
HB 36  was REPORTED  out of committee  with eight  "do pass"                                                                    
recommendations,  two  "no recommendation"  recommendations,                                                                    
and with  one previously  published fiscal impact  note: FN1                                                                    
(DFCS)  and  one  previously published  zero  fiscal  impact                                                                    
note: FN2 (JUD).                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
[note: Co-Chair Schrage was absent from the vote]                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Josephson  relayed that there were  several days on                                                                    
the  schedule  for  next  week  committed  to  taking  up  a                                                                    
supplemental  budget to  pay the  FY 25  debt and  items the                                                                    
governor  sought  as  supplementals.  He  relayed  that  the                                                                    
committee would consider a CS.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Foster reviewed the agenda for the following day.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Representative Tomaszewski  asked about  the mention  of the                                                                    
six  additional  contract  negotiations coming  forward.  He                                                                    
asked if  the contracts would  be in the  revised governor's                                                                    
budget.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Josephson responded that the items would be in the                                                                     
FY 26 budget.