Legislature(2021 - 2022)ADAMS 519
04/21/2021 01:30 PM House FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB41 | |
| HB47 | |
| HB127 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 69 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 71 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 41 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 47 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 127 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HOUSE BILL NO. 47
"An Act renaming the Alaska Native Language
Preservation and Advisory Council as the Council for
Alaska Native Languages; and relating to the Council
for Alaska Native Languages."
2:15:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ANDI STORY, SPONSOR, read from a prepared
statement:
Thank you, Chair Merrick, and members of the House
Finance Committee. For the record I am Rep. Andi
Story, representing district 34, which is on A'akw
Kwaan land and the Indigenous language of this region
is Tlingit.
House Bill 47 developed as the Alaska Native Language
Preservation & Advisory Council, wants to do two
things:
1. Shorten the Council name
2. Expand its' membership.
The Council provides recommendations and advice to
both the Governor and Legislature on programs,
policies, and projects, and to network and advocate in
support of the Council's mission.
The mission is to advocate for the survival and
revitalization of Alaska Native languages through
collaboration and sharing for all.
The Alaska Native Language Preservation & Advisory
Council was created by the second session of the 27th
Legislature. The Governor appointed five voting
members who are
professional language experts and who represent
diverse regions of the state.
Additionally, there are two nonvoting members. One
member of the Senate, appointed by the Senate
President and one member of the House, appointed by
the speaker. I have been fortunate to serve as the
non-voting member from the House, and this is how this
information was brought to me.
The two seemingly small changes proposed in HB 47 have
significant meaning to the council. The first item in
the name change simplifies the name from The Alaska
Native Language Preservation & Advisory Council to
Council for Alaska Native Languages. This reflects the
goal of sustaining and reinvigorating Alaska Native
language, - a concept that goes beyond preservation.
The second change requested is to add two new members,
going from 5 to 7 voting members. Alaska has about 20
distinct languages, and to be able to be inclusive of
more languages the council feels two more members
would capture a greater perspective.
I appreciate your consideration of House Bill 47. It
supports the requests of the council.
Chair Merrick, depending on the wishes of the
committee, my staff, Mary Aparezuk, is available to
walk through the sectional analysis.
HB 47 has a $10,000 fiscal note. Sandra Moeller from
the Department of Community, Commerce and Economic
Development is on-line with an explanation.
_
Importantly there is an invited testifier, X 'unei
(khoo - nay) Twitchell, online who is a voting member
of the council and a long-time indigenous language
advocate. We are all happy to take any questions.
Co-Chair Merrick directed Rep. Storys staff to review the
sectional analysis.
2:19:27 PM
MARY APAREZUK, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE ANDI STORY, (via
teleconference), appreciated the members taking the time to
hear the bill. She read the sectional analysis:
Section 1: Amends AS 44.33.520(a) simplifies the name
of the Council from "Alaska Native Language
Preservation and Advisory Council" to "Council for
Alaska Native Languages."
Section 2: Amends AS 44.33.520(c) by changing voting
members from "five" to "seven."
Co-Chair Merrick moved to invited testimony.
2:20:48 PM
XH'UNEI, LANCE A. TWITCHELL, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, ALASKA
NATIVE LANGUAGES, UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA SOUTHEAST (via
teleconference) spoke in favor of HB 47. He read a prepared
statement:
Thank you, honorable Representatives. Gunalch?esh
Representative Story and her office for introducing
this House Bill 47. My name is Xunei Lance Twitchell,
and I represent myself here today, speaking in favor
of this bill. It is an honor to visit with you here
today, and to talk about the sacred and irreplaceable
languages of Alaska. My work is teaching the Linig?t
language at the University of Alaska Southeast and
advocating for the health and safety of 22 additional
Alaska Native languages as a scholar of language
revitalization. I am also the vice chair of the Alaska
Native Language Preservation and Advisory Council.
However, I do not speak for those organizations today.
I wish I could tell you that there was great news
regarding Alaska Native languages. I wish I could say
that since the last time I testified to this great
body of elected leaders to declare a state of
emergency for our languagesthat sufficient work had
been done and changes were made that led to hope. That
is simply not the case. As leaders, let me tell you
what is going to happen on your watch, and what
history books will remember you for: half of the
surviving Alaska Native languages are going to die
out. The silence will be horrifying, and to be honest,
many of your colleagues will never even notice, unless
they happen to read about it. There is so much work to
do, and so much loss on a daily basis, and that work
falls upon six people from the perspective of the
State of Alaska: the five council members and the
single employee of the Alaska Native Language
Preservation & Advisory Council.
When this Council was formed in 2012, many of us doing
this work felt a charge of energy. We felt seen and
heard. But then politics began to be played. The staff
positions for the council were cut from two to one.
The reports produced every two years often fell on
ears that refused to listen and eyes that refused to
read. If Alaska Native languages were important to
this state, then this congress would have heard the
calls for change and taken more courageous action
since that time. We had at least 23 languages that
were spoken in this state before contact, and 21 of
them are still spoken today. But by my estimations,
over half of them may have fewer than 10 speakers
remaining, and we are only talking about incremental
change, are only toeing a line that keeps us in a
death spiral. And let me tell you this: if this was
your future on the line. If this was a total break
between your present existence and all of your
ancestors, and if you stood to lose the chance to pass
along your identity to your descendants, I would do
all that I could to help you. This is the way of the
human being. I ask you this: can you, not as a single
Representative, not as a committee, not as a House of
Representatives, but as the Legislature of this state,
could you collectively say the same?
This is a small change that the Council has been
asking for since our last report came out two years
ago. We are not in the business of preservation. We
need substantial and lasting change that leads to
revitalization. What leaders are we if we allow entire
ways of knowing to be eradicated by systemic and
deliberate genocide? What kind of humans are we if we
stand upon a foundation of racism and allow systems of
communication that are tens of thousands of years old
to be lost? Can we, with steadfast determination and
unity, dream of a future other than death? Can we find
the courage to create a different destiny and be real
about the levels of inaction and total lack of
compassion? To all of this, I would say: yes.
This is a small change, and as a scholar and advocate
of language revitalization I have many ideas for
larger changes, but I implore you to grow this council
and find a way to elevate the voices that are burdened
with these loses. Give it a stronger and more relevant
name regarding the work that we do, and the
terminology currently used in this field. We are doing
all we can to stop the tide with our bare hands, from
which this government has removed the tools and the
populace. Have courage, my leaders. A brighter future
calls you if you choose to listen. A new day is
waiting if you choose to see. In our language, we say,
gunalch?esh, thank you.
2:26:06 PM
Representative Josephson thanked Dr. Twitchell for his
statement. He asked what kind of resources would be needed
beyond the scope of the bill for language preservation.
Mr. Twitchell thought that currently it would require a
rearrangement of existing resources. He did not anticipate
a substantial cost to create a college of Alaska Native
languages because there were already teachers in place.
However, there was no specified degree program or clear
direction to create teachers. He suggested that the Alaska
Native Language Center receive enough support to produce
high quality publications and enable language
documentation. He suggested the creation of an Alaska
Native Media network, which would need initial startup
funding but could work through Alaska Public Radio. The
network would establish a central office that produced
audio and video content for broadcasting throughout the
state. He noted that a similar path was very effective in
Hawaii and New Zealand to promote Hawaiian and Maori
languages.
Co-Chair Merrick relayed that Sandra Moller would speak to
the published Fiscal Note 1 from the Department of
Commerce, Community and Economic Development [FN 1 CED]
appropriated to the Division of Community and Regional
Affairs(DCRA).
2:28:47 PM
SANDRA MOLLER, DIRECTOR, DIVISION OF COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL
AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (via teleconference), reported that the
language program existed within the division. She related
that there was not a separate budget for the council. The
division would require an additional $10 thousand in travel
per year for the two additional members to travel to two
meetings per year at a cost of $2.5 thousand per trip.
2:29:32 PM
Representative Edgmon thought that only 1 staff member
travelled. Ms. Moller replied that two board members
travelled.
2:30:11 PM
Representative Story clarified that the fiscal note was for
the two additional voting council members to travel.
Representative Edgmon had heard that the council members
had not travelled since 2018. Representative Story answered
in the affirmative. She conveyed that in 2015 the council
switched from two trips each year to one trip and had not
travelled since 2018. She added that she was honored to
serve as a non-voting member of the council. She indicated
that there was a report which she included in the members
packets titled The Alaska Native Language Preservation &
Advisory Council's 2020 Biennial Report to the Governor and
Legislature (copy on file). She directed attention to page
18 that contained findings and recommendations of the
council and encouraged members to read the recommendations.
Co-Chair Merrick set HB 47 aside.
HB 47 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further
consideration.
2:31:46 PM
AT EASE
2:32:58 PM
RECONVENED
Co-Chair Merrick indicated the next bill was HB 127.