Legislature(2017 - 2018)CAPITOL 106
03/10/2017 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s): || University of Alaska Board of Regents | |
| HB64 | |
| HB135 | |
| HB137 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 64 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 135 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 137 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 137-ST. COUNCIL ON THE ARTS: PUBLIC CORP.
9:03:35 AM
CHAIR DRUMMOND announced that the final order of business would
be HOUSE BILL NO. 137, "An Act re-designating the Alaska State
Council on the Arts as a public corporation and governmental
instrumentality of the state; defining the powers and duties of
the Alaska State Council on the Arts; providing exemptions from
certain statutes for the Alaska State Council on the Arts;
making conforming amendments; and providing for an effective
date."
9:03:54 AM
KRISTIN KRANENDONK, Staff, Representative Harriet Drummond,
Alaska State Legislature, introduced HB 137 on behalf of the
House Education Standing Committee, sponsor by request. She
informed the committee the bill would [quasi] privatize the
Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA) by restructuring the
council as a public corporation, thereby allowing ASCA to
continue its work with Alaskan artists and art businesses. The
bill would improve the ability of the council to leverage
nonstate funding and remain within the Department of Education
and Early Development. Also, HB 137 would exempt ASCA from
state procurement code, but would provide formal and appropriate
procurement protocols. Restructuring would keep ASCA's
operating budget under the Executive Budget Act for openness and
transparency, and transition language would allow its advisory
committee public processes and public participation to remain in
place as ASCA administers grants programs and services.
Further, the bill would allow ASCA to grow and develop a funding
base and reduce its reliance on state funds. Ms. Kranendonk
presented a sectional review, paraphrasing from a prepared
statement, which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
Section 1 (Pages 1-4): Amends AS 39.25.110 concerning
exempt state employees to add all employees of the
Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA), thus making
employees of ASCA exempt from the State Personnel Act.
Section 2 (Pages 5-7): Adds artists' submissions made
in response to an inquiry or solicitation initiated by
the Alaska State Council on the Arts, to the list of
records that are exempt from public inspection under
AS 40.25.120.
Section 3 (Page 7): Repeals and re-enacts AS 44.27.040
regarding the creation of ASCA, to establish the
Council as a separate and independent public
corporation of the state of Alaska within the
Department of Education and Early Development (DEED).
Section 4 (Page 7): Amends AS 44.27.041 to charge ASCA
to be governed by an 11 member board of trustees, adds
literary arts as a field represented within the board,
and a member's expertise, rather than interest, as a
factor for consideration for board membership.
Section 5 (Page 7): Amends AS 44.27.042 to replace the
term "members" with the term "trustees" and "council"
with "board of trustees".
Section 6 (Page 8): Amends AS 44.27.043 to replace the
term "member" with "trustee".
Section 7 (Page 8): Replaces the term "members" with
the term "trustees" in AS 44.27.044 and replaces
language that entitles trustees to be reimbursed for
travel expenses at the same rate of members of state
boards under AS 39.20.180.
Section 8 (Page 8): Amends AS 44.27.045 to use gender-
neutral terms for board members.
Section 9 (Page 8-9): Amends AS 44.27.050 to require
the council to encourage literary arts as well as
other disciplines, invest in arts throughout the
state, and conduct research into artistic and cultural
activities throughout the state.
Section 10 (Page 9): Amends AS 44.27.052(a) to replace
"educational" objectives with "strategic" objectives
as it relates to the council's ability enter into
contracts and accept gifts, contributions, and
bequests.
Section 11 (Page 9-10): Amends AS 44.27.054 to replace
language with the proper terms "chair" and "trustees"
previously established and makes a conforming
amendment to Section 1.
Section 12 (Page 10): Adds a new section to AS 44.27
detailing the administration of affairs of the board
of trustees. The board of trustees shall manage the
assets of the council, establish and amend bylaws
governing the business of the corporation, and employ
an executive director to supervise the administration
of ASCA. This section also exempts ASCA from the State
Procurement Code (AS 36.30), instructs the board of
trustees to establish procedures for procurement, and
requires consistency with the Alaska Veterans
preference established in AS 36.30.32(f). The
operating budget of ASCA is subject to the provisions
established in the Executive Budget Act (AS 37.07).
Section 13 (Page 10): Amends AS 44.27.058 to require
that ASCA comply with the 20 U.S.C 951 960 (National
Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965)
as it relates to the receipt and disbursement of funds
from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Section 14 (Page 10-11): Amends AS 44.27.060 to add
new subsections (e) and (f) regarding confidentiality
of artist submissions and adds a provision for public
disclosure to submissions when the artist is awarded a
commission for said submission. However, under
subsection (g), subsections (e) and (f) do not apply
if the submission was created as a work for hire under
17 U.S.C. 101 or if the artist's copyright has been
transferred under 17 U.S.C. 204.
Section 15 (Page 11): Amends AS 44.27 to add
definitions for "board of trustees" and "council".
Section 16 (Page 11-12): Creates transition language
for ASCA to allow council members to remain on the
board of trustees until their term is over, allows
current employees to remain with ASCA, allows
regulations, contracts, rights, liabilities, and
obligations created under current law to remain in
effect, and allows ASCA to retain all records,
equipment, appropriations, and other property.
Section 17 (Page 12): Creates an effective date for
this legislation as July 1, 2017.
9:11:13 AM
BENJAMIN BROWN, Chair, Board of Trustees, Alaska State Council
on the Arts (ASCA), Department of Education and Early
Development (DEED), stated the ASCA Board of Trustees
("council") has spent the last year searching for ways to
address challenges facing the state's art agency, which are
similar to those facing all parts of state government. The bill
would allow ASCA to perform well for the next 50 years, and he
related HB 137 is the result of a lengthy and considered process
involving all of the volunteer council members, staff, and
stakeholders, such as the Rasmuson Foundation.
REPRESENTATIVE KOPP asked how HB 137 would enable the arts
council to more effectively partner with nonprofits that wish to
make donations to ASCA.
MR. BROWN said ASCA has a long-standing working relationship
with the Rasmuson Foundation, which provides the majority of
funds supporting arts education programs. Recently, ASCA has
embarked on a multi-year partnership with the Margaret A.
Cargill Foundation, and its funds are supporting meaningful and
transformative work with the Copper River and Kodiak school
districts through the new visions initiative partnerships. Mr.
Brown pointed out the bill does not exempt ASCA from oversight
by the governor or the legislature in the receipt and
expenditure of private foundation funds; however, the state
procurement code brought out the need for the bill because when
ASCA receives funds from a private foundation, spending the
funds as it would undesignated general funds by a state agency
is unnecessarily cumbersome, and he provided an example. In
fact, the procurement code creates time-consuming hoops to be
negotiated, while affording few benefits. Being a state agency
impedes ASCA's desire to be nimble in its actions, to seek out
private foundation partner funding, and to best serve its
constituency of arts educators, individual artists, or arts
organizations. He offered further examples of how state
procedures and bureaucratic red tape impede the council's
mission.
9:16:39 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SPOHNHOLZ recalled other state programs that have
gone private to obtain additional flexibility, such as the
Alaska Children's Trust, and asked whether the arts council
considered all of its options before selecting the model defined
by the bill.
MR. BROWN pointed out ASCA could not become fully private
without losing matching funds from the National Endowment for
the Arts (NEA); the National Foundation on the Arts and the
Humanities Act provides that state arts agencies must be part of
state government with one exception, and the funds to match NEA
money must be a state appropriation: money from the Rasmuson
Foundation or the Cargill Foundation could not supplant the
appropriation received from the state legislature. Therefore,
the bill directs for quasi-privatization. He cautioned in
Kansas, the state arts organization lost all its NEA funding by
privatizing, so ASCA sought a compromise, and will remain housed
within DEED and retain its enabling statute. Mr. Brown
explained the current council is comprised of eleven active
members, and the bill would allow the council to be nimble but
still accountable to the public. He restated ASCA, in a similar
situation as The Children's Trust, faced difficulties granting
funds in the best manner, and encountered obstacles created by
the procurement code when sponsoring events. Further, regarding
staffing, ASCA is down from six to four fulltime positions and
having employees in the exempt service, rather than the
classified service, and using contractors when necessary, are
ways ASCA can meet the realities of its new budget environment.
The council seeks to continue to meet its mission to encourage
all Alaskans to create and enjoy art for all of its benefits;
however, the current system will not serve the council into the
future.
9:20:50 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON asked whether the council would still be
subject to the personnel rules of the state.
MR. BROWN clarified ASCA employees would be reclassified from
classified into exempt service; the rules would be less
constraining. He related ASCA staff is aware of the proposed
changes to their status.
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON asked if the council is assigned a
vacancy factor from the Department of Administration (DOA).
MR. BROWN responded six employees and one part-time position are
currently on the books, and only four positions are currently
filled. One of the positions is the Visual and Literary Arts
Program Director and is a maintained vacancy. The other
position was moved to shared services. Mr. Brown noted ASCA
staff members accept duties outside their job descriptions to
ensure all the work is done in a collaborative environment. He
was unsure whether ASCA has an assigned vacancy factor.
CHAIR DRUMMOND asked whether ASCA receives services from shared
services.
MR. BROWN deferred comment to the executive director and noted
ASCA is in need of accounting services.
9:24:25 AM
CHAIR DRUMMOND opened public testimony on HB 137.
9:24:36 AM
ANDREA NOBLE-PELANT, Executive Director, Alaska State Council on
the Arts (ASCA), stated support for HB 137, and offered an
example of a current project - involving several partners - that
has a planning timeframe of three months. [ASCA] turned over
the administration of the logistics of the project to Americans
for the Arts because ASCA could not complete its tasks quickly
due to its present structure. Further, she paraphrased from a
prepared statement, which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
The Alaska State Council on the Arts, now in its 51st
year, is ready for organizational change. The timing
of HB137 is opportune as Alaska's creative industry is
currently growing and expanding due to a decade of
targeted public and private investment and focus on
the arts and culture sector as an economic player. As
a result, the Alaska State Council on the Arts has
experienced rapid growth in grants, programs and
public/private partnerships.
We wish to continue this effort, and with the
provisions in HB137, the Alaska State Council on the
Arts is poised to continue grant-making as a public
corporation that will also allow new and existing
programs to reach more Alaskans with increased impact
and efficiency.
As staff of four, we work on local, national and
international levels to oversee projects and
initiatives that build capacity for arts
organizations, provide practical professional
development for individual artists and boost students'
chances for success through arts in education. Through
mutually beneficial alliances with public/private
sector partners, our reach extends to military service
members and their families who experience PTSD,
incarcerated individuals, pre-service teachers from
rural communities, Alaskan children and youth who want
opportunities to learn through arts and culture, and
parents who want to raise their families in safe,
sustainable communities.
Keeping with our mission, revenue from funders and
services goes back to Alaskan residents and
communities as grants, programs and resources.
Longstanding partnerships are in place with The
Rasmuson Foundation, The Alaska Arts and Culture
Foundation, and The Atwood Foundation. New partners
include Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, The CIRI
Foundation, and Sealaska Heritage Institute. Other
partners include the Alaska Humanities Forum and The
Western States Arts Federation who contribute in-kind
support, resources and funding.
HB137 provides flexibility for staff to manage fast
flow projects in a timely manner and to work statewide
across sectors such as health, economic development,
tourism, and transportation. HB137 allows for
responsive project execution that is necessary for
desired collaborative outcomes which affect
performance evaluations and our ability to secure
future funding.
9:29:40 AM
ALICE BIOFF, Business Planning Specialist, Kawerak, Inc.;
Member, [Board of Trustees], Alaska State Council on the Arts,
Department of Education and Early Development, stated support
for HB 137, paraphrasing from a prepared statement, which read
as follows [original punctuation provided]:
I am testifying today in my capacity as an ASCA
council member. I am a tribal member of the Native
Village of Koyuk and grew up there and in Nome. My
family and I have lived in Nome for the last 17 years.
For much of that time, I have been employed by
Kawerak, Inc., the regional Native non-profit
consortium of tribes for the Bering Strait region, as
a business planning Specialist.
Through our work here at Kawerak, I am honored and
privileged to work with artist entrepreneurs within
our communities. We provide direct technical
assistance offering tools and resources to assist
artists continue their work so that they can sustain
themselves, their families and their communities. It
is through this work that I have seen firsthand how
important it is for these artists who live in
communities with very few resources and
infrastructure, to grow their businesses through
opportunities such as those that become available
through ASCA and others.
Artist Entrepreneurs are economic development drivers
in their communities and the Alaska State Council on
the Arts supports these communities through their work
and advocacy. With their partnerships, resources and
programs, we see a bright future and growth
opportunity to support all artists across the State.
Through the restructuring initiative, we see ASCA
services continued and strengthened to support the
artists through improved ability to react to funding
opportunities and better represent, support and
advance the artists by offering the tools and services
needed to strengthen an already existing and important
economy. This is critical to strengthening and
sustaining our rural communities in this fiscally
challenging time.
HB 137 streamlines the process ASCA will use to
present opportunities to artists all over Alaska,
including those artists we have worked with for years
here in the Bering Strait region. From my
perspective, this will be a great benefit for all
artists including those in rural Alaska.
CHAIR DRUMMOND, after ascertaining no one else wished to
testify, closed public testimony on HB 137.
9:33:02 AM
REPRESENTATIVE PARISH moved to report HB 137 out of committee
with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal
notes. There being no objection, HB 137 was reported from the
House Education Standing Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| CS HB64.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 64 |
| HB64 Fiscal Note LEG-COU-O2-23-17.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 64 |
| HB64 Letter of Support Council on Disabilities.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 64 |
| HB135A.PDF |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 135 |
| HB135 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 135 |
| HB 135 Fiscal Note EED 3-03-17.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 135 |
| HB 135 Support Letter NWAB 2.24.17.PDF |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 135 |
| HB 135 Support Letter NWABSD 2.24.17.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 135 |
| HB 135 Participating Share Issue Examples.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 135 |
| HB137A.PDF |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 137 |
| HB137 Sponsor.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 137 |
| HB137 Supporting Document Brown.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 137 |
| HB137 Supporting Document Alaska Public Media.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 137 |
| HB 137 Fiscal Note EED 3-03-17.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 137 |
| HB137 Letter of Support Kawerak.pdf |
HEDC 3/10/2017 8:00:00 AM |
HB 137 |