04/04/2017 09:00 AM House FINANCE

HOUSE BILL NO. 137                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
     "An Act  redesignating 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."                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
9:32:11 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MS.  KRANENDONK,  STAFF,  REPRESENTATIVE  HARRIET  DRUMMOND,                                                                    
provided a  brief summary  of the bill  by reading  from the                                                                    
sponsor statement as follows:                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     House  Bill  137   quasi-privatizes  the  Alaska  State                                                                    
     Council on  the Arts  (ASCA) by  restructuring it  as a                                                                    
     public  corporation  in  order  to  help  the  ASCA  to                                                                    
     continue  its work  with self-employed  Alaskan artists                                                                    
     and  art  businesses  during these  challenging  fiscal                                                                    
     times. This new status will  allow the ASCA to increase                                                                    
     its  ability to  leverage  funds from  non-governmental                                                                    
     contributors and better adapt  to the shifting economic                                                                    
     climate.  This   effort  responds  to   the  widespread                                                                    
     interest in governmental entities,  as much as they are                                                                    
     able, to at least  partially privatize their operations                                                                    
     and increase their operating efficiency.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
Representative   Wilson   wanted    confirmation   that   no                                                                    
additional state funding was appropriated  for the bill. Ms.                                                                    
Kranendonk replied  that the bill reallocated  the funds but                                                                    
did not  add any funding.  She noted that  current employees                                                                    
would be reclassified as exempt.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Foster indicated  there  were  no amendments  from                                                                    
committee members.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
9:34:23 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair  Gara reviewed  the associated  fiscal note  from                                                                    
Department of  Education and  Early Development  (DEED): FN2                                                                    
(EED). He noted that the  appropriation was in the amount of                                                                    
$2.768 million in FY 2018.  He read the breakdown of funding                                                                    
sources  and noted  that  he was  unfamiliar  with the  AAIP                                                                    
fund.                                                                                                                           
9:36:17 AM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
9:38:31 AM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair Gara clarified that AIPP  stood for Art in Public                                                                    
Places. He  moved to  the second new  fiscal note  from DEED                                                                    
allocated  to   ASCA.  He  related  that   the  fiscal  note                                                                    
transferred the funding  to the new Alaska  State Council on                                                                    
the Arts' public corporation.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Foster  invited Mr. Painter  to clarify  the fiscal                                                                    
notes.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
ALEXEI  PAINTER,  ANALYST,   LEGISLATIVE  FINANCE  DIVISION,                                                                    
explained that creating a public  corporation meant ASCA was                                                                    
a separate legal entity from  the state, which required that                                                                    
the appropriation had its  own component. The administration                                                                    
was  prohibited  from  transferring  money  to  and  from  a                                                                    
corporation.  Fiscal note  number 2:  FN2 (EED)  deleted the                                                                    
funding from  the existing appropriation and  moved the same                                                                    
funding to the  new appropriation. He stated  that there was                                                                    
no net change in the funding.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
9:38:31 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Representative  Wilson  asked  whether the  money  could  be                                                                    
reappropriated  or if  the fund  was dedicated.  Mr. Painter                                                                    
responded that  the fund was  not dedicated, but  a transfer                                                                    
of any  money within  the appropriation was  restricted. The                                                                    
legislature retained the ability  to appropriate the funding                                                                    
as it desired.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
9:39:19 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
BEN  BROWN,  CHAIRMAN, ALASKA  STATE  COUNCIL  ON THE  ARTS,                                                                    
confirmed   that   it   would   remain   the   legislature's                                                                    
prerogative,  under  the  Executive Budget  Act  whether  to                                                                    
appropriate funding for the council.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Seaton MOVED  to report  HB 137  out of  Committee                                                                    
with individual recommendations  and the accompanying fiscal                                                                    
notes.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
HB  137 was  REPORTED  out  of committee  with  a "do  pass"                                                                    
recommendation and with  two new fiscal impact  notes by the                                                                    
House Finance Committee for the  Department of Education and                                                                    
Early Development.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
9:41:12 AM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
9:41:34 AM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Foster indicated that Representative Guttenberg                                                                        
had joined the meeting.