Legislature(2017 - 2018)HOUSE FINANCE 519
04/04/2017 09:00 AM House FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB144 | |
| HB137 | |
| HB146 | |
| HB31 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HB 146 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 31 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 144 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 137 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HOUSE BILL NO. 144
"An Act extending the termination date of the Board of
Veterinary Examiners; and providing for an effective
date."
9:09:29 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SAM KITO III, SPONSOR, read the sponsor
statement:
House Bill 144 extends the termination date for the
Board of Veterinary Examiners until June 30, 2025.
Legislative Audit conducted their review of this board
and determined that "the board is serving in the
public's interest by effectively licensing and
regulating veterinarians and veterinary technicians.
The board monitors licensees and works to ensure only
qualified individuals practice. Furthermore, the board
develops and adopts regulations to improve the
veterinarian and veterinary technician occupations in
Alaska. In accordance with AS 08.03.010(c) (22), the
board is scheduled to terminate on June 30, 2017. We
recommend that the legislature extend the board's
termination date to June 30, 2025."
The board currently oversees 784 active licensees and
is made up of five members. State law requires four
board positions be filled by licensed veterinarians
that have been engaged in the practice of veterinary
medicine in the state for at least five years prior to
appointment. The remaining position is to be filled by
an individual from the general public.
The continuation of the Board of Veterinary Examiners
is important to the health and safety of Alaska's pets
and livestock.
Thank you for your support of House Bill 144.
Representative Kito reported that an issue regarding lack
of rural veterinary care was identified in the audit. The
issue was indirectly related to the board and was not a
primary function. He indicated that providing veterinary
care in rural areas was fiscally difficult for
veterinarians. The House Labor and Commerce Committee
committed to meet during the interim to address possible
options and formulate recommendations for improving rural
veterinary care. The board sunset June 30, 2017 and needed
approval to continue its licensing functions in the state.
9:12:22 AM
Representative Wilson ascertained that the board was in
arrears for $25.8 thousand and noted the audit
recommendation to reduce fees. She wondered how the deficit
was created. Representative Kito spoke to the bi-annual
license renewal cycle affecting the board's balance each
year. The Department of Commerce, Community and Economic
Development (DCCED) were required to review a board's
accounting each year and adjust fees every other year, or
each biennium, to keep reserves close to zero.
Representative Wilson asked whether increasing fees was one
of the audit findings. Representative Kito deferred the
answer to the department.
9:14:22 AM
KRIS CURTIS, LEGISLATIVE AUDITOR, ALASKA DIVISION OF
LEGISLATIVE AUDIT, summarized the findings of the audit.
She reported that "the board is serving in the public's
interest by effectively licensing and regulating
veterinarians and veterinary technicians" and recommended
the maximum allowable extension of 8 years. She referred to
page 7 of the audit and cited the only recommendation:
"The board chair should review the annual report for
accuracy and completeness before final submission to
the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic
Development."
Ms. Curtis indicated that the department staff examiner
erroneously included information from a different board in
the board's annual report and submitted the report on the
board's behalf without review by the board chair. She
referred to a chart on page 5 of the audit (copy on file)
that depicted the total licenses issued from FY 13 through
February 2016 and noted a 57 percent increase in licensees.
She directed attention to a chart on page 6 containing the
schedule of revenues and expenditures from FY 13 through
February 29, 2016. She explained that at the end of FY 13
the board was running a surplus of $108.8 thousand,
resulting in a fee reduction. Conversely, the board was
currently running a deficit of $25.8 thousand. She
determined that "overall" the board was well-run.
Representative Wilson asked about a prior sunset audit that
recommended the governor fill vacant board seats in a
timely manner. Ms. Curtis responded that Legislative Audit
did not discover any extended vacancies.
Co-Chair Foster noted that Co-Chair Seaton joined the
meeting.
Representative Wilson requested an answer from the
department about how the deficit was being handled. She
thought that the significant increase in licensees would
result in a surplus rather than a deficit.
9:18:07 AM
JANEY HOVENDEN, DIRECTOR, DIVISION OF CORPORATIONS,
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL LICENSING, DEPARTMENT OF
COMMERCE, COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, reported that
fees were substantially increased for the last renewal
period. The veterinary license fees increased from $300 to
$500 and the fees for technicians increased from $50 to
$100. The current FY 17 second quarter report ending on
December 13, 2017 reported a surplus of $25.3 thousand.
Co-Chair Foster noted that Representative Coleen Sullivan
Leonard, Representative Kito and Representative Claman were
present.
9:19:19 AM
Co-Chair Foster OPEND Public Testimony for HB 144.
9:19:41 AM
RACHEL BERGNGARTT, DOCTOR OF VETRINARY MEDICINE AND BOARD
MEMBER, related that the board engaged in "extensive"
discussions over the past year on ways to improve services
and remedy the budgetary issues. She reminded the committee
that the board existed to license veterinarians and
technicians and not dictate where licensees needed to
practice. She voiced that options for rural veterinary
services existed. She pointed out that the board's job was
to enable licensees to practice in the areas of their
choosing and the board never denied a license to anyone
appropriately qualified regardless of what area of the
state they worked in. The board did not track where Alaskan
veterinarians practiced. She communicated that private non-
profits like the The Alaska Veterinary Rural Outreach
offered spay, neuter, and well pet services in over 200
Alaskan communities. She furthered that the board offered a
courtesy license for out-of-state veterinarians for
approximately $75 to veterinarians who travel to Alaska to
assist Alaskan veterinarians on a temporary basis. She
indicated there were over 30 out-of-state veterinarians
that helped with the Iditarod.
9:24:24 AM
ERIC JAYNE, DOCTOR OF VETERINARIAN, HAWAII (via
teleconference), asserted that the board had attempted to
control veterinary services in rural Alaska through the
provisions that allowed non-profit groups to work in the
state. He communicated that the board offered two types of
temporary licenses that allowed out-of-state veterinarians
to practice in Alaska. One type, good for a period of 60
days, was called "a temporary permit" used for relief
veterinarians. The temporary permit was offered at a low
cost, easy to apply for, did not require board approval,
and did not limit the scope of practice. The other was a
"special event courtesy license." He maintained that the
board inserted a provision that allowed veterinarians from
non-profit spay neuter groups from out-of-state to perform
services in communities off the road system under the
license. He contended that the courtesy licensing process
was very arduous, and he discovered that only two
veterinarians applied for the license. He reported that the
fee was large, the license was subject to board approval,
and limited to only spay and neuter services. He currently
worked for 8 spay-neuter clinics. He ascertained that many
other veterinarians from out-of-state would volunteer their
services in rural Alaska if they felt welcomed by the
board. He believed the board's special event license
provisions inhibited non-profits from operating in rural
Alaska and that the board wanted to protect the financial
interest of Alaskan veterinarians. He also pointed out that
the cost for the lack of rural veterinary care was
"tremendous" and "spent unnecessarily." He cited that 7
children were mauled to death since 1994 in the Yukon
Kuskokwim Delta. He spoke of hundreds of bite wounds and
the associated costs that were treated using Medicaid
dollars. He maintained that there were several different
policy changes the board could implement to mitigate the
problem. He recommended allowing a rural member on the
board.
Co-Chair Foster CLOSED Public Testimony.
Co-Chair Foster indicated that amendments were due on
Friday, April 7, 2017.
HB 144 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further
consideration.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB144 Legislative Audit.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 144 |
| HB144 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 144 |
| HB144 Supporting Letters 032817.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 144 |
| HB146 Opposing Documents 3.27.17.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 146 |
| HB146 Opposing Document 3.27.17.PDF |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 146 |
| HB146 Sectional Analysis ver O 3.27.17.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 146 |
| HB146 Supporting Documents 3.27.17.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 146 |
| HB146 Sponsor Statement 3.27.17.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 146 |
| HB 31 Amendment 1.PDF |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 31 |
| Testimony Jayne HB 144 April 3.pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 144 |
| HB31 - Supporting (040617).pdf |
HFIN 4/4/2017 9:00:00 AM |
HB 31 |