05/01/2017 01:00 PM House RESOURCES

                HB 197-COMMUNITY SEED LIBRARIES                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
1:06:49 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR TARR  announced that the  first order of  business would                                                               
be HOUSE  BILL NO.  197, "An  Act relating to  the duties  of the                                                               
commissioner of  natural resources; relating to  agriculture; and                                                               
relating to community seed libraries."                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR TARR  stated the committee  substitute (CS) for  HB 197,                                                               
labeled 30-LS0493\O,  Wayne, 4/24/17,  was adopted at  a previous                                                               
the hearing  of the bill on  4/26/17, and there is  a forthcoming                                                               
amendment.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
1:07:34 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  JENNIFER  JOHNSTON,   Alaska  State  Legislature,                                                               
sponsor  of  HB  197,  explained a  forthcoming  amendment  would                                                               
remove  concerns  regarding  seed sellers'  names  and  addresses                                                               
attached to the seed packs.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:07:57 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
TERRANOVA  TASKER,  staff  to Representative  Jennifer  Johnston,                                                               
Alaska State  Legislature, further explained the  amendment is in                                                               
response to  concerns raised at  a previous hearing  about having                                                               
one's personal  name and address written  in a library log  or on                                                               
[seed  packet]  labels.   The  amendment  would also  remove  any                                                               
buyer/seller   language   to   keep  the   recorded   information                                                               
consistent with noncommercial seed-sharing.   Ms. Tasker reported                                                               
a seed library  in Pennsylvania keeps a check-out  log with names                                                               
and phone numbers, which is not  uncommon for a seed library.  In                                                               
addition,   Legislative  Legal   Services,  Legislative   Affairs                                                               
Agency,  and the  Department of  Natural Resources  (DNR) advised                                                               
her  that the  removal of  the personal  name and  address limits                                                               
some accountability.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
1:09:30 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR TARR moved to adopt  Amendment 2, labeled 30-LS0493\O.2,                                                               
Wayne, 4/28/17.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
[There was no Amendment 1.]                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:09:45 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  JOSEPHSON   objected  for  discussion  purposes.     He                                                               
referred to  difficulties related  to accountability  if personal                                                               
identifiers  are  removed  from   the  bill,  and  asked  whether                                                               
personal  names  and  addresses  would still  be  logged  by  the                                                               
library [if Amendment 2 was adopted].                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MS. TASKER expressed her understanding  [the effect of] Amendment                                                               
2 [would  be] that the seed  library does not have  an obligation                                                               
to  keep  personal  information;  based  on  how  seed  libraries                                                               
operate, one must be a member  of the library, thus the amendment                                                               
leaves  recording personal  information "wholeheartedly  in their                                                               
hands."                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  JOSEPHSON  relayed he  was  contacted  by an  Anchorage                                                               
resident who said  HB 197 is not necessary  and regulates private                                                               
trades or exchanges.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MS. TASKER stated the bill was  proposed because all seeds in the                                                               
state are  treated as commercial  seeds, and there is  no private                                                               
seed  exchange allowed  by current  applicable statute  and code.                                                               
Therefore, the  bill gives seed  libraries, and others  through a                                                               
personal  exemption clause,  the right  to exchange  seeds in  or                                                               
outside of  the community seed  library, as long as  the exchange                                                               
remains in the noncommercial realm.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR TARR further described Amendment 2 as follows:                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
     But it  still does have  the, ... deletes  the language                                                                    
     that  says, "that  it's harvested  from  a plant  grown                                                                    
     outside the  state unless the  seed is in  the original                                                                    
     packaging into which it was imported."                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  TARR  said Amendment  2  reflects  an amendment  and  a                                                               
conceptual amendment that were proposed in a previous hearing.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
1:14:41 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  JOSEPHSON removed  his  objection to  Amendment 2  and,                                                               
there being no further objection, Amendment 2 was adopted.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  JOHNSON expressed  support for  the work  done by                                                               
the sponsor.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  PARISH questioned  the  purpose  of changing  the                                                               
requirement for seeds harvested from plants grown out-of-state.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTIVE  JOHNSTON  explained  seed libraries  requested  the                                                               
change  so that  the libraries  could accept  donations that  are                                                               
received from sources such as The Home Depot.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  PARISH  asked how  HB  197  would interface  with                                                               
proposed  [HB  19]  regarding seeds  treated  with  neonicotinoid                                                               
pesticides.  He asked whether it  is common for seeds offered for                                                               
sale by commercial sources to be pretreated.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  JOHNSTON said  she  did not  know; however,  seed                                                               
libraries provide  a good  and social  function, and  she assured                                                               
the committee  that seed  libraries would  be familiar  with this                                                               
issue.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR TARR  restated two  issues are  deleted by  amendment to                                                               
the  bill:   plants  grown outside  the state,  and  seed in  its                                                               
original  packaging.   She directed  attention  to language  that                                                               
would be deleted from the bill on  page 4, lines 12 and 13, which                                                               
read:                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
      (1) that is harvested from a plant grown outside the                                                                      
     state unless the seed is in the original packaging in                                                                      
     which it was imported into the state;                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
1:19:00 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ROB  CARTER,   manager,  Plant  Materials  Center,   Division  of                                                               
Agriculture,  Department  of  Natural Resources,  explained  many                                                               
seeds  shared  through  community   seed  libraries  and  amongst                                                               
individuals are difficult to produce  in Alaska, such as biannual                                                               
plants  that must  be  overwintered prior  to  setting seeds  for                                                               
harvest.   Consequently,  certain seeds  are imported  and shared                                                               
with other  growers in the  state, which improves  crop diversity                                                               
within regions of the state.   However, during this process it is                                                               
common for  seeds to be  repackaged by  the buyer or  others, and                                                               
the requirement that  seeds remain in the  original package would                                                               
limit  the  possibility  for crop  diversity,  which  provides  a                                                               
foundation for food security and production.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:21:38 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   PARISH   restated   his   question   about   the                                                               
correlation between proposed  bills HB 197 and HB  19, as related                                                               
to seeds that are treated with neonicotinoid pesticides.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MR. CARTER said [HB 19]  relates specifically to the chemical use                                                               
of neonicotinoid pesticides and  includes an exemption for plants                                                               
confined within a greenhouse, as  well as for certified pesticide                                                               
applicators.  He pointed out  the majority of seed treatments for                                                               
crops  that are  traded in  seed libraries  - nonlarge  agronomic                                                               
species  such  as wheat,  barley,  and  corn  -  tend not  to  be                                                               
neonicotinoids.   Mr.  Carter  stressed [HB  19]  is specific  to                                                               
treatments applied to  plants or seeds in the ground,  and not on                                                               
crops traded within seed libraries  such as carrots and broccoli,                                                               
which  are  traditionally  treated   with  a  fungicide  or  seed                                                               
protectant.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE PARISH posited if a  seed was offered for trade at                                                               
a seed  library and it was  discovered the seed had  been treated                                                               
with  neonicotinoids, would  the  responsible party  be the  seed                                                               
library, or the individual who offered the seed to the library.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MR.  CARTER  opined HB  197,  in  its  current form,  places  the                                                               
liability upon the  library.  He characterized a  seed library as                                                               
a multitude of individuals hosted in  a common place, and for the                                                               
integrity of  the library, individuals  would self-police,  as no                                                               
seed  library  would   want  to  jeopardize  its   event  or  its                                                               
collection.  He spoke in favor of this provision of the bill.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:26:56 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR JOSEPHSON  moved to report the  committee substitute for                                                               
HB 197, Version  30-LS0493\O, Wayne, 4/24/17, as  amended, out of                                                               
committee  with individual  recommendations and  the accompanying                                                               
fiscal  note.    There  being no  objection,  CSHB  197(RES)  was                                                               
reported out of the House Resources Standing Committee.