Legislature(2017 - 2018)BUTROVICH 205
04/16/2018 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB197 | |
| HJR29 | |
| HB354 | |
| HCR23 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HCR 23 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HJR 29 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 197 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 354 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
CSHB 197(FIN)-COMMUNITY SEED LIBRARIES; AGRICULTURE
3:33:24 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL announced consideration of HB 197 [CSHB 197(FIN),
version 30-LS0493\L, was before the committee].
3:33:48 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JENNIFER JOHNSTON, Alaska State Legislature,
Juneau, Alaska, sponsor of HB 197, said this measure came from
members of her community as a way to legalize the sharing of a
small amount of seeds. Currently, a seed cannot be sold, shared,
or exchanged without going through costly testing and labelling.
Seed sharing in libraries has a potential to contribute
significant value to the health and heritage in Alaska's
communities by providing a place to share regionally adapted
heirloom seeds as an alternative to outside genetically-modified
seeds and help increase bio-diversity and plant resilience in
the state.
She said seed libraries are sprouting up throughout Alaska and
this bill will allow them to operate legally without burdensome
and unnecessary government regulation. This bill will help grow
an organic sense of community and increase Alaska food security.
3:34:53 PM
ELIZABETH REXFORD, staff to Representative Johnston, Alaska
State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, explained that the newest
version of HB 197 reduces labelling and testing regulations for
the exchange of small batches of non-commercial seeds. This bill
will permit Alaska gardening and farming communities the
opportunity to continue expanding seed sharing without breaking
the law.
She said that Alaska currently has very onerous seed labelling
requirements; currently, any seed that is used at any capacity
within the state has to go through the commercial process of
extensive testing, germinating percentages, and labelling.
The new requirements would be limited to only a few sections:
the seeds' common name, name and address of the seed library,
and if treated with a toxic substance the labelling would
require the statement: "treated seed not for consumption."
Signage in the library to state: "not authorized for commercial
use in not classified, graded, or inspected by the State of
Alaska."
MS. REXFORD said the new fee requirement for labelling is far
less than the two pages of current requirements. As stated
before, Alaska has been experiencing a severe food security
challenge where residents spend close to $2 billion annually
buying food produced from outside of our state. By passing this
bill, Alaska's community seed libraries will be able to
confidently exist and grow into the future.
3:36:52 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said this is a good idea and asked if
genetically modified seeds have any special requirements and if
there are concerns about that.
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON answered that in taking testimony from
the seed libraries, he found that some operate through donations
and they didn't want their donated seeds to be too severely
limited.
3:37:42 PM
SENATOR BISHOP joined the committee.
SENATOR MEYER joined the committee.
SENATOR STEDMAN said he was curious about how this measure
interacts with the commercial issue.
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON replied she purposely left that out of
the seed bill, because it's taken care of with other statutes.
SENATOR STEDMAN said so, it's excluded from the community seed
library.
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON answered, "yes."
3:38:50 PM
AMY SEITZ, Executive Director, Alaska Farm Bureau, Soldotna,
Alaska, supported HB 197. She said interest in food security is
increasing in Alaska, and it is an issue that has been very
important to the Alaska Farm Bureau for several years.
She said increasing our food security can be done through
expanding agriculture with our farmers, but it can also be
achieved through encouraging members of the public to grow their
own food. HB 197 would allow personal growth of food by easing
restrictions on labelling requirements for the non-commercial
seed exchanges.
CHAIR GIESSEL said the "purple vetch" on road perimeters ended
up in Alaska because it was mixed in with the seeds that the
Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOTPF)
seeded the rights-of-way with. It is an invasive species that is
now choking off our native plants. She asked how it can be
ensured that no weeds are in the seeds that are being put into
these seed libraries.
ROB CARTER, Alaska Plant Material Center, Division of
Agriculture, Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Palmer,
Alaska, answered that the seed that is collected, harvested,
maintained or shared non-commercially is in relatively small
quantities and in this legislation is defined as under 100
pounds. A lot of the seed that has been shared from gardener to
gardener has been tested and meets the commercially standardized
labelling laws and testing requirements. The seed that is grown
and collected on a farm or within a community, remote or on the
road system, is done by hand in a non-mechanized fashion, and in
very small quantities and so, the genetics of seed individuals
have been maintained for years, or even decades. The chances of
collecting an invasive or non-native species would actually not
be very probable since seeds are mostly vegetable, flower, and
garden seeds that are unlike commercial scale seeds that are
collected by machines harvesting hundreds or thousands of acres
at a time where the chance of catching those invasive or non-
native species is very likely.
CHAIR GIESSEL thanked him and finding nor further questions, she
closed public testimony.
SENATOR COGHILL moved to report HB 197 [CSHB 197(FIN), version
\L,] from committee with individual recommendations and attached
fiscal note. There were no objections and it was so ordered.