03/12/2014 08:30 AM House FINANCE

HOUSE BILL NO. 266                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
     "An  Act making  appropriations for  the operating  and                                                                    
     loan  program  expenses  of state  government  and  for                                                                    
     certain  programs,   capitalizing  funds,   and  making                                                                    
     reappropriations; making appropriations  under art. IX,                                                                    
     sec. 17(c),  Constitution of the State  of Alaska, from                                                                    
     the constitutional budget reserve fund."                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
HOUSE BILL NO. 267                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
     "An  Act making  appropriations for  the operating  and                                                                    
     capital    expenses   of    the   state's    integrated                                                                    
     comprehensive mental health program."                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
9:07:13 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Stoltze MOVED to  REPORT CSHB 266(FIN), 28-GH2671\Y                                                                    
out of committee with individual recommendations.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Austerman OBJECTED for discussion.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
Representative Gara discussed an  amendment he had submitted                                                                    
the  prior day  that had  failed. The  amendment related  to                                                                    
cuts to substance  abuse treatment. He pointed  to high drug                                                                    
addiction rates in  Alaska. He relayed that the  state had a                                                                    
massive  shortage  of   residential  treatment  options  for                                                                    
heroin addiction treatment in  the state. He elaborated that                                                                    
people with major drug addictions  were only willing to seek                                                                    
treatment  for a  short period  of time  and that  treatment                                                                    
should be  available when  the addict  was ready.  He stated                                                                    
that heroin users  committed felonies. He shared  that not a                                                                    
single  male had  been treated  in  the Anchorage  methadone                                                                    
clinic  in the  past year.  The cuts  would cause  increased                                                                    
agony, child  abuse, prosecutor costs, jail  costs, domestic                                                                    
violence, court costs, and other  problems. Waiting lists in                                                                    
the  treatment centers  had already  been lengthy;  the cuts                                                                    
would increase the wait.                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Representative Gara  stressed that $1 million  should not be                                                                    
taken  from  residential  treatment and  put  in  outpatient                                                                    
treatment.  Those needing  residential treatment  had severe                                                                    
addictions;  outpatient treatment  would  not be  successful                                                                    
for  the  individuals. He  understood  the  pressure on  the                                                                    
Department   of   Health    and   Social   Services   (DHSS)                                                                    
subcommittee  chair  to  make cuts  with  the  least  damage                                                                    
possible, but  he could  not support  the cuts.  He believed                                                                    
the past three years of cuts should be reversed.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Representative   Guttenberg  discussed   that  he   and  his                                                                    
colleague  had offered  multiple  amendments  the prior  day                                                                    
that had failed. He relayed  that the state needed to invest                                                                    
in its  children who would  become the future of  the state.                                                                    
He  stated that  Alaska continued  to be  a rich  state with                                                                    
resources  in oil,  gas, mining,  timber, and  fisheries. He                                                                    
stressed  that the  committee had  a big  responsibility and                                                                    
needed  to  take its  job  seriously.  He thought  that  the                                                                    
committee should  examine the  repercussions of  budget cuts                                                                    
to  services such  as drug  treatment  centers to  determine                                                                    
whether it  impacted the  Department of  Corrections budget.                                                                    
He  believed  the  legislature needed  to  address  problems                                                                    
holistically. He spoke about the  success of the therapeutic                                                                    
court programs.  Society set the agenda  and the legislators                                                                    
had to  address the  issues. He acknowledged  the difficulty                                                                    
of  the issues  and  believed that  the  dialogue needed  to                                                                    
continue.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
9:20:14 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Representative Costello  thanked the committee for  its hard                                                                    
work  on the  budget. She  voiced that  by the  time current                                                                    
kindergarteners  were in  high  school most  of the  state's                                                                    
savings  will  have been  spent  on  Medicaid and  education                                                                    
spending.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Stoltze  followed   on  Representative  Costello's                                                                    
comments. He  stated that the  budget reality  was sobering.                                                                    
He  detailed  that,  if  the  budget  was  all  consumed  by                                                                    
Medicaid and education expenditures  there would be no other                                                                    
budget  options.  He  discussed efforts  to  curtail  budget                                                                    
growth.  The process  had  been painful  and  the state  was                                                                    
looking at  unsustainable budgets  for the  future. Reducing                                                                    
the budget below  the governor's level had been  a source of                                                                    
angst for the committee.                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Austerman thanked committee  members for their work                                                                    
on the  budget. He understood  how difficult it had  been to                                                                    
make   budget  cut   recommendations.   Given  the   current                                                                    
financial situation  the decisions were pertinent  to future                                                                    
goals.  He  thanked  the  departments  for  their  work.  He                                                                    
expected the budget decisions to get harder in the future.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Austerman WITHDREW his OBJECTION.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
There being NO further  OBJECTION CSHB 266(FIN) was REPORTED                                                                    
out of committee with a "do pass" recommendation.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Stoltze MOVED to  REPORT CSHB 267(FIN), 28-GH2673\O                                                                    
out of committee with individual recommendations.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
There being NO  OBJECTION CSHB 267(FIN) was  REPORTED out of                                                                    
committee with a "do pass" recommendation.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
9:27:21 AM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
9:29:42 AM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED