03/31/2016 08:00 AM House STATE AFFAIRS

            HB 269-MVA COMMISSIONER MEMBER OF CDVSA                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
8:59:30 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR LYNN  announced that the  final order of business  would be                                                               
HOUSE BILL NO.  269, "An Act adding the  commissioner of military                                                               
and  veterans  affairs  to  the  membership  of  the  Council  on                                                               
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault."                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
8:59:48 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
RON  CLARKE,  Legislative  Liaison,   Department  of  Military  &                                                               
Veterans'  Affairs (DMVA),  presented  HB 269  on  behalf of  the                                                               
House  Rules  Standing  Committee,  sponsor, by  request  of  the                                                               
governor.   He explained that  the proposed legislation  adds the                                                               
commissioner  of  DMVA  to  the  membership  of  the  Council  on                                                               
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault  (CDVSA).  He explained that                                                               
Section 1 adds  the position of commissioner of DMVA  to the list                                                               
of members of  the council, and Section 2 sets  the quorum at six                                                               
members instead of the previous five.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
9:01:32 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ADJUTANT  GENERAL LAURIE  HUMMEL, Adjutant  General/Commissioner,                                                               
Department  of  Military  & Veterans'  Affairs  (DMVA);  Adjutant                                                               
General Alaska  National Guard,  testified in  support of  HB 269                                                               
which  seeks to  add  the  DMVA commissioner  to  the Council  on                                                               
Domestic Violence  and Sexual Assault.   She asked  the committee                                                               
to  give its  "quick  and favorable"  attention  to the  proposed                                                               
legislation.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
9:02:00 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ADJUTANT  GENERAL HUMMEL  paraphrased  her  written testimony  as                                                               
follows:                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     It  may  not be  immediately  apparent  why a  military                                                                    
     officer would be a logical  addition to this group, but                                                                    
     the  council's mission  falls squarely  in my  lane, as                                                                    
     I'll explain.   As commissioner,  I serve as  the State                                                                    
     of  Alaska's official  liaison to  all military  forces                                                                    
     serving in state.  This  additional role means that I'm                                                                    
     in  daily  contact with  a  full  spectrum of  military                                                                    
     personnel  and  their family  ...  members.   Today  in                                                                    
     Alaska,  there  are  some  23,000  active  and  reserve                                                                    
     component   military  personnel   and  4,100   national                                                                    
     guardsmen.    I'm  also  responsible  for  the  state's                                                                    
     Office of Veterans' Affairs,  which assists veterans to                                                                    
     access those  state and federal programs  and services.                                                                    
     As you know,  Alaska has more veterans  per capita than                                                                    
     any  other state  - that's  about 74,000  veterans, and                                                                    
     that  number is  increasing  every year.    There is  a                                                                    
     total of  about 101,000  service members  and veterans,                                                                    
     that along with their  189,000 dependent family members                                                                    
     - that's a total of  290,000 people or about 40 percent                                                                    
     of Alaska's  residents.  That's  a huge portion  of our                                                                    
     population.    And put  another  way,  that's about  on                                                                    
     average  1,800  veterans  and  3,800  dependent  family                                                                    
     members  per  House  district.     These  Alaskans  are                                                                    
     important for  their sheer numbers, but  they also have                                                                    
     unique  perspectives  and  valuable  skills,  and  they                                                                    
     bring  talent   and  extraordinary  benefit   to  their                                                                    
     communities.   They also  have extensive  experience in                                                                    
     facing the  social ills that  plaque us  all, including                                                                    
     sexual  assault, domestic  violence, and  their effects                                                                    
     on both  military and civilian community.   But working                                                                    
     with  active  duty  veterans and  service  members  and                                                                    
     their families every day, I  can't help but share their                                                                    
     experiences,  their  challenges, their  struggles,  and                                                                    
     their successes in  overcoming the wide-ranging effects                                                                    
     of sexual assault and domestic violence.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
9:04:12 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ADJUTANT GENERAL HUMMEL continued:                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
     A community  the size  of ours  demands that  we tackle                                                                    
     these  difficult issues  head on,  and we're  doing so.                                                                    
     By working to  protect our military men  and women from                                                                    
     the effects  of sexual  assault and  domestic violence,                                                                    
     we've  learned valuable  lessons that  we could  use to                                                                    
     assist  all Alaskans.   The  military, in  general, has                                                                    
     learned  a   lot  about  creating  safe   work  places,                                                                    
     fostering respectful colleagues,  and the importance of                                                                    
     clear  knowledge  that we  all  serve  under a  command                                                                    
     structure committed  to the safety and  security of the                                                                    
     force.   The services  have launched and  will continue                                                                    
     comprehensive, wide-ranging efforts  to raise awareness                                                                    
     of sexual assault and harassment.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
     Specifically  at  the   Alaska  National  Guard,  we've                                                                    
     implemented new  measures to protect victims  and their                                                                    
     identities.  We have  the sexual assault prevention and                                                                    
     response  program, which  provides crisis  intervention                                                                    
     and support services to victims  of sexual assault 24/7                                                                    
     statewide, and  this program is an  associate member of                                                                    
     the  Alaska Network  on  Domestic  Violence and  Sexual                                                                    
     Assault.   It has  a working relationship  already with                                                                    
     the Council  on Domestic  Violence and  Sexual Assault.                                                                    
     We  would welcome  an  expansion  of that  relationship                                                                    
     through passage  of HB 269,  and the  formal connection                                                                    
     between DMVA  and the council that  would bring benefit                                                                    
     to Alaskans statewide.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
9:05:38 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ADJUTANT GENERAL HUMMEL continued:                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
     As  Adjutant  General,  I  chair  regular  meetings  to                                                                    
     review the  progress of all  current and  pending cases                                                                    
     of sexual  assault associated within the  guard family.                                                                    
     I imagine  there is no  other state, local,  or private                                                                    
     employer in Alaska that has  been faced with challenges                                                                    
     in this  area to the  point of crisis and  tackled them                                                                    
     as aggressively as we have.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
     Finally, ...  there is  a budgetary angle  to this.   A                                                                    
     2008  study found  that the  average cost  of a  sexual                                                                    
     assault nationwide  is over  $150,000; that  50 percent                                                                    
     of victims  will not be  able to work in  their current                                                                    
     jobs for  a year after  assault due to the  severity of                                                                    
     their  mental health  injuries; and  that violence  and                                                                    
     substance abuse  constitute up to  a third of  the cost                                                                    
     of healthcare nationally or about  $750 billion a year.                                                                    
     We  could share  with the  council our  most successful                                                                    
     practices  from   the  services  that  we   provide  to                                                                    
     eligible  victims with  federal  funds.   Our  military                                                                    
     programs are robust and part  of an integrated approach                                                                    
     to  maximize  the  opportunity for  survivor  recovery.                                                                    
     The [U.S.]  Department of Defense has  invested heavily                                                                    
     in  this aspect  of personnel  readiness and  wellness,                                                                    
     and  we  at DMVA  manage  and  operate many  integrated                                                                    
     programs.  We'd like to  share what we've learned along                                                                    
     the way with  the council, and we'd also  like to learn                                                                    
     from the other council members' expertise.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     So, in  summary, Mr. Chairman,  this is  very important                                                                    
     work,  which unfortunately  will never  be done.   Your                                                                    
     military forces  in Alaska  are committed  to remaining                                                                    
     vigilant  and willing  to tackle  difficult situations,                                                                    
     and we look  forward to working even  more closely with                                                                    
     the Council  on Domestic  Violence and  Sexual Assault.                                                                    
     I recommend your prompt passage  of HB 269, and I thank                                                                    
     you, Mr. Chairman, for the opportunity to speak.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
9:07:41 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR LYNN asked Adjutant General Hummel to repeat the number of                                                                
veterans in each House district on average.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
ADJUTANT GENERAL HUMMEL replied, on average, there are 1,800                                                                    
veterans and 3,800 dependent family members per House district.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE KELLER asked for an explanation of the fiscal                                                                    
note.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
9:08:44 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MR. CLARKE responded  that the duties associated  with service on                                                               
the council  are in line  with what Adjutant General  Hummel does                                                               
as  a matter  of  course within  her daily  duties.   He  further                                                               
stated  that  travel would  be  minimal  due  to the  ability  to                                                               
teleconference  meetings, and  the  council  frequently meets  in                                                               
Anchorage  where  Adjutant  General  Hummel  is  stationed.    He                                                               
concluded that the fiscal note is zero for those reasons.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
9:09:31 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   KREISS-TOMKINS   moved   to   adopt   Conceptual                                                               
Amendment  1  to  add  the Department  of  Military  &  Veterans'                                                               
Affairs  to Section  18.66.050 (4)  and would  add to  the title:                                                               
"and relating to  the duties of the Council  on Domestic Violence                                                               
and Sexual Assault."                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE KELLER objected for purpose of discussion.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   KREISS-TOMKINS   offered   that   the   proposed                                                               
conceptual amendment was a conforming  amendment to make sure the                                                               
addition of  the new member  to the Council on  Domestic Violence                                                               
and Sexual Assault is reflected in all parts of the statute.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  KELLER   removed  his  objection   to  Conceptual                                                               
Amendment  1.    There  being no  further  objection,  Conceptual                                                               
Amendment 1 was adopted.                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
9:10:53 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
The committee took a brief at-ease at 9:11 a.m.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
9:11:19 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
BRENDA STANFILL,  Alaska Network on Domestic  Violence and Sexual                                                               
Assault  (ANDVSA),  testified on  behalf  of  ANDVSA's 19  member                                                               
agencies and associate member in support  of HB 269.  She relayed                                                               
that ANDVSA  is supportive  of DMVA  joining the  council, adding                                                               
that  the council  is  made  up of  public  and state  department                                                               
members, and  ANDVSA attempts to  maintain a balance  between the                                                               
two.  She continued that  a balanced membership assists in making                                                               
sure  the   council  receives  the   perspective  of   the  state                                                               
departments,  the  communities,  and   those  involved  with  the                                                               
everyday work.   She stated  that with  the addition of  the DMVA                                                               
member  on  the  council,  the   ratio  then  becomes  six  state                                                               
department members and  four public members.   She voiced concern                                                               
that the council  is lacking in representation  from rural Alaska                                                               
and pointed  out that it is  a huge issue for  ANDVSA, especially                                                               
when considering the geographical issues  and lack of services in                                                               
the rural areas.  She  asked that the legislature consider adding                                                               
an  additional member  to the  council  in order  to balance  the                                                               
ratio.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
9:14:04 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR LYNN closed public testimony on HB 269.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  KREISS-TOMKINS asked  whether  the suggestion  to                                                               
add  an  additional  member  to the  council  had  been  proposed                                                               
previously,  and   he  also  asked   about  the  origin   of  the                                                               
suggestion.   He recommended that  the committee proceed  with HB
.                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  LYNN  suggested  offering  Representative  Kreiss-Tomkins'                                                               
question to  the House Finance  Committee, the next  committee of                                                               
referral.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE KELLER moved to report  HB 269, as amended, out of                                                               
committee with individual recommendations  and zero fiscal notes.                                                               
There being no  objection, CSHB 269(STA) was reported  out of the                                                               
House State Affairs Standing Committee.