Legislature(2003 - 2004)
04/01/2003 08:01 AM House STA
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HCR 5-LEGIS. TASK FORCE ON DESIGN OF STATE SEAL
Number 0139
CHAIR WEYHRAUCH announced that the first order of business was
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 5, Establishing a task force to
make recommendations regarding a new design for the official
seal of the State of Alaska.
Number 0163
REPRESENTATIVE REGGIE JOULE, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor
of HCR 5, gave a PowerPoint presentation. Saying there is no
symbol of Alaska older than the state seal, he offered his
belief that it is time to modernize it. Thus HCR 5 would create
a task force of eight citizens to provide for a focal point of
public involvement in designing a new seal. After the task
force reports back to the legislature in January [2004], the
legislature will decide whether to adopt the new design and
commission the engraver.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE surmised that most Alaskans probably don't
realize the current seal is the second one to represent the
government of Alaska. In 1885 the first appointed governor,
John Kinkead, designed a seal for the military district of
Alaska; in use approximately 25 years, it depicted the northern
lights, icebergs, and "an Alaska Native or two." He said the
only place he knows of where the district seal is still in use
is on the mantel of the fireplace of the governor's house, where
it was uncovered from under many layers of paint when the house
was restored in the 1980s.
Number 0366
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE said then-Governor Walter Clark decided in
1910 that the district seal was inappropriate for several
reasons, including its depiction of icebergs, northern lights,
and Natives. Governor Clark hired a man to draw a rough sketch
to include more modern developments in Alaska; the result is the
design that was sent to Washington, D.C., for approval in 1910.
Around that time, however, someone in the Department of the
Interior commissioned a more refined drawing and sent that back
to Alaska. Governor Clark then commissioned an engraver to cast
the new seal, and it was delivered to the Secretary of Alaska on
February 25, 1911. In 1913, the seal was changed again when the
word "district" was changed to "territory." He said, "At
statehood, this seal became the official state seal and remained
so as part of the statutes."
Number 0518
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE referred to an article in the April 1911
edition of the Alaska-Yukon Magazine that announced the new
seal. It read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
The Territory of Alaska will not permit any one to
forget that development and industrial progress are
its chief concern. Not even will public documents,
bearing the signature of the territorial chief
executive, be permitted [any] longer to convey, to
those who take note of them, the ancient conception of
the country as a land of Arctic temperature and the
home of an unique race of aborigines. Gov. Walter E.
Clark has had prepared a new official seal for the
Territory that will typify modern Alaska, as he
conceives it. While the general design of the old
seal is retained in the new, the whole effect has been
to emphasize the important industries of the
Territory, and to present them on the whole according
to their relative importance. The center of the seal
shows a range of mountains in the distance, above
which appears the rising sun, typifying in this
instance the dawn of the commercial and industrial era
in Alaska.
In the middle distance on the left is a large ore mill
and a wharf, with a train of ore cars and a spur track
leading toward the mill. In the harbor adjacent is a
large steamship, typifying commerce, and in another
part of the harbor is a fishing vessel, representing
one of the great industries. The forests, also,
appear in the middle distance on the left to represent
the lumber industry and resources; and there is a
harvest scene to typify agriculture.
Around the circumference of the seal appear the words:
"The Seal of the District of Alaska," the two lines of
which are separated on one side by salmon and on the
other side by a fur seal in place of the conventional
stars that are usually employed for this purpose.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE said those words from 1911 explain why the
official seal of Alaska looks the way it does. However, Alaska
is a far different place today, which leads to the question of
whether its seal should reflect those changes. For example, in
1910 Anchorage did not exist, and the state has outgrown several
industries and [developed new ones]. For example, do urban
Alaska and the oil and gas industry belong on the state seal?
And is the horse and plow the best representation of agriculture
in Alaska? Representative Joule noted that in 1910 [half] the
population of Alaska was Native, and yet any depiction of Alaska
Natives was dropped from the seal by Governor Clark. He added,
"We have time to fix that omission."
Number 0760
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE said in 1885 and 1910, the idea of public
involvement in designing a seal was not considered. The
legislature can fix that oversight and provide a valuable
learning experience for Alaskan residents. He said HCR 5 "asks
all of us to use our imaginations." Saying Governor Clark had
looked to the future, Representative Joule asked that [the
legislature] do the same now by asking what symbols might have
currency with residents of Alaska 100 hundred years from now.
Number 0821
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE showed the committee some other state
logos, included in the handout of the PowerPoint presentation,
including an Alaska Department of Fish & Game logo in use from
1962 until 1977, and the ensuing black-and-white logo that
dropped the totem pole design. He noted that the design changed
again in 2001, when color was added and the lines were altered.
He also showed the committee the logo used by the Department of
Health & Social Services (DHSS), which was commissioned in the
early 1990s after extensive public involvement. In response to
a question by Chair Weyhrauch, he confirmed that the
commissioner of the DHSS was the one whose idea it was to [have
a seal designed with public involvement].
Number 0925
JOHN GREELY, Staff to Representative Reggie Joule, Alaska State
Legislature, in response to follow-up questions by Chair
Weyhrauch, offered to find out the history behind [the DHSS
seal]. He explained that the images discussed [on pages 3 and 4
of the PowerPoint handout] are examples of state symbols.
Number 1017
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE referred to the state seals of Hawaii,
Montana, and Idaho [page 5 of the PowerPoint handout]. He noted
that Hawaii's seal was adopted at statehood; an individual
changed the Montana seal without any regard to the thoughts of
the legislature; and the Idaho seal was the only official seal
designed by a woman, Emma Edwards Green, who took part in a
contest sponsored by the Idaho legislature shortly after
statehood in 1890 and won a $100 prize. In 1957, he noted, the
Idaho legislature updated the seal by adding symbols of the
state's main industries: mining, agriculture, and forestry.
Representative Joule said [HCR 5] would seek out public
involvement from people of all ages.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE referred to the fiscal note of [$53,000].
He mentioned a letter to the First Alaskans Institute requesting
a partnership in getting this funded to get it underway. Noting
that the House Community and Regional Affairs Standing Committee
had suggested seeking a partnership, he indicated he'd asked
members of that committee to forward names of potential donors
with regard to underwriting the cost.
CHAIR WEYHRAUCH asked if a decision of "no change" is a
potential outcome [of the task force].
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE answered that it's possible, but he doubts
it would happen. He said aviation is a huge part of Alaska's
history. Referring to the omission of [symbols] of Alaska
Natives, he listed the following groups: Inupiat, Yupik,
Athabascan, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and Aleut. He asked, "Is
there one that would capture them all?"
Number 1478
MR. GREELY mentioned suggestions over the years regarding room
on the rim of the seal and allowing [design features] to be
added without changing the [existing design] of the seal. He
indicated there are different ways of approaching a new design
and said it will be interesting to see what the public does if
it has a chance to weigh in.
CHAIR WEYHRAUCH asked how the House Community and Regional
Affairs Standing Committee meeting went during its hearing on
HCR 5 and whether anyone had testified on the issue.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE answered no. He mentioned a letter of
support from the Heritage Foundation in Anchorage.
Number 1560
CHAIR WEYHRAUCH asked Representative Seaton for his comments as
cosponsor of the resolution.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said the fiscal note will be taken up in
the House Finance Committee. He said he thinks public
involvement and bringing in the history of and foresight for the
State of Alaska are good things. He likened [the designing of
the state seal] to that for the state flag.
Number 1600
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved to report HCR 5 out of committee
with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal
note. There being no objection, HCR 5 was reported from the
House State Affairs Standing Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|