Legislature(2023 - 2024)ADAMS 519
05/08/2024 09:00 AM House FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB29 | |
| SB34 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 99 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 228 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | SB 29 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 34 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 91 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 95 | TELECONFERENCED | |
CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 34(FIN)
"An Act reestablishing the Citizens' Advisory
Commission on Federal Management Areas in Alaska;
relating to the membership and duties of the Citizens'
Advisory Commission on Federal Management Areas in
Alaska; relating to the authority of the Department of
Natural Resources regarding the Citizens' Advisory
Commission on Federal Management Areas in Alaska; and
providing for an effective date."
9:35:18 AM
SENATOR JAMES KAUFMAN, SPONSOR, introduced the bill and
explained that it would reestablish the Citizens' Advisory
Commission on Federal Areas (CACFA). He understood that the
committee had discussed HB 83, which was the companion
bill, and he was prepared to discuss the changes made in
the Senate.
Co-Chair Foster suggested that Senator Kaufman give a brief
introduction.
Senator Kaufman explained that CACFA was comprised of 10
public members, one senator, and one representative. The
commission's role was to represent the views of Alaska's
citizens concerning federal land management plans within
the state. The commission was responsible for the
following: holding hearings to collect public comment on
the commission's decisions, disseminating information about
old and new regulations to the public, executive branch,
and legislature, monitoring the Federal Register, regularly
submitting written comments in response to actions that
affected Alaska, working proactively with federal agencies
to resolve issues, and helping Alaskans navigate federal
permitting processes.
Senator Kaufman added that the Senate engaged in
substantive committee work over the interim to engage with
stakeholders. He relayed that SB 34 differed in four
substantive ways from HB 83. The first and second changes
added language clarifying that CACFA was housed in the
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for administrative
purposes and that the commission independently determined
which issues to take up. The change came about because of
concerns that CACFA was operating as just another arm of
DNR to supplement ongoing work. He noted that the language
also clarified that CACFA and its executive director
operated independently of DNR.
Senator Kaufman relayed that the third change established
that the ten public non-legislative members must represent
all four judicial districts, with no more than three
members being from one district. The purpose of the change
was to improve the geographic distribution of
representation. The fourth change mandated that at least
one CACFA seat would be reserved for a member of a
federally recognized tribe, and at least one other seat
would be reserved for an Alaska Native Claims Settlement
Act (ANCSA) shareholder. The perspective of ANCSA
corporations and Alaskan tribes was an invaluable resource
to the commission. The tribes and the Alaska Native
corporations already worked closely with the federal
government and had insight into federal issues. The final
change was updating the effective date to July 1, 2024.
9:38:58 AM
Co-Chair Foster welcomed the visitors watching the
committee proceedings in the room.
Representative Josephson shared he had taken a tour of the
USS William P. Lawrence vessel and understood that the
commander of the ship was present in the committee room.
9:40:07 AM
Co-Chair Foster OPENED public testimony.
9:40:38 AM
CHARLIE LEAN, MEMBER, CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMISSION ON
FEDERAL AREAS, NOME (via teleconference), shared that he
was a member of CACFA and was the last acting chair of the
body. He was enthusiastic about the changes that would make
CACFA independent of DNR; however, the commission would
remain dependent on clerical and administrative support due
to the available budget. The director of CACFA would be
overwhelmed with administrative duties instead of
interfacing with the public and the commission itself. He
liked the idea of a statewide distribution of members and
the inclusion of Alaska Native members. The commission had
been effective at speaking with federal land managers and
expressing statewide concerns. He thought that having
advocates in CACFA to assist with communicating with
federal agencies was helpful to the public, but the
benefits of CACFA were not fully understood by the public.
9:44:28 AM
JOHN CROWTHER, DEPUTY COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL
RESOURCES, reviewed the fiscal note prepared by DNR with
the control code dndrg. There was a projected out-year cost
of approximately $200,000 in operating expenditures which
was driven by the additional executive director position.
There were associated costs with the addition of the
position, such as expanding the workspace and purchasing
additional equipment, as well as occasional travel costs.
Co-Chair Foster noted that he would keep public testimony
open to allow other testifiers the chance to call in.
Representative Cronk thanked Senator Kaufman for his work.
He explained that his constituents were in favor of the
bill. The issue was important because there were so many
federal areas in the state and utilizing an advisory
committee to represent the people was valuable.
9:46:44 AM
Representative Galvin remarked that she also appreciated
the work of the sponsor. She had looked at a past audit and
it seemed like the commission was worthwhile and
facilitated public understanding and engagement. She asked
why there was no duplicity considering the favorable
treatment of the commission in the audit.
Senator Kaufman responded that it was due to funding. He
explained that the intent was for CACFA to act as a
navigator and potentially save the state money by avoiding
lawsuits. He thought that if the commission could help the
state avoid just one lawsuit, it could recoup more than the
cost of the fiscal note in savings.
Co-Chair Foster reminded the public that the House
companion bill had been heard by the committee on numerous
occasions. He thought that the public might think the
process was too quick, but the bill had been heard many
times before in various forms.
9:49:02 AM
Representative Stapp liked the bill and thought the
commission should have never been sunsetted. He thought
there was not enough understanding of the complexity of
land issues and the many different types of overlays of
federal land, state land, tribal land, and land belonging
to corporations. He thanked the sponsor for bringing the
bill forward.
Representative Hannan asked if there had been any
discussion about the potential overlap with statehood
defense funds that were included in the budgets of both DNR
and the Department of Law (DOL). She asked whether CACFA
would have access to some of the funds if the funds were
needed for litigation purposes.
Senator Kaufman responded that he saw the commission as
separate from statehood defense. The commission was
intended to act as a navigator and resource for citizens
and not as an element of defense. He suggested that his
staff could provide more input.
Co-Chair Foster offered clarification that the funds were
housed in DOL for court cases.
9:50:54 AM
EMMA TORKELSON, STAFF, SENATOR JAMES KAUFMAN, responded
that when CAFCA made a recommendation to DOL to file a
lawsuit, DOL was responsible for choosing whether to file
the lawsuit. If a lawsuit was filed, the funds would not
come from CACFA. She explained that the commission would
not participate in the lawsuit after it made its
recommendation. The fiscal note from DNR included $30,000
in out-years for CACFA to utilize DOL's resources for
research purposes. She emphasized that the funds would not
be used for lawsuits.
Representative Hannan understood that there was some money
made available within DNR to pay for specialists. She asked
if there was a potential that the funds could be used for
statehood defense and whether DNR had examined the
potential intersect. She understood that part of CACFA's
purpose was to prevent situations that would require that
the state use statehood defense funds, but she wanted to
ensure that the funds were available if needed. She asked
if there was any funding set aside for defense purposes.
Mr. Crowther responded that DNR understood that the role of
the commission was to support information sharing with the
public and to receive information from the public about
priority issues. He remarked that it was important for the
department to understand the issues that were the highest
priority to the public and it was beneficial for a formal
commission to be able to receive, process, and deliver the
information to the proper facilities.
Senator Kaufman thanked the committee for its time and was
grateful for the collaborative work that had been done on
the bill, particularly by Ms. Torkelson.
9:53:17 AM
Co-Chair Foster set an amendment deadline of Thursday, May
9 at 5:00 p.m. He expressed his intention to recess the
meeting and return if possible. [note: the meeting never
reconvened].
[Public testimony for SB 34 was CLOSED during the House
Finance Committee meeting scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on
5/8/24.]
SB 34 was HEARD and HELD for further consideration.
9:55:57 AM
RECESSED
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB099 Explanation of Changes 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB099 Letters of Support 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB099 Financial Literacy Presentation 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB099 Sectional Analysis 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB099 Sponsor Statement 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB099 Supporting Documents Junior Achievement 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB099 Supporting Documents Ramsey Solutions 2022 Study 3.22.24.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB228 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 228 |
| SB228 Supporting Documents-Sunset Audit.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 228 |
| SB 99 Public Testimony Rec'd by 5-7-2024.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |
| SB 228 Annetta Atwell Testimony 050824.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 228 |
| SB 99 Public Testimony Rec'd by 050924.pdf |
HFIN 5/8/2024 9:00:00 AM |
SB 99 |