Legislature(2021 - 2022)DAVIS 106
04/26/2022 08:00 AM House TRIBAL AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB34 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 34 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 34-STATE-TRIBAL EDUCATION COMPACT SCHOOLS
8:22:47 AM
CHAIR ZULKOSKY announced that the first order of business would
be CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 34(JUD), "An Act relating to a
demonstration state-tribal education compact; relating to
demonstration state-tribal education compact schools; and
providing for an effective date."
8:23:25 AM
JULIE KITKA, President, Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN),
stated that the commissioner of the Department of Education and
Early Development (DEED) and the Alaska Board of Education have
made this bill a priority, and AFN has been working with them
closely to come up with "a pathway moving forward." She said
AFN's initial role in tribal compacting was to assess and build
a legal foundation. She said this process is complex because
"it comes into a point in time in which you have a nexus between
state government and state education, as well as the federal
government and the federal trust responsibility for Alaska
Natives in education." She said AFN shared two documents before
the Senate: the origins of self-determination and federal
policy and a paper on compacting. She talked about the history
between federal, state, and tribal governments in education, and
she mentioned the state's constitutional mandates for education.
MS. KITKA said AFN has concluded there is a pathway for
compacting and would like to demonstrate that pathway without
trying to overturn the state education system. She spoke about
innovation and transformational change and the need for both
coming out of the pandemic. She said AFN has been involved in
compacting discussions when the Indian Health Services moved to
compacting, and when the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) went to
compacting as a model. She said AFN saw not only a lot of
efficiencies in the process but also a greater sense of
ownership of the system by the Native people that were
compacting. She talked about generating excitement in parents
and communities, as well as more investment in the success of
schools and the educational process. She reiterated that the
intent is not to have a wholesale reform on the education system
but to find areas in the state where compacting can work well
and with proven results.
MS. KITKA said another reason AFN is requesting "a demonstration
project" is to ensure a rigorous evaluation. She indicated that
when the bill was heard by the Senate, the decision was made to
provide for a two-step process wherein the state would negotiate
with up to five tribes and "bring back the fruits of that
negotiation," as well as the process and unanswered questions,
to the legislature. She characterized this as "a baby step."
She reiterated that there would be a rigorous evaluation, and
she said this is not meant to disrupt the work of teachers or
school districts. Conversely, it is meant to strengthen
Alaska's school system while becoming a magnet for additional
federal resources. Ms. Kitka noted this is an historical time
in which there is a lot of infrastructure money and resources on
the federal side aimed at recovery from the pandemic, and AFN
hopes that "this small demonstration on that could be a magnate
for additional resources from the federal side," either through
"earmarks" or having some of the federal programs currently
unavailable to Alaska opened up. Ms. Kitka said this is about
the children of Alaska. She proffered, "What's different about
this is it's not teaching about our culture and our language;
it's teaching through our culture. That is what's going to
bring about the transformative change." She said AFN is excited
about the demonstration and hopes the legislature will green
light [compacting].
8:29:58 AM
CHAIR ZULKOSKY offered her understanding that CSSB 34(JUD) would
set the timeline to create a blueprint for a future framework
for the legislature to consider related to state and tribal
compacting in the area of education. She asked Ms. Kitka to
speak to why this particular legislation was needed rather than
just having the department "move forward in pursuing this."
MS. KITKA answered that this is a government to government
discussion, and the success of it will come from common ground.
She said Native tribes cannot do this on their own. She
emphasized that this is not a new system brought to the table in
completion but rather an opportunity to exchange ideas back and
forth and identifying areas where it might be advisable to
change state law. She further emphasized the importance of the
legislature to signal to the federal partners that it is taking
action on the issue and is willing to try out a demonstration
project.
8:33:19 AM
JOEL ISAAK, State Tribal Compacting Project Coordinator,
Department of Education and Early Development, remarked upon the
fraught history of education for Native Alaskans. He said that
"the strong clear commitment" [expressed through CSSB 34(JUD)]
"sends a very clear message to tribes that the state at all
levels is wanting to engage in this conversation and in this
relationship," building trust through compacting. He said he is
frequently asked by tribal leaders how serious the state is on
an issue to determine the level of engagement. He spoke about
sending clear messages to Congress, the Department of Indian
Education, the Department of Education, and the Bureau of Indian
Affairs.
MR. ISAAK said the proposed legislation ensures tribal
leadership voices will be brought to the legislative table, with
multiple points of input, including drafting the report and
doing a final check. He indicated that without ambiguity, trust
can be built. Further, he emphasized the clear message that
would be given as to what the state will be doing, in terms of
accountability measures.
CHAIR ZULKOSKY inquired about the conditional effective date.
8:37:46 AM
TIM LAMKIN, Staff, Senator Gary Stevens, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of Senator Stevens, prime sponsor of CSSB
34(JUD), explained that the effective date was added to the
proposed legislation in a Senate committee to ensure "hard
deadlines." The intent is to have the involved parties come
back to the legislature "at a time certain" to move compacting
forward.
CHAIR ZULKOSKY sought to confirm that the demonstration projects
Ms. Kitka had discussed would be contingent on the passing of
the proposed legislation.
MR. LAMKIN answered that's correct.
8:38:57 AM
REPRESENTATIVE TARR asked for confirmation of her understanding
that under CSHB 34(JUD), the following would take place in this
order: By March 2023, the Alaska Board of Education will have
met with the tribes; in 2024, recommendations would be presented
to the legislature about a demonstration project, and a report
would include statutory changes necessary to enable the
demonstration projects; and on July 1, 2026, the five
demonstration projects would become active.
MR. LAMKIN confirmed that is correct.
REPRESENTATIVE TARR asked for confirmation that in the phrase
"demonstration state tribal education compact schools",
"schools" does not mean a district but rather an individual
school within a district, in terms of being able to participate
in a demonstration project. Then if that is the case, she
continued to ask whether there is any concern about some schools
being small and how that may effect the data and possibly full
state implementation.
MR. LAMKIN replied that Representative Tarr's questions
highlight why the current version of the bill is being
presented; there are "a lot of moving parts to setting up a
school system." He gave an example of charter schools and the
many subjects that were "backed out" of the original bill
version to allow the parties involved to determine what the
model may look like.
REPRESENTATIVE TARR asked about the choice to pick five schools.
MR. LAMKIN answered that this was designed to "start small" and
then expand upon success.
8:44:06 AM
MS. KITKA added that "we just wanted to get started on this."
She said there is nothing to prevent AFN from coming to the
legislature to recommend the number of schools be increased.
Recognizing that there would be delay from waiting for the
federal side, it seemed prudent to start somewhere, she said.
She noted that the BIA compacted nationally, it began with 10
tribes, and the second year it was expanded by 10 more, without
even waiting for the results, because "people were seeing the
benefits quickly." She reiterated that some goals in the Alaska
compact are to engage the federal government on the federal
trust responsibility for education to ensure the government is
deploying federal resources in a manner that meets the needs of
[Alaska Native] people and overcomes "the statistics that are
coming out of our communities that are more on the negative
side." She said AFN has asked for the removal of the
appropriation writer that prohibits federal money from coming to
school facilities. The removal of that writer could allow
additional resources to be accessed. She reiterated the need
for cooperative effort of the tribes, state, and federal
government, with an emphasis on holding "... [the federal
government's] feet to the fire" to ensure cooperation and
engagement. She talked about setting up an innovation fund that
would allow people to apply for "resources of innovation that
they want to test out," stimulating positive interactions and
creating pathways for innovation.
8:48:47 AM
CHAIR ZULKOSKY opened public testimony on CSSB 34(JUD). After
ascertaining that there was no one who wished to testify, she
closed public testimony.
CHAIR ZULKOSKY asked for a motion to move an amendment that she
had initiated.
8:49:11 AM
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS moved to adopt Amendment 1 to CSSB
34(JUD), labeled 32-LS0309\W.1, Marx, 4/25/22, which read as
follows:
Page 2, lines 7 - 9:
Delete "The board shall consult with the
governing body of each school district that will have
a demonstration state-tribal education compact school
located within the district boundaries."
Insert "For each school district that will have a
demonstration state-tribal education compact school
located within the school district's boundaries, the
board shall consult with
(1) the governing body of the school
district; and
(2) a representative of the collective bargaining unit
that represents the teachers of the school district."
CHAIR ZULKOSKY objected for the purpose of discussion. She
reviewed the language in Amendment 1. She then withdrew her
objection. There being no further objection, Amendment 1 was
adopted.
CHAIR ZULKOSKY provided closing comments. She thanked the bill
sponsor, DEED, and AFN for their efforts. She said she is
excited about the opportunity for compacting, and she added that
that does not negate the state's obligation in educating all
children of Alaska. She said she agrees with Ms. Kitka's
discussion about tribes being at the forefront of innovation,
but she cautioned that the state not assume that tribes would
underwrite the constitutional obligation of the State of Alaska.
8:51:50 AM
REPRESENTATIVE ORTIZ moved to report CSSB 34(JUD), as amended,
out of committee with individual recommendations and the
accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, HCS CSSB
34(TRB) was reported out of the House Special Committee on
Tribal Affairs.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB34 amendment 1.pdf |
HTRB 4/26/2022 8:00:00 AM |
SB 34 |
| 4.14.2022 (H) TA Hearing DEED Follow-Up.pdf |
HTRB 4/26/2022 8:00:00 AM |