02/20/1996 01:45 PM Senate L&C

 SL&C 2/20/96                                                                  
                                                                               
          SB  43 ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS, LAND SURVEYORS                        
                                                                              
 SENATOR KELLY announced  SB 43  to be up for consideration.  He said          
 he heard of an additional problem that had just come up.                      
                                                                               
 SENATOR LEMAN, sponsor of SB 43, said one of the differences in the           
 "f" version and the bill they heard last year was in section 1.               
 Last year the Board requested flexibility for "a governor's                   
 appointment of an engineer" and that had been changed to "two civil           
 engineers, and the three other engineering positions would be                 
 selected from other branches of the profession.  The mining                   
 engineers who are currently named in statute objected.  As an                 
 alternative the bill offers to say that one engineer be selected              
 from mining, chemical, or petroleum engineering, the three smallest           
 categories, as opposed to electrical, mechanical, and civil.  This            
 would assure that at all times there would be a mining, chemical,             
 or petroleum engineer on the Board.                                           
                                                                               
 The other change, SENATOR LEMAN said, is in section four, which               
 Senator Duncan had suggested, to provide for a retired status                 
 registration.  It would not authorize practice, but would enable              
 retired engineers to have a procedure whereby they could become               
 active, if they wanted to.  He thought that reflected well on the             
 many engineers who have retired in this State who would like to               
 maintain their license without necessarily paying the full fee each           
 year.                                                                         
                                                                               
 Version "g" is different only in section 1 which is deleted.                  
                                                                               
 SENATOR LEMAN said it has been increasingly difficult, because of             
 the small category of mining engineers, to find someone who is                
 willing and able to serve.  He said the Board spends a lot of time            
 reviewing applications for registration and it leaves the smallest            
 category with a mining engineer with the least amount of work to              
 do, because there aren't that many new people applying for                    
 registration in mining engineering.  There are many in the                    
 categories of civil, mechanical, and electrical.                              
                                                                               
 Number 300                                                                    
 SENATOR KELLY asked the Committee if they had a version preference.           
 SENATOR MILLER said he preferred the "g" version.                             
                                                                               
 SENATOR KELLY asked if there were any other changes from the                  
 original bill in the "g" version.  SHERMAN ERNOUF, Legislative Aide           
 to Senator Tim Kelly, said the "Duncan amendment" was the only one.           
                                                                               
 SENATOR SALO asked what was the composition of the panel.  SENATOR            
 LEMAN replied that it would be one person who is experienced in the           
 settlement of disputes, one attorney, and one professional                    
 architect, engineer, or land surveyor.                                        
                                                                               
 SENATOR SALO asked, regarding section 4, if the retired status                
 people with a license for a continuing practice, could serve on the           
 panel.  SENATOR LEMAN said he didn't think so the way the bill is             
 currently written.  SENATOR SALO remarked that they would probably            
 be very good to serve on a panel.  SENATOR LEMAN agreed saying he             
 would want to look at that further, but thought that they should              
 have had to practice in Alaska before serving.                                
                                                                               
 Number 338                                                                    
                                                                               
 SENATOR MILLER moved to adopt the version "g" committee substitute.           
 There were no objections and it was so ordered.                               
                                                                               
 SENATOR DUNCAN asked for clarification on how the committee                   
 substitute was different other than the retired status.  SENATOR              
 LEMAN replied that sections 1 and 2 are revisor's changes.  Section           
 4 is the insertion of the word "or" on page 3, line 2.  The                   
 Department of Law said it is difficult to enforce the Board's                 
 statutes without that word unless a person violates all three of              
 the provisions.                                                               
                                                                               
 Section 5 was brought to the Board by the land surveyors.  It takes           
 out the exemption of land surveying teaching in a post secondary              
 educational institution.  The institution would have to have a                
 registered land surveyor.  They need this to elevate the status of            
 land surveying.  There are also some definition changes in the                
 practice of land surveying that bring it more up to date with                 
 current practice.                                                             
                                                                               
 Number 369                                                                    
                                                                               
 MIKE TAURIANIAN, Soldotna, said he supported the concept of the               
 bill.  His concern was the small number of mining engineers to pick           
 from, roughly five percent of all engineers, and the difficulty in            
 not only getting someone to serve, but in providing geographical              
 distribution. Electrical and mechanical engineers are about 33                
 percent of the total.  So he requested restoring that language,               
 dropping mining engineer and adding "three engineers from other               
 branches of the profession of engineering."                                   
                                                                               
 SENATOR KELLY said this committee had already made a policy call on           
 that language, but this bill will go through several more                     
 committees and he would have an opportunity to address that issue             
 again.                                                                        
                                                                               
 MR. TAURIANIAN said he supported the retired status and he hoped              
 language would be adopted regarding the engineers who come to                 
 Alaska and retire without working here first.                                 
                                                                               
 Number 406                                                                    
                                                                               
 MERLE JANTZ, Vice Chairman, AELS Board, said they recently voted              
 unanimously to support SB 43.  He said he was very glad they are              
 looking at the retired status issue.                                          
                                                                               
 Regarding section 1, he felt that they need the expertise while               
 reviewing applications.  SENATOR KELLY explained they had already             
 made that policy call and he could testify on that issue in the               
 next committee of referral.                                                   
                                                                               
 SHARON MACKLIN, Alaska Professional Design Council, said there has            
 been a concern raised having to do with the land surveying issue.             
                                                                               
 SENATOR DUNCAN questioned language in section 1 of "g".  SENATOR              
 LEMAN noted that the other section was the one he considered to be            
 a revisor's section, because it was referring to an entity that               
 doesn't exist anymore.  He wanted to hear what the Board wanted to            
 do to establish evidence of practice for registration.  He thought            
 it would be consistent with some of the changes in sections 5 and             
 6 about upgrading the profession of land surveying.                           
                                                                               
 SENATOR KELLY commented that upgrading and closing the door might             
 be a touchy subject.  He asked if by deleting that language,                  
 engineers could be required to have more than eight years                     
 experience before they get a license.  SENATOR LEMAN replied that             
 it would be the equivalent of what the Board requires of other                
 professions.                                                                  
                                                                               
 SENATOR DUNCAN said he was concerned with the necessity of that               
 section.                                                                      
                                                                               
 SENATOR KELLY asked if anyone else wanted to testify on this bill.            
                                                                               
 BARBARA HUFF, Teamsters Local 959, said they have concerns with the           
 amount of time they are looking at with land surveyors.  She                  
 requested that their staff who actually head up the land surveyors            
 school in Anchorage, a four year program, have an opportunity to              
 discuss this issue further.  Their major concern is the additional            
 training could negatively impact rural individuals and their                  
 ability to get fully trained or qualified in the field and to be              
 able to function in that profession.                                          
                                                                               
 SENATOR KELLY said he did not want to hold up the bill                        
 unnecessarily, but he wanted to see that question addressed before            
 the bill left the Committee and said they would hear it again next            
 Tuesday.                                                                      
                                                                               
 SENATOR DUNCAN noted that they should also look at the retired                
 status language so people couldn't just move to the State and get             
 retired status.