Legislature(2025 - 2026)BUTROVICH 205
02/17/2025 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB47 | |
| SB29 | |
| SB30 | |
| SB61 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 47 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 29 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 30 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 61 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 47-CHUGACH STATE PARK EASEMENTS
3:31:38 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 47
"An Act relating to Chugach State Park; and providing for an
effective date."
3:31:59 PM
PAIGE BROWN, Staff, Senator Cathy Giessel, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, gave an overview presentation on SB
47.
3:32:17 PM
MS. BROWN moved to and narrated slide 2:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Chugach State Park (SP) is the most visited Public
Land in Alaska
Chugach SP: 495,000 acres
1.5 million visitors annually
[Slide 2 includes a map of Chugach State park.]
3:32:28 PM
MS. BROWN briefly displayed slide 3, titled "Chugach State Park
Use Data", which contains multiple graphic representations of:
• Use
• Distribution of Use (Map)
• Sample Size
• Top 5 Locations of Interest
• Visitor Origins, Percent of Device Days by Season and Year
• Visitor Origins, Percent of Device Days by Borough (Top 5) and
Year
• Patterns of Use
3:32:38 PM
MS. BROWN moved to and narrated slide 4:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Chugach Design & Construction Projects
Completed:
• Completed the parking expansion and paving work at
Eklutna Lake
• Completed new vaulted toilets at McHugh Creek, Eagle
River Campground, and Bird Creek Campground
• Completed drainage improvements at Upper Huffman
Ongoing:
• Continued construction of a public use cabins at
Eagle River Campground and Bird Creek Campground
• 2 at Eagle River
• 1 at Bird Creek
• Began paving and improvements work at Prospect
Heights
• Began improvements at Bird Valley Trailhead
Next Year:
• Begin construction of new parking area at Rabbit
Valley Trailhead
• Additional new concrete vaulted toilets at Eagle
River Campground
• Replace water heater and heating stoves at Bird
Point cabin
• Alaska Trails and Chugach Park Fund projects
3:32:41 PM
MS. BROWN moved to slide 5:
[Original punctuation provided.]
FY24 Chugach SP Fee Station Revenue
Total: $590,555.00
Slide 5 consists of a pie chart illustrating revenues
from the Chugach Park Pay Stations:
Bird Creek Campground, $65,395.00
Bird Creek Overflow, $9,195.00
Bird Fish Trailhead, $12,800.00
Bird Point Trailhead, $8,150.00
Bird Ridge Trailhead, $4,350.00
Briggs River Campground, $3,255.00
Canyon Road Trailhead, $12,255.00
Chugach Spare, $660.00
Eagle River Campground, $100,090.00
Eagle River Day-Use, $1,740.00
Eklutna ATV Lot, $11,425.00
Eklutna Lake, $54,995.00
Eklutna Lake CG, $58,670.00
Eklutna Overflow, $8,295.00
Glen Alps, $117,380.00
Glen Alps Satellite, $5,845.00
Indian Ball Field, $2,710.00
McHugh Creek, $2,810.00
McHugh Parking, $2,935.00
Mile 7.4 North Fork Access, $5,890.00
Potter Trailhead, $5,830.00
Prospect Heights, $10,090.00
South Fork, $12,055.00
3:33:06 PM
MS. BROWN moved to slide 6, a map of the interface between the
Municipality of Anchorage and Chugach State Park in the vicinity
of Canyon Road, Rabbit Creek and the Rabbit Lake Trailhead. She
said SB 47 would address access, not only for residents who are
increasingly recreating in Chugach State Park, but also for
tourists who visit during the summer.
MS. BROWN explained that Canyon Road, the access to Rabbit Lake
trailhead, is renowned for its poor condition. The easement
created by SB 47 would address this problem. In 2024, Anchorage
voters approved a four-million-dollar bond for improvements to
0.6 miles of Canyon Road. She said about half the road lies
within Chugach State Park which does not allow municipally
funded projects due to state land ownership.
3:34:23 PM
MS. BROWN pointed to the portions of canyon road that are on
state land and on city land. She described the poor condition of
the road, especially in the spring, and referred to a State
Parks Facebook notice posted on February 7, 2025, with photos of
a sloped ice slab.
MS. BROWN said SB 47 was drafted in collaboration with the
Municipality of Anchorage City Manager and the Department of
Natural Resources (DNR), Division of Parks. She noted that
Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOTPF) was
responsible for maintenance of Canyon Road but had not been
doing it. She said the Municipality of Anchorage was willing to
take over maintenance of the road, if they were granted an
easement, which would include road upgrades, improving access
and safety in the park and allowing the municipality to invest
in infrastructure for residents and tourists.
3:35:15 PM
MS. BROWN presented the sectional analysis for SB 47:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Senate Bill 47 (Version A)
Sectional Analysis
"An Act relating to Chugach State Park; and providing
for an effective date."
Section 1. Amends AS 41.21.122: Management
Responsibility.
This section adds language to the management
responsibility of Chugach State Park clarifying that
the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities
(DOT&PF) is responsible for maintenance within the
park except for as provided by the new subsections
added in section 2.
Section 2. Adds new subsections to AS. 41.21.122:
Management Responsibility.
This section adds new subsections allowing the
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to grant an
easement or a right-of-way within Chugach State Park
to a municipality if DNR provides public notice and
holds at least one hearing, and the commissioner of
DNR finds that this easement or right-of-way is
improving, facilitating, or maintaining public access
to the park, and is in the public interest.
Section 3. Provides for an effective date.
This section provides for an effective date of July 1,
2025.
3:36:17 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI referred to SB 47, section 1, lines 5, 6
and 7 which addressed control, development and maintenance of
state land and water and control of the highway access and
roadside structures. He asked whether these were conforming
changes.
3:36:43 PM
MS. BROWN said [SB 47] moves language that is already in statute
regarding Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) and the
Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Division of Mining, land
and Water to a different section of the statute, using the same
language.
3:37:17 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL invited Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
representative to answer questions about the changes to statute
proposed by SB 47.
3:37:32 PM
RICKY GEASE, Director, Department of Natural Resources (DNR),
Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation, Anchorage, Alaska,
concurred that SB 47 moves language to a different section of
[statute]. He said Department of Transportation and Public
Facilities (DOTPF) would retain responsibility for the
maintenance of the roads within Chugach State Park.
3:38:05 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked whether SB 47 would give control of
the development or maintenance of the state park to the
municipality or any other entity.
3:38:22 PM
MR. GEASE said the easement would give the municipality the
ability or right to improve the road providing access to the
park using the bond authorization monies approved in 2024. He
said this would bring the road up to modern road standards with
regard to slope and drainage.
3:39:23 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI read SB 47, Section 1, lines 4, 5, and 7
and asked whether "the department" referred to Department of
Natural Resources (DNR).
3:39:58 PM
MR. GEASE noted that said [Section 2, (C), lines 17 - 19 state
that "the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities
(DOTPF) shall repair and maintain public roads in the Chugach
State Park except for repairs and 19 maintenance performed by a
municipality under (b) of this section."
3:40:27 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR noted discussion with a representative of the
municipality of Anchorage regarding a committee substitute (CS)
to SB 47. He asked whether an amendment was planned.
3:41:03 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL said there was an amendment, but she did not
intend to offer the amendment at this time. She said SB 47 would
be held for further consideration. She noted the collaborative
effort by state agency and municipality representatives and said
the amendment would be addressed in the future.
3:41:33 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR said the concern expressed to him represented a
small change to SB 47.
3:41:50 PM
SENATOR HUGHES referred to SB 47, Section 2, lines 18 - 19. She
asked whether the municipality would be required to repair and
maintain the road. She suggested hypothetically that the
municipality of Anchorage may experience a lack of financial
means to repair and maintain the road in the future and asked
who would be responsible for the road in that case.
3:42:48 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL clarified the section of road at issue which
crossed between the municipality of Anchorage and Chugach State
Park lands. She said Department of Transportation and Public
Facilities (DOTPF) was by statute responsible for repair and
maintenance of the state park sections of the road, but that
they were not doing it. She said that section was effectively
abandoned road, as evidenced by the photos from the Facebook
post. The municipality was willing to assume responsibility for
maintaining the road and improve it.
CHAIR GIESSEL noted future plans by the state park to build a
parking lot at Rabbit Lake Trailhead. She said there were
federal funds in place for the parking lot and improving the
Canyon Road access was important for that development as well.
3:45:01 PM
SENATOR HUGHES asked whether the Municipality of Anchorage would
have the responsibility of paying for road maintenance and
repairs for the next twenty years.
3:45:14 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL affirmed Anchorage's responsibility and said the
amendment Senator Dunbar anticipated would specify that the
municipality formally accepts the responsibility.
3:45:27 PM
SENATOR HUGHES said she did not see language in SB 47 requiring
the municipality to continue maintaining and repairing the road
in the future.
CHAIR GIESSEL concurred that there was not that language
currently, but there would be, assuming the municipality does
accept the responsibility.
3:45:57 PM
SENATOR HUGHES said, as she read SB 47, the responsibility would
fall back on DOTPF.
3:46:11 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL asked whether the suggestion was for the
municipality to rescind their offer to assume responsibility for
the road.
SENATOR HUGHES sought clarification to avoid confusion in the
future should there be less willingness or financial constraints
in the future for the municipality.
CHAIR GIESSEL suggested a sunset date amendment.
3:46:40 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR suggested that an easement provides a right but
not a duty, which would allow the municipality to proceed with
their present intentions for the road, but not obligate them to
maintain it. He acknowledged he was not familiar with the
legalities of determining responsibility conditions.
3:47:27 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL said there were no Department of Law (DOL) or
legal drafting personnel available to answer questions. She
noted the words of SB 47 with the addition of the amendment to
include the municipality's acceptance of responsibility.
3:47:53 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR acknowledged common interests and the complicated
nature of determining responsibility for road repair and
maintenance when roads pass through different areas.
3:48:30 PM
SENATOR MYERS noted SB 47, Section 2(b)(2), lines 13 - 16 and
asked whether a future commissioner would have the ability to
rescind the easement or right of way should the municipality
lack the will or the funds to repair and maintain the road.
3:49:04 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL invited an amendment to SB 47 to address the
concern.
3:49:13 PM
SENATOR CLAMAN said the discussion centered on the way easements
work. He said it was his understanding that the easement would
provide the right of way to the municipality for perpetuity. He
said the second question was about the duty to maintain and
whether that also was in place for perpetuity. He posed a
hypothetical in which a neighbor obtains an easement for a
driveway, but never uses it. He said the easement could
eventually pass to future owners, unimproved and unmaintained.
However, if a driveway was built across the neighbor's property,
there would be a duty to maintain it. He suggested explicit
language for development and to define the duty for continued
maintenance. He suggested that the bond process may affect the
municipality's future capacity to maintain the road. He also
suggested explicit language that the road would revert to the
state when and if the municipality was no longer maintaining it.
He said determining who was responsible for maintenance once the
road was built was a real issue that should be addressed by SB
47.
3:52:00 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL invited further comment from Department of Natural
Resources (DNR).
3:52:06 PM
MR. GEASE noted plans for [the Rabbit Lake Trailhead] parking
lot. He said geotechnical work had been completed and he
anticipated design work in the summer of 2025 followed by bids
in the next year or two.
3:52:49 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked what a municipality could do with an
easement, for example, could they practice forestry; he asked
what rights were granted with an easement.
3:53:10 PM
MR. GEASE deferred to the legislative legal team and Department
of Law (DOL). He said, typically the Department of Natural
Resources (DNR), Division of Mining, Land and Water handled
DNR's easements.
3:53:44 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL opened public testimony on SB 47.
3:53:59 PM
ROGER MARKS, Board of Supervisors, Glen Alps Road Service Area,
Anchorage, Alaska, testified in support of SB 47. He explained
the necessity of SB 47 to improve road infrastructure in
Anchorage's hillside. These road service areas, funded by local
property taxes, manage road maintenance, including repair,
grading, drainage, and snow removal. The area, which includes
two of the busiest trailheads in Chugach State Park, faces
significant wear due to high visitor traffic. Despite a 1982
master plan recognizing the need for funding, the state has only
provided minimal resources. In 2023, Anchorage voters created
the Chugach State Park Access Service Area (CASA) to finance
park access, and in 2024, they approved a $4 million bond for
road improvements. SB 47 would allow the state to grant an
easement to allow bonding for the road, which he said would
benefit both locals and tourists. He said the [Glen Alps] road
service area was currently providing road maintenance and would
be happy to continue.
3:58:36 PM
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked whether the road service area represented
by Mr. Marks would maintain the section of road in perpetuity
after construction is complete and the easement granted and the
improvements are made.
3:59:14 PM
MR. MARKS affirmed that the road service area was the entity
which bore the responsibility to maintain the road. He said the
road service area received taxpayer money to keep the road
maintained up to the park boundary and noted that there were
homes there that required access.
3:59:50 PM
SENATOR CLAMAN asked for geographic assistance to identify from
his recollection the section of road at issue.
4:00:13 PM
MR. MARKS said the entire 0.6 miles from Canyon Park Road to the
park gate was included. He described the section of road as a
mishmash of road surfaces. He was at a loss to pinpoint the
specific portion of the road segment.
4:01:06 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL kept public testimony open.
4:01:15 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL held SB 47 in committee.
4:01:39 PM
th
CHAIR GIESSEL set an amendment deadline for Monday, February 24
at 4:00 pm.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| 2.17.25 SB 47 (S)RES Presentation.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| 2.17.25 SB 47 Fiscal Note.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| 2.17.25 SB 47 Sectional Analysis.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| 2.17.25 SB 47 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| 2.17.25 SB 47 Supporting Map.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| 2.17.25 SB 47, Version A.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| 2.17.25 State Parks Facebook Post Canyon Road.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
|
| SB 47 Amendment A.1.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| SB 47 Public Testimony.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 47 |
| SB 29 BGCSB Audit 06.22.23.pdf |
SFIN 4/1/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 29 Fiscal Note.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 29 Sectional Analysis Version A.pdf |
SFIN 4/1/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 29 Sponsor Statement Version A.pdf |
SFIN 4/1/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 29 Version A.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| (S)RES SB29 Follow-Up from DCCED-CBPL (2.10.25).pdf |
SFIN 4/1/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 29 Public Testimony.pdf |
SFIN 4/1/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 29 Public Testimony.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SB 30 Fiscal Note.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| SB 30 Summary of Changes Ver A to I.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| DNR Responses to SRES re SB30 meeting on 2.3.2025.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| SB 30 Ver I Sectional Analysis.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| SB 30 Ver I Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| SB30 ver I.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| SB 30 Public Testimony.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 30 |
| SB 61 Bill Hearing Request.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Support Resolutions.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Supporting Document Alaska Business Magazine October 2024.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 v.A Fiscal Note.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Version A Sectional Analysis.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Version A.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Background Alaska Electronics Product Stewardship Summary.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| SB 61 Public Testimony.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |
| A.1.pdf |
SRES 2/17/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 61 |