Legislature(2025 - 2026)SENATE FINANCE 532
04/25/2025 09:00 AM Senate FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB95 || SB96 || SB97 | |
| SB97 | |
| SB95 | |
| SB96 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 95 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 96 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 97 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SENATE BILL NO. 95
"An Act relating to the child care assistance program
and the child care grant program; and providing for an
effective date."
SENATE BILL NO. 96
"An Act relating to education tax credits for certain
payments and contributions for child care and child
care facilities; relating to the insurance tax
education credit, the income tax education credit, the
oil or gas producer education credit, the property tax
education credit, the mining business education
credit, the fisheries business education credit, and
the fisheries resource landing tax education credit;
providing for an effective date by amending the
effective date of secs. 1, 2, and 21, ch. 61, SLA
2014; and providing for an effective date."
SENATE BILL NO. 97
"An Act establishing a big game guide concession area
permit program on land in the state; relating to the
duties of the Big Game Commercial Services Board, the
Board of Game, the Department of Fish and Game, and
the Department of Natural Resources; requiring the
Board of Game to establish an initial big game guide
concession area; and providing for an effective date."
9:05:01 AM
MEGAN WALLACE, CHIEF COUNSEL, LEGISLATIVE LEGAL SERVICES
(via teleconference), affirmed that the three bills on the
agenda were related to the passage of SB 189, which had
passed the previous session and was enacted into law. She
continued that the three bills together, in addition to the
contents of SB 80, were contained in SB 189 last session.
Ms. Wallace informed that an issue had arisen under Article
2 Section 13, which required bills to be combined to a
single subject. She said that SB 189 has been challenged
under the single subject rule. She referenced a lawsuit
filed in the Juneau Superior Court (copy on file) regarding
an alleged constitutional violation, that SB 189 violated
the single-subject clause because there was no single
subject to describe the contents of the bill after the
various components had been added at the end of last
session.
Ms. Wallace relayed that the status of the pending
litigation was that the plaintiff, former Representative
David Eastman, had filed a motion for summary judgement
asking the court to invalidate the passage of SB 189. In
response the state had filed a motion for a stay of
proceedings until the end of session to allow the
legislature to pass curative legislation. The motion asked
that the court give the legislature time to hear the
alleged defects. The plaintiff had opposed the motion and
requested oral argument on the motion to stay. There had
not been a ruling on the motion to stay.
9:08:31 AM
Ms. Wallace explained that the passage of the bills,
irrespective of pending litigation, would ensure that if
the litigation was successful, once the bills were passed
there would be no impact to the law previously passed by
the legislature. If the curative legislation was not
passed, there was some risk that if the court struck down
the passage of SB 189, all provisions of the bill would be
struck down and the legislature would have to bring the
impacted items back to the table.
9:09:55 AM
Senator Kiehl expressed an appreciation for the briefing.
He relayed that his work in committee would reflect the
merits of the legislation and not the reason that the items
were back before the committee.
SENATE BILL NO. 95
"An Act relating to the child care assistance program
and the child care grant program; and providing for an
effective date."
9:32:44 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman relayed that this was the first hearing on
the bill.
9:33:00 AM
SENATOR FOREST DUNBAR, SPONSOR, introduced the bill. He
relayed that funding for the bill was already in the
governors budget because of the passage of SB 189 the
previous session.
9:34:02 AM
SONIA KAWASAKI, SENATE MAJORITY COUNSEL, referred to the
lawsuit status as discussed by Megan Wallace at the start
of the meeting.
Co-Chair Hoffman summoned invited testifiers to the table.
9:34:50 AM
BLUE SHIBLER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ASSOCIATION FOR THE
EDUCATION OF YOUNG CHILDREN, JUNEAU (via teleconference),
read from a prepared statement:
My name is Blue Shibler, and I serve as the Executive
Director of the Southeast Alaska Association for the
Education of Young Children, or SEAAEYC. We are the
regional childcare resource and referral agency
serving families and early childhood providers across
Southeast Alaska. I'm testifying today in strong
support of SB95 because increasing the income
eligibility for the Childcare Assistance Program is a
critical step toward stabilizing our childcare system
and supporting working families across the state.
In my role, I regularly hear from families doing
everything they can to live and work in our region and
are struggling to make ends meet. Childcare is nearly
always at the center of that struggle. The current
income threshold for childcare assistance is so low
that families can be penalized for earning just a
little more. Many turn down raises or promotions for
fear of losing their assistance before they can afford
care alone. That's not how public policy should work.
Assistance programs should create a bridge, not a
cliff, supporting parents as they grow in their
careers and helping them eventually become self-
sufficient.
As this bill proposes, raising the income threshold
would allow more families to access support and more
accurately reflect the actual cost of living and
working in Alaska today. Many families earn too much
to qualify for assistance but far too little to afford
childcare without it. I understand the state's fiscal
challenges. However, investments in childcare pay
long-term dividends by enabling more Alaskans to join
and stay in the workforce. Legislative solutions to
our childcare crisis cannot wait and SB96 is a
meaningful step in the right direction. I urge you to
support this bill this session. Legislative solutions
to the childcare system cant wait. Care Can't Wait.
Thank you for your time and your work on behalf of
Alaska's children and families.
9:36:59 AM
STEPHANIE BERGLUND, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, THREAD ALASKA,
ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), read from a prepared
statement:
Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee for
hearing SB 95. I'm CEO of thread, Alaska's statewide
childcare resource and referral organization. Thread
is a 39-year-old nonprofit, and we provide services
throughout the state to strengthen access to
affordable and high-quality early childhood education
with a focus on childcare. We serve more than 12,000
families, 2,000 early educators, and over 400 early
childhood education programs each year. The childcare
sector is fragile. It's long been a sector with
institutional deficiencies for decades but has seen
increased challenges over the last five years.
Since 2020, we've seen over 25 percent of the licensed
childcare program close across the state, and those
that are open, they're not able to serve all the
children they would like due to staff shortages. Just
last week, I received the very sad news that Bright
Beginning, one of our largest childcare programs in
South Anchorage, in Sen. Kaufman's district, is
closing its doors after 30 years. That's 125 families
who are losing their childcare space this month.
thread anticipates that more childcare programs, like
Bright Beginnings, will close if we do not see
sustainable and meaningful investments in the state
for childcare. The childcare workforce is struggling
through the low wages and few benefits at the same
time that there is high competition for qualified
workers in Alaska.
Currently, fewer families can access affordable and
quality childcare services than ever before. When we
don't have a strong childcare sector, we see our
economic infrastructure struggle. Businesses are not
able to recruit and retain quality employees, and
families are not able to participate in the workforce
as they want. Our most recent research conducted with
the McKinley Group in 2023 shows that families are
greatly impacted by a struggling childcare sector.
Businesses are not able to support their employees as
they're showing poor attendance and loss of
productivity. Childcare challenges for working
families are resulting in great absence and employee
turnover and are costing businesses an estimated $152
million annually. We know when Alaskans can't work,
they don't have financial security to support their
families, and they aren't able to achieve their self-
sufficiency goals or contribute to our economy. That
not only stifles the quality of life for families but
also stalls Alaska's growth.
SB95 adds needed support for childcare and strengthens
the childcare assistance and subsidy program. While
there are many areas of the childcare system that need
support, SB95 aims to strengthen the childcare
assistance by allowing more families, earning up to
the 105th percentile of median household income, to
participate in the program and create flexibility in
childcare resources with aims to support childcare
programs with the targeted supports they need. Changes
in childcare assistance are needed.
Currently, two few families participate in the program
as they don't qualify or can't access resources under
the current structure. A change that can help is
through SB95 and increasing childcare access and
capping co-payments required for families. The bill
will allow more families to qualify for assistance and
allow more families access to quality care. These and
other barriers impacting families' ability to
participate in the workforce. Just over half of
families report that household members' ability to be
employed or work more hours are impacted by quality,
availability, and cost of childcare. That is growing
as we've seen a 29% increase in families reporting
they're not able to work because of childcare
challenges. These findings underscore the need for
childcare change to strengthen our collective
workforce and economy.
This bill also creates a program to partner with
businesses to create incentives and support them with
developing on-site or near-site childcare. Although
childcare businesses are currently reimbursed at
childcare assistance program rates set by a market
rate survey that's based on the amount that childcare
businesses charge for care, not what is the actual
cost for providing that care and education. This
creates an unstable foundation for the childcare
system. We are encouraged to see the research that was
completed through the Governor's Childcare Task Force
to understand the true cost of care and that data
shows a gap in what the state is paying for
reimbursement compared to the true cost of providing
that care.
We are encouraged to see that the bill includes the
option for the cost of care to be used in conjunction
with market rate prices and policies. That supports a
more stable and informed childcare system. SB95 is a
great and necessary step for supporting families'
affordability and this bill will have an impact in
every single one of the legislative districts in your
community, from Kotzebue to Ketchikan. Endorsing SB95
as a step toward more affordable access to more
affordable care for families. We encourage you to
consider and pass this bill as it was already passed
through strong support last session. I also urge you
to restore childcare funding in the Operating Budget
that complements this bill to provide critical
operating supports for programs. Please restore that
funding. The positive change for childcare sector
cannot come soon enough. I appreciate the sponsor for
bringing the bill forward and thanks to Chair and
Committee for considering the bill. Thank you.
9:42:54 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman OPENED public testimony.
9:43:04 AM
JENNY STUCKY, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, CAMPFIRE ALASKA,
ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), called to express support
for SB 95. She relayed that in 2024, the average cost of
childcare, per child, in the state was $13,500. The
previous year, Campfire Alaska had provided over $700,000
in financial assistance to families. She stressed the
importance of access to affordable childcare for Alaskas
families.
9:45:37 AM
TRACEY SCHAFFER, CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NUNAKINS, KOTZEBUE
(via teleconference), testified in support of the bill. She
mentioned young foster children were shipped out of her
region because foster families could not afford care for a
child not yet in public school. She emphasized that
functional communities needed a workforce and pointed out
the need for childcare options. She discussed early
childhood and the importance of early childhood education.
9:48:12 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman CLOSED public testimony.
9:48:19 AM
Senator Kiehl addressed a fiscal note by the Department of
Health, OMB Component 1897. The note showed a total of $6,
920,200 in the governors budget request for the fiscal
year. The total was comprised of $225.1 in federal receipts
and matching general funds. There was $5,642.0 in
unrestricted general funds. There was also a request for
two full-time positions.
Co-Chair Stedman asked for an explanation on Section 7, and
Section 8. He asked about the current median income per
household in Alaska.
Senator Dunbar deferred to Evan Anderson from
Representative Fields office.
9:50:17 AM
EVAN ANDERSON, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE ZACK FIELDS, spoke to
the duplicative language in Sections 7 and 8. He explained
that daycare assistance program was the former language
in statute, which would be corrected to childcare
assistance grant in SB 95.
Co-Chair Hoffman asked Emily Nauman to address the
question.
9:51:14 AM
EMILY NAUMAN, DIRECTOR, LEGISLATIVE LEGAL SERVICES (via
teleconference), affirmed that Mr. Anderson's explanation
was sufficient.
9:51:36 AM
Co-Chair Stedman asked about the state's median monthly
household income.
Ms. Nauman did not know the median monthly income of
Alaskan households.
Co-Chair Stedman shared concerns about the income
restriction in the bill. He considered the cost of daycare,
and the challenges that a single household earner would
have to meet the income restriction in the bill. He worried
that people who needed help would be excluded. He thought
the issue was impacting the economics of the state. He
thought the bill did not go far enough to assist working
families in the state. He thought the state should work to
assist a larger number of children.
Co-Chair Hoffman thought Co-Chair Stedman's comments
suggested that amendments could be made to the three pieces
of legislation. He wondered whether amending the
legislation was possible under the lawsuit.
9:55:18 AM
Ms. Nauman advised that the committee pass the legislation
as written. She thought that there was latitude to make
changes if the sections matched up to the section of
legislation that the legislature wanted to enact. She said
that the legislature was free to make any policy changes it
desired and then the court would be responsible for setting
the same subject issue. She thought the matter was a policy
call for the legislature. She stated that there was a
possibility that the legislature could lose the legal
argument and the legislation would be negated.
Co-Chair Stedman considered increasing the household income
restriction from 105 percent to 150 percent as an
enhancement of the legislation and not a matter of same
subject rule. He wanted to hear from the bill sponsor
regarding he decision to arrive at a level that would help
working families with multiple children.
Senator Dunbar deferred to Mr. Anderson.
9:58:11 AM
Mr. Anderson relayed that the previous 85 percent number
allowed for the maximum allowable for the federal pass-
through grants. He added that state support for childcare
subsidies up to this point had been entirely subsidized by
the federal government. The change from 85 percent to 105
percent represented the first time that the state had
invested in childcare subsidies. He agreed that the
percentage could be higher, some states subsidized up to
400 percent of the median income. He said that the change
in the bill represented 18,000 Alaskan children.
9:59:13 AM
Co-Chair Hoffman suggested that Mr. Anderson could provide
further information regarding what the fiscal note might be
at 150 percent.
Senator Dunbar agreed to provide the information.
SB 95 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further
consideration.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 97 RHAK Letter SB 97 Senate Finance Committee.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM |
SB 97 |
| SB 95 Supporting Documents- Historic Document Packet.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SHSS 3/25/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 95 |
| SB 95 Sectional Analysis 3.25.25.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SHSS 3/25/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 95 |
| SB 95 SB 96 SB 97 Motion for Stay Oppn Reply.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM |
SB 95 SB 96 SB 97 |
| SB 95 SB 96 SB 97 Motion for Summary Judgment.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM |
SB 95 SB 96 SB 97 |
| SB96 Sectional Analysis ver A.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SL&C 3/14/2025 1:30:00 PM |
SB 96 |
| SB96 Supporting Documents-Historic Document Packet.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SL&C 3/14/2025 1:30:00 PM |
SB 96 |
| SB 97 Combined Historical Documents Provided by (S)RES 2.26.25.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 3/10/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 97 |
| SB 97 Comments Resident Hunters of Alaska.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 3/10/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 97 |
| SB 97 Committee Sponsor Statement .pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM |
SB 97 |
| SB 97 Committee Sectional Anlysis.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 3/10/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 97 |
| Explanation of Changes SB 97-SSSB253.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM SRES 3/10/2025 3:30:00 PM |
SB 97 SB 253 |
| SB 97 Supporting Document SCI AK 4.18.25.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM |
SB 97 |
| SB 97 Public Testimony Allmeroth.pdf |
SFIN 4/25/2025 9:00:00 AM |
SB 97 |