02/24/2014 08:00 AM Senate FINANCE

SENATE BILL NO. 124                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
     "An Act extending the termination date of the Council                                                                      
     on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault; and providing                                                                     
     for an effective date."                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
8:32:44 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
EDRA MORLEDGE,  STAFF, SENATOR  KEVIN MEYER,  explained that                                                                    
SB  124 would  extend the  sunset  date for  the Council  on                                                                    
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
8:34:30 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
KRIS  CURTIS,   AUDITOR,  DIVISION  OF   LEGISLATIVE  AUDIT,                                                                    
explained that  the division had  conducted an  audit report                                                                    
on  the council  and  had determined  that  the council  was                                                                    
serving the public interest and  should have the termination                                                                    
date extended. She added that  the report provided a summary                                                                    
of the council's organization and  function as well as their                                                                    
funding sources. The division  found that the council served                                                                    
as  a central  coordinator for  related services  throughout                                                                    
the  state.  She cited  Page  16  of  the audit  provided  a                                                                    
schedule  of  operating  expenditures and  funding  sources,                                                                    
which had  increased from FY09  through FY12.  The increases                                                                    
were  the  result  of  an  FY12  addition  of  a  prevention                                                                    
coordinator,  a  reduction  in  staff  vacancies,  increased                                                                    
funding through  the governor's "Choose  Respect" initiative                                                                    
and  additional  focus  on   domestic  violence  and  sexual                                                                    
assault  prevention.  She  explained  that  council  funding                                                                    
sources  were  comprised  of federal  funds,  state  general                                                                    
funds,  permanent  fund  dividends  (PFD)  for  incarcerated                                                                    
individuals, and inner agency  receipts from the Departments                                                                    
of Corrections,  Health and Social  Services and  the Office                                                                    
of the Governor. She relayed that  there was a change in the                                                                    
council's  funding   from  FY11  to  FY12   when  PFD's  for                                                                    
incarcerated  individuals  were  consolidated as  a  funding                                                                    
source  for the  Department  of  Corrections and  supplanted                                                                    
with general  funds. The audit identified  3 recommendations                                                                    
for operation improvements and could  be found on Page 11 of                                                                    
the audit. The first recommendation  was a continuation of a                                                                    
prior finding  from the 2005  sunset review of  the council;                                                                    
the  recommendation  was  to  improve  coordination  between                                                                    
itself   and  the   Department   of   Education  and   Early                                                                    
Development Education  (DEED) and  the Department  of Health                                                                    
and Social Services (DHSS). During  the current audit period                                                                    
the  division  found  that  the  council  had  significantly                                                                    
improved  coordination with  DEED, to  implement its  fourth                                                                    
"R" initiative,  which is a school-based  curricula designed                                                                    
to include  students, teachers,  parents, and  the community                                                                    
in  reducing  violence  and risky  behaviors.  However,  the                                                                    
council did  not coordinate with  DHSS to  develop standards                                                                    
and  procedures. Because  general  standards and  procedures                                                                    
for healthcare providers  and facilities delivering services                                                                    
to domestic  violence victims were developed  over ten years                                                                    
ago, and the  council and the department  did not coordinate                                                                    
regarding  continued delivery  and  ongoing availability  of                                                                    
the    standards   to    healthcare   providers,    improved                                                                    
coordination  had  been  recommended. She  stated  that  the                                                                    
other two recommendations  could be found on Page  13 of the                                                                    
audit  and  were administrative  in  nature.  First, it  was                                                                    
recommended  that the  council's executive  director improve                                                                    
procedures  to post  public notices;  secondly, the  council                                                                    
director should  improve grant award in  monitoring policies                                                                    
and procedures.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
8:38:31 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Senator  Olson wondered  if there  had been  any significant                                                                    
programs  that   had  not  been  funded   due  to  budgetary                                                                    
constraints.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Ms.  Curtis replied  that the  division  had not  identified                                                                    
through  the  audit  procedure any  unfunded  programs.  She                                                                    
noted that it had not been a focus of the review.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
8:39:15 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair  Fairclough   noted  that   a  response   to  the                                                                    
recommendations from  the executive director of  the council                                                                    
could be found on Pages 31 through 33 of the audit.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
LAUREE  MORTON,  EXECUTIVE  DIRECTOR,  COUNCIL  ON  DOMESTIC                                                                    
VIOLENCE AND  SEXUAL ASSAULT,  DEPARTMENT OF  PUBLIC SAFETY,                                                                    
spoke to the audit recommendations.  She shared that the two                                                                    
administrative  recommendations had  been  addressed by  the                                                                    
council. She relayed  that during the first  meeting of 2014                                                                    
the  council  would develop  a  schedule  of meetings  which                                                                    
would be posted on the  state public notice system. She said                                                                    
that  the council  had established  a routine  where program                                                                    
coordinators  met on  a quarterly  basis to  discuss program                                                                    
quality  control.  She relayed  that  the  council would  be                                                                    
meeting  with DHSS  in  summer 2014.  She  pointed out  that                                                                    
although  it  was  the  responsibility  of  the  council  to                                                                    
consult  with   the  department,  the  burden   was  on  the                                                                    
department to get the work done.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
8:41:45 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Senator Dunleavy wondered about stated program goals.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
Ms. Morton  replied that program  goals could be  found both                                                                    
in the annual report and on their website.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
8:42:37 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Senator  Dunleavy asked  whether the  council had  collected                                                                    
data  in  order  to  determine   if  the  goals  were  being                                                                    
achieved.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
Ms.  Morton responded  that  the within  the  past year  the                                                                    
council  had examined  how the  services had  helped victims                                                                    
and  not  only  the   amount  of  emergency  transportations                                                                    
provided. She  said three areas were  examined: interactions                                                                    
with  the  legal  system,   processing  the  experience  and                                                                    
healing,  and access  and utilization  of safety  resources.                                                                    
She shared that  2013 results had indicated  that 80 percent                                                                    
of  the  council's clients  believed  that  their lives  had                                                                    
improved  in those  three areas.  She stated  that data  was                                                                    
collected for the Batter's  Intervention programs by logging                                                                    
the  people who  were referred  to, attended,  and completed                                                                    
the program and  whether they had gone back  into the system                                                                    
within one year.  In  addition, a survey examining attitudes                                                                    
and longitudinal  changes over time was  administered at the                                                                    
beginning, middle,  and end  of the  program. She  said that                                                                    
prevention programs  had evaluations  that were  specific to                                                                    
each program;  in 2014 the  council would look into  ways to                                                                    
provide  overarching  goals   that  could  weave  prevention                                                                    
efforts together.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair Fairclough pointed out  to the committee that the                                                                    
council's functions were outlined on page 5 of the audit.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
8:45:32 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Senator Hoffman  lamented that Alaska  had the  highest rate                                                                    
of domestic violence  in the nation. He asked  if there were                                                                    
areas  of the  state  where statistics  might be  improving;                                                                    
additionally,  he   queried  areas   that  were   seeing  an                                                                    
escalation in domestic violence.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Ms. Morton responded  that the council looked  at regions of                                                                    
the   state  that   through   the   2010  statewide   Alaska                                                                    
Victimization  Survey, which  confirmed that  59 percent  of                                                                    
adult Alaska women had been  victims of domestic violence or                                                                    
sexual  violence, or  both. The  council intended  to repeat                                                                    
the  survey  in 2015.  Regional  baseline  surveys had  been                                                                    
conducted. She  believed that a  decrease in  violence would                                                                    
be noticed  through prevention efforts,  the changes  in the                                                                    
behavior of  young people and community  member interactions                                                                    
would  indicate  whether change  was  occurring  in the  way                                                                    
people treated each  other. She said that  9,300 victims had                                                                    
worked with  the council  in the past  year, which  had been                                                                    
the average  for the past  several years. She  believed that                                                                    
instances would  decrease as a result  of prevention efforts                                                                    
by the council.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
8:48:04 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Senator Hoffman stressed that he  was the most interested in                                                                    
two area  of the state  that recently changed  their alcohol                                                                    
status:  Kotzebue and  Bethel.  He remarked  that there  was                                                                    
concern over the impact of  alcohol on domestic violence and                                                                    
sexual abuse.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair  Fairclough  shared  that there  were  two  pilot                                                                    
programs for primary prevention.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair Fairclough CLOSED public testimony.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
8:50:23 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair  Fairclough discussed  the fiscal  note from  the                                                                    
Department of  Public Safety. She noted  the total operating                                                                    
budget request  of $17,762 for  each year  from FY 15  to FY                                                                    
20.                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
8:51:07 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair Fairclough  looked at Page  16, exhibit 3  of the                                                                    
audit  and   noted  that  the  travel   for  FY12  increased                                                                    
dramatically.   She   queried  additional   cost   increases                                                                    
reflected on the fiscal note.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
Ms.  Morton  explained  that the  travel  increase  was  the                                                                    
reflection of  increased training activities. She  said that                                                                    
the  council provided  scholarships  for participation.  She                                                                    
believed that the increase in  commodity spending was due to                                                                    
an increase in publications  and materials for training. She                                                                    
said  that reimbursable  service  agreements  were used  for                                                                    
services  line   items  to  give  funding   to  other  state                                                                    
departments.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
8:54:11 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Vice-Chair  Fairclough noted  that  the  audit reflected  an                                                                    
increase in personnel services of  $150,000 between FY12 and                                                                    
FY15.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
Ms. Morton agreed to provide  information on the increase at                                                                    
a later date.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
8:54:38 AM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
8:55:06 AM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
8:55:17 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Senator Bishop MOVED to REPORT  SB 124 out of committee with                                                                    
individual  recommendations  and   the  accompanying  fiscal                                                                    
note. There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
SB  124 was  REPORTED  out  of committee  with  a "do  pass"                                                                    
recommendation and  with previously published  fiscal impact                                                                    
note: FN1 (DPS).                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
8:55:38 AM                                                                                                                    
AT EASE                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
8:58:03 AM                                                                                                                    
RECONVENED