Legislature(2021 - 2022)GRUENBERG 120
04/21/2022 03:00 PM House STATE AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB396 | |
| HB66 | |
| HB316 | |
| SB161 | |
| HB256 | |
| SB66 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 161 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 66 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 66 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 396 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 316 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 271 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 256 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 161-POLITICAL PARTY DEFINITION
3:39:46 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS announced that the next order of business
would be CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 161(JUD), "An Act relating to
the definition of 'political party'; and providing for an
effective date."
3:39:58 PM
The committee took a brief at-ease.
3:40:19 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS opened public testimony on CSSB 161(JUD);
after ascertaining that no one wished to testify, he closed
public testimony.
3:41:02 PM
SENATOR BILL WIELECHOWSKI, Alaska State Legislature, prime
sponsor, noted that the idea for the legislation was brought to
him by a constituent who was an active member of the Libertarian
Party. He welcomed questions from committee members.
3:41:37 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN asked whether the bill was conceived
before or after the passage of Ballot Measure 2 [Top-Four
Ranked-Choice Voting and Campaign Finance Laws Initiative
(2020)].
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI deferred to Mr. Dunsmore.
3:42:02 PM
DAVID DUNSMORE, Staff, Senator Bill Wielechowski, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of Senator Wielechowski, prime sponsor,
recalled that Senator Wielechowski was approached by a
constituent in December 2021, which was after the passage of
Ballot Measure 2.
3:42:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN moved to adopt Amendment 1 to CSSB
161(JUD), [labeled 32-LS1361\B.2, Bullard, 4/19/22], which read:
Page 1, line 1, following "Act":
Insert "relating to the verification of a
political party's number of registered voters;"
Page 1, following line 3:
Insert new bill sections to read:
"* Section 1. AS 15.80.008(a) is amended to read:
(a) A political group that the director has not
recognized as a political party may obtain recognized
political party status if
(1) [,] on or before May 31 of the election
year for which the political group seeks recognition,
the political group [(1)] files an application with
the director; and
(2) on January 1 of that year, the
political group [SUBMITS BYLAWS TO THE DIRECTOR AND
THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AS REQUIRED OF
POLITICAL PARTIES IN AS 15.25.014; AND
(3)] meets the definition of a political
party in AS 15.80.010.
* Sec. 2. AS 15.80.008(c) is amended to read:
(c) The director shall perform a verification
described in (b) of this section on January 1 of each
[AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH AFTER THE DATE OF CERTIFICATION
OF THE PRECEDING GENERAL ELECTION, EXCEPT THAT THE
DIRECTOR MAY SUSPEND THE MONTHLY VERIFICATIONS ON AND
AFTER JUNE 1 AND BEFORE NOVEMBER 30 OF A GENERAL
ELECTION] year. For purposes of (b) of this section,
the director shall verify that the voters who have
submitted registration forms to the division of
elections are qualified under AS 15.05.010 and have
declared affiliation with the political group or
recognized political party for which the verification
is performed."
Page 1, line 4:
Delete "Section 1"
Insert "Sec. 3"
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
Page 1, lines 6 - 10:
Delete "; beginning with the results of the 2030
decennial federal census, following each decennial
federal census, the division shall by regulation
adjust this number by the percentage of the change to
the population of the state since the 2020 decennial
federal census, rounded to the nearest 500"
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN objected.
3:42:57 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN explained that Amendment 1 would insert
the date, January 1, on which the Division of Elections (DOE)
would calculate the number of registered voters associated with
a political party to verify the party's status. He indicated
that the relevant language was found on page 1, line 13 of
Amendment 1.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said his preference was to leave the bill
in its current form.
3:45:32 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN maintained his objection.
3:45:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN argued that January 1 was a logical place
to "set the benchmark."
3:46:19 PM
A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Eastman voted in
favor of the adoption of Amendment 1. Representatives Tarr,
Story, Claman, and Kreiss-Tomkins voted against it. Therefore,
Amendment 1 failed by a vote of 1-4.
3:46:51 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN moved to adopt Amendment 2 to CSSB
161(JUD), [labeled 32-LS1361\B.3, Bullard, 4/19/22], which read:
Page 1, line 6:
Delete "5,000"
Insert "250"
Page 1, lines 6 - 10:
Delete "; beginning with the results of the 2030
decennial federal census, following each decennial
federal census, the division shall by regulation
adjust this number by the percentage of the change to
the population of the state since the 2020 decennial
federal census, rounded to the nearest 500"
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN objected.
3:46:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN explained that Amendment 2 would reduce
the number of required registered voters from 5,000 to 250. He
reasoned that there were not many groups attempting to form
political parties in Alaska, so reducing the number of
registered voters would not produce an overabundance of new
political parties. Additionally, Amendment 2 deleted the
provision that required the division to adjust the number of
registered voters by the percentage of the change to state
population based on the decennial federal census results.
3:48:03 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said his preference was to leave the bill
in its current form.
3:48:53 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN sought to confirm that the original
version of the bill lacked the "decennial population adjustment"
provision.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said, "That's correct."
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN maintained his objection.
3:49:22 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN withdrew Amendment 2.
3:49:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN moved to adopt Amendment 3 to CSSB
161(JUD), [labeled 32-LS1361\B.6, Bullard, 4/19/22], which read:
Page 1, line 1, following "Act":
Insert "relating to confidential affiliation with
a political party or political group;"
Page 1, following line 3:
Insert new bill sections to read:
"* Section 1. AS 15.07 is amended by adding a new
section to read:
Sec. 15.07.073. Confidential affiliation with a
political party or political group. (a) A voter
registering as affiliated with a political party or
political group may request that the division keep
confidential, to the extent provided under (c) and (d)
of this section, the voter's affiliation with the
political party or political group.
(b) Subject to (c) and (d) of this section, the
division shall keep confidential the affiliation of a
voter who requests that the voter's affiliation with a
political party or political group remain confidential
under (a) of this section.
(c) The division shall notify the state chair of
a political party or political group, or another
person authorized by the rules or bylaws of the
political party or political group, of the name of a
voter who has registered as affiliated with the
political party or political group and who has
requested that the voter's affiliation be kept
confidential under this section.
(d) A voter who chooses to keep confidential the
voter's affiliation with a political party or
political group under this section may not be counted
as affiliated with the political party or political
group unless, under AS 15.80.008(c), counting the
voter allows the political party or political group to
maintain or obtain recognized political party status
under AS 15.80.008. The affiliation of a voter counted
under this subsection becomes public information, and
the division may not continue to keep the affiliation
confidential.
* Sec. 2. AS 15.07.075 is amended to read:
Sec. 15.07.075. Voters unaffiliated with a
political party. The director shall consider a voter
to be a voter registered as
(1) "nonpartisan" and without a preference
for a political party if the voter registers as
nonpartisan on a voter registration form;
(2) "undeclared" if the voter
(A) registers as undeclared on a voter
registration form;
(B) fails to declare an affiliation with a
political group or political party on a voter
registration form; or
(C) declares an affiliation with an entity
other than a political party or political group on a
voter registration form; or
(3) "other" if the voter
(A) declares on a voter registration form
an affiliation with a political group; or
(B) requests to keep the voter's
affiliation with a political party or political group
confidential under AS 15.07.073 and the voter's
affiliation is not made public under AS 15.07.073(d).
* Sec. 3. AS 15.07.127 is amended to read:
Sec. 15.07.127. Preparation of master register.
Subject to AS 15.07.073 and 15.07.075, the [THE]
director shall prepare both a statewide list and a
list by precinct of the names and addresses of all
persons whose names appear on the master register and
their political party affiliation. Subject to the
limitations of AS 15.07.195, any person may obtain a
copy of the list, or a part of the list, or an
electronic format containing both residence and
mailing addresses of voters, by applying to the
director and paying to the state treasury a fee as
determined by the director.
* Sec. 4. AS 15.07.195(a) is amended to read:
(a) The following information set out in state
voter registration records is confidential and is not
open to public inspection:
(1) the voter's age or date of birth;
(2) the voter's social security number, or
any part of that number;
(3) the voter's driver's license number;
(4) the voter's voter identification
number;
(5) the voter's place of birth;
(6) the voter's signature;
(7) the voter's affiliation with a
political party or political group if requested, and
to the extent allowable, under AS 15.07.073.
* Sec. 5. AS 15.07.195(c) is amended to read:
(c) Notwithstanding other provisions, and in
compliance with federal law, information made
confidential by (a)(1) - (6) of this section may be
released by the division
(1) to a local, state, or federal
government agency, including to the child support
services agency created in AS 25.27.010 or the child
support enforcement agency of another state; the
agency receiving information under this paragraph may
use the information only for governmental purposes
authorized under law;
(2) in compliance with a court order;
(3) to a person holding a writ of execution
against the person or property of the voter;
(4) if the voter about whom information has
been requested has provided written consent to the
release; or
(5) to another state or an organized group
of states for the purpose of ensuring the accuracy of
the state's voter registration list prepared under
AS 15.07.125 and the eligibility of persons on the
list to vote in state elections, if the other state or
organized group of states maintains the
confidentiality of the information using information
security management policies and procedures that
comply with
(A) the information security standards of
the International Organization for Standardization; or
(B) a published information security
standard used by the state and approved by the
Department of Administration.
* Sec. 6. AS 15.15.400 is amended to read:
Sec. 15.15.400. Preparation of voter list.
Subject to AS 15.07.073 and 15.07.075, the [THE]
director shall prepare both a statewide list and a
list by precinct of the names and addresses of all
persons who voted in the election and their political
party affiliation. Any person may obtain a copy of the
list, or a part of the list, or a computer tape
containing both residence and mailing addresses of
voters, by applying to the director and paying to the
state treasury a fee as determined by the director.
* Sec. 7. AS 15.80.008(c) is amended to read:
(c) The director shall perform a verification
described in (b) of this section at least once a month
after the date of certification of the preceding
general election, except that the director may suspend
the monthly verifications on and after June 1 and
before November 30 of a general election year. For
purposes of (b) of this section, the director shall
verify that the voters who have submitted registration
forms to the division of elections are qualified under
AS 15.05.010 and have declared affiliation with the
political group or recognized political party for
which the verification is performed. A voter who
requests that the voter's political affiliation remain
confidential under AS 15.07.073 may not be counted as
having declared affiliation with a political group or
recognized political party under this section unless
counting the voter allows the political party or
political group to maintain or obtain recognized
political party status under this section and
AS 15.80.010(27)."
Page 1, line 4:
Delete "Section 1"
Insert "Sec. 8"
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
Page 2, following line 12:
Insert a new bill section to read:
"* Sec. 9. AS 43.23.110(c) is amended to read:
(c) Information submitted on a permanent fund
dividend application that is used for the purpose of
registering an applicant to vote under AS 43.23.101
shall be kept confidential by the division of
elections as provided in AS 15.07.073 and 15.07.195
[AS 15.07.195]."
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN objected.
3:49:37 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN explained that Amendment 3 would create
an opportunity for voters to maintain a confidential party
affiliation, which would only become public if counting the
voter allowed the political party or group to maintain or obtain
recognized political party status.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said he appreciated the intent; however,
under current law, a person could select "undeclared" if he/she
wished to keep his/her party affiliation private.
3:51:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN withdrew Amendment 3.
3:52:20 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN moved to adopt Amendment 4 to CSSB
161(JUD), [labeled 32-LS1361\B.1, Bullard, 4/19/22], which read:
Page 1, line 6:
Delete "represents a political program and"
Page 1, line 10, following "500":
Insert "[REPRESENTS A POLITICAL PROGRAM AND"
Page 1, line 11:
Delete "[(A)"
Insert "(A)"
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN objected.
3:52:25 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN explained that Amendment 4 would delete
the language "represents a political program and" on page 1,
line 6 of the bill. He argued that subscribing to the same
political program should not a requirement of the registered
voters that constitute a political party.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI deferred to Mr. Dunsmore.
MR. DUNSMORE said he wasn't clear what practical effect
Amendment 4 would have, as DOE didn't conduct a review to
determine whether a group had a political program. He indicated
that it was definitionally assumed that a group seeking party
access would represent a political program.
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS inquired about the practical effect of the
language in question.
3:54:47 PM
THOMAS FLYNN, Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division,
Department of Law, sought further clarification.
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS directed attention to page 1, line 6 of
CSSB 161(JUD) and asked whether the deletion of the language
"represents a political program and" would have any substantive
impact.
MR. FLYNN answered no, DOE was not in the business of deciding
what a political party is and isn't and denying status on those
grounds. He stated that the deletion of that language would not
have a large practical effect.
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS sought to confirm that Amendment 4 may
economize the statutory language.
MR. FLYNN said, "That's my sense."
3:56:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN considered a scenario in which a group of
4,000 people wanted to call themselves the Liberty Party. He
sought to confirm that the group would not obtain recognized
status until they reached 5,000.
MR. FLYNN answered yes, they would have to clear the threshold
of 5,000 registered voters.
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN surmised that deleting the language
"represents a political program and" would allow any organized
groups to be recognized as a political party once reaching that
threshold.
MR. FLYNN said he was struggling to identify a situation in
which the division would refuse to recognize a group of over
5,000 registered voters based on the absence of an identifiable
political program.
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN remarked, "But on some level, there would
have to be some finding that there was some way to figure out
that the group, such as they are, have enough of a commonality
of interest to call them an organized group."
MR. FLYNN answered yes, I'd suppose so.
3:58:59 PM
REPRESENTATIVE TARR surmised that identifying a political
program could help the division differentiate between two
respective groups with similar missions. She asked how such a
circumstance would be handled.
MR. FLYNN said that was an inherent danger in the system.
Nonetheless, he shared his understanding that groups were not
required to submit a political program to the division for
approval.
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN pointed out that similar political
parties existed.
4:02:47 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN withdrew his objection to the adoption of
Amendment 4. There being no further objection, Amendment 4 was
adopted.
4:04:05 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN moved to adopt Amendment 5 to CSSB
161(JUD), [labeled 32-LS1361\B.4, Bullard, 4/19/22], which read:
Page 1, line 1, following "Act":
Insert "relating to voter registration;"
Page 1, following line 3:
Insert new bill sections to read:
"* Section 1. AS 15.07.050(b) is amended to read:
(b) Except as provided in (c) of this section,
only the voter or the individual authorized by the
voter in a written power of attorney under (a) of this
section may mark the voter's choice of party or group
affiliation on the voter registration application
form.
* Sec. 2. AS 15.07.050 is amended by adding a new
subsection to read:
(d) A voter registration agency shall provide
each applicant for registration or reregistration the
opportunity to adopt a political party or group
affiliation. The voter registration agency shall
provide each applicant a complete list of political
parties and political groups in the state.
* Sec. 3. AS 15.07.070(j) is amended to read:
(j) The division shall cooperate with the
Department of Revenue under AS 43.23.101 to ensure
that the permanent fund dividend application form
furnished by the Department of Revenue under
AS 43.23.015 provides an applicant the opportunity to
adopt a political party or group affiliation, includes
the list of active political parties and political
groups required under AS 15.07.050(d), allows an
applicant, a person who is designated in a power of
attorney to act on behalf of an applicant, or a person
acting on behalf of a physically disabled applicant to
submit voter registration information required under
AS 15.07.060(a)(1) - (4) and (7) - (9), and requires
an applicant to attest [AN ATTESTATION] that the
required voter registration [SUCH] information is
true. The director may require proof of identification
of the applicant, if not already in the Department of
Revenue's possession, as required by regulations
adopted by the director under AS 44.62 (Administrative
Procedure Act).
* Sec. 4. AS 15.07.070(k) is amended to read:
(k) Upon receipt of an applicant's [THE]
registration and political affiliation information
provided under (j) of this section, the director
shall, as soon as practicable and in accordance with a
schedule established by the director by rule, notify
by United States mail and any other means authorized
by the director, each applicant not already registered
to vote at the address provided in the applicant's
application
(1) of the processes to
(A) decline to be registered as a voter;
and
(B) maintain an existing voter registration
or be newly registered at a valid place of residence
not provided in the applicant's application; and
[(C) ADOPT A POLITICAL PARTY AFFILIATION;
AND]
(2) that failure to respond to the
notification shall constitute the applicant's consent
to cancel any registration to vote in another
jurisdiction.
* Sec. 5. AS 15.07.127 is amended to read:
Sec. 15.07.127. Preparation of master register.
The director shall prepare both a statewide list and a
list by precinct of the names and addresses of all
persons whose names appear on the master register and
their political [PARTY] affiliation. Subject to the
limitations of AS 15.07.195, any person may obtain a
copy of the list, or a part of the list, or an
electronic format containing both residence and
mailing addresses of voters, by applying to the
director and paying to the state treasury a fee as
determined by the director.
* Sec. 6. AS 15.15.400 is amended to read:
Sec. 15.15.400. Preparation of voter list. The
director shall prepare both a statewide list and a
list by precinct of the names and addresses of all
persons who voted in the election and their political
[PARTY] affiliation. Any person may obtain a copy of
the list, or a part of the list, or a computer tape
containing both residence and mailing addresses of
voters, by applying to the director and paying to the
state treasury a fee as determined by the director."
Page 1, line 4:
Delete "Section 1"
Insert "Sec. 7"
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN objected.
4:04:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN directed attention to Section 2 and
Section 3 of Amendment 5, which he characterized as the
pertinent information. He indicated that the proposed amendment
would require a voter registration agency, DOE, and the
Department of Revenue (DOR) to provide a list of active
political parties and political groups on the permanent fund
dividend (PFD) application form and the voter registration
application.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI expressed concern that Amendment 5 would
make the application forms too lengthy. Additionally, he
pointed out that if a person was interested in declaring a
political party affiliation, he/she could simply go online and
register for said party.
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN opined that by omitting a list of active
political parties, the larger, more well-known parties were
benefitting at the expense of smaller groups.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI questioned whether it was the state's duty
to promote political parties or make people aware of their
existence.
MR. DUNSMORE added that after reviewing it from the perspective
of a legislative staffer who often assisted constituents with
related matters, he argued that a lengthier form might cause
undue burden.
4:10:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN withdrew Amendment 5.
4:11:18 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN moved to adopt Amendment 6 to CSSB
161(JUD), [labeled 32-LS1361\B.5, Bullard, 4/19/22], which read:
Page 1, line 1, following "Act":
Insert "relating to changing the name of a
political group or recognized political party;"
Page 1, following line 3:
Insert a new bill section to read:
"* Section 1. AS 15.80.008 is amended by adding a
new subsection to read:
(f) A political group or political party may
change its name and retain its membership, and, for a
political party, its recognized status under this
title, if the political group or political party
submits evidence satisfactory to the director that the
name change was approved at a state convention of the
political group or political party or by another means
authorized by the rules or bylaws of the political
group or political party. If, before the filing
deadline for office, a political group or political
party submits evidence satisfactory to the director of
a name change under this subsection,
(1) and a candidate affiliated with that
political party or political group requests that the
candidate's affiliation be designated after the name
of the candidate on the ballot under
AS 15.15.030(a)(5), the director shall use the new
name of the political party or political group; and
(2) a candidate registered as affiliated
with the political group or political party shall
state the new name in the candidate's listed
affiliation or party designation in a declaration of
candidacy under AS 15.25.030(a)(5)."
Page 1, line 4:
Delete "Section 1"
Insert "Sec. 2"
Renumber the following bill section accordingly.
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN objected.
4:11:23 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN explained that the purpose of Amendment 6
was to clarify that there was no intention of burdening or
penalizing a political party that decided to change its name.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI opined that Amendment 6 was worthy of its
own bill.
REPRESENTATIVE TARR suggested addressing this topic after the
passage of CSSB 161(JUD) if dozens of new parties were formed in
its wake. She maintained her belief that the focus of the
proposed legislation should be limited in scope.
4:13:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN withdrew Amendment 6.
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS invited closing comments from committee
members.
4:14:02 PM
REPRESENTATIVE TARR expressed her appreciation for the bill, as
the diversity of views among Alaskans were not well-represented
by the few existing parties, she opined. She expressed her hope
that increasing the options would engage more people in the
electoral and policy-making process.
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN applauded the sponsor for bringing the
bill forward.
4:14:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN moved to report CSSB 161(JUD), as amended,
out of committee with individual recommendations and the
accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection HCS CSSB
161(STA) was reported out of the House State Affairs Standing
Committee.