Legislature(2025 - 2026)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
02/02/2026 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB170 | |
| SB211 | |
| SB81 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 170 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 211 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 81 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 211-EXTEND OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING BOARDS
1:41:54 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 211 "An Act extending the
termination date of the Board of Professional Counselors;
extending the termination date of the Board of Marital and
Family Therapy; extending the termination date of the Board of
Psychologist and Psychological Associate Examiners; extending
the termination date of the Real Estate Commission; extending
the termination date of the Board of Social Work Examiners; and
providing for an effective date."
1:42:20 PM
MATT CHURCHILL, Staff, Senator Jesse Bjorkman, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, introduced SB 211 on behalf of the
sponsor and read the following summary:
[Original punctuation provided.]
This bill extends the sunset dates of five State
Professional Boards, those of: (1) Professional
Counselors, (2) Marital and Family Therapy, (3)
Psychologist and Psychological Examiners, (4) Social
Work Examiners, and of the (5) Real Estate Commission
from their current sunset dates of June 30, 2026. SB
211 follows the extensions recommended by the State's
audits for each of these boards.
The State's 2025 audits of the Boards of Marital and
Family Therapy and of Social Work Examiners each
recommended extending the termination date of their
boards by eight years, the maximum extension allowed
by statute.
The audits of the Boards of Professional Counselors
and of Certified Real Estate Appraisers recommended
six-year extensions.
The audit of the Board of Psychologist and
Psychological Examiners recommended a five-year
extension.
And finally, the audit of the Real Estate Commission
recommended extending the board's termination date by
four years.
1:44:45 PM
KRIS CURTIS, Legislative Auditor, Division of Legislative Audit,
Legislative Affairs Agency, Juneau, Alaska, testified by
invitation on SB 211. She reported on the audits for five
different boards and read the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Real Estate Commission
Overall, we found that the commission effectively
conducting its meetings, actively amending
regulations, and effectively licensing real estate
professionals. The audit also found areas for
improvement and the audit includes five
recommendations. We recommend a four-year extension
which is half of the 8-year maximum allowed in
statute.
I'll walk you some of the key information in the
report.
On page 10 you will find the standard licensing
statistics. As of January 2025, there were 2,854
active licenses and 591 registrations.
On page 11 is the schedule of revenues and
expenditures. The commission had a surplus of $807,000
as of January 2025.
We have five recommendations beginning on page 17.
First, we recommend that DCBPL's director provide
training and update written procedures to ensure
minutes are prepared for all commission meetings as
required by law. Our audit found that DCBPL wasn't
recording minutes for committee meetings.
Rec no 2 on the next page, the commission chair should
update regulations and forms to include independent
contractors. The audit identified that the real estate
industry has evolved away from employment
relationships and licensees are typically independent
contractors affiliated with brokerages. Statutes were
updated in 1998 to reflect this change, but the
commission never updated its regulations and forms.
1:46:35 PM
MS. CURTIS continued with the Real Estate Commission audit:
Rec no 3 the DCCED commissioner should work with
policy makers to improve the recruitment and retention
of investigators and DCBPL management should consider
ways to assist the commission in clearing its
investigative backlog. Auditors reviewed 14 cases and
determined that all 14 cases had unjustified periods
of inactivity, and other delays, ranging from 160 to
726 days, with an average delay of 14 months. The
audit found three primary types of delay with many
cases showing multiple types. First, the longest
periods of inactivity related to Division of
Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing
(DCBPL) waiting for a commission member to accept a
case for review. Second, once accepted for review,
auditors found delays associated with commission
member review in other words, commission members were
taking a long time to complete their review. Third,
there were delays related to vacancies and turnover.
Rec 4 on page 19, the commission should consider
seeking legislation to eliminate the real estate
recovery fund. The Real Estate Recovery fund which was
established to provide a remedy for loss suffered in a
real estate transaction as a result of "fraud,
intentional tort, deceit etcetera." In 2018 there was
a law mandating all licensees have errors and
omissions insurance. Since the effective date of this
new law, through January 2025, the recovery fund paid
only $50,202 in claims while collecting over $640,000
in recovery fund fees from licensees. If you turn to
page 14, you can see that there were virtually no
claims paid out of this fund during our audit period.
In summary, this fund has outlived its usefulness.
And Rec 5, the commission should require licensees
renewal applicants to submit a certificate of errors
and omissions insurance coverage or seek a statutory
change.
Management's response to the audit begins on page 31.
In general, both the commissioner of DCCED and the
board chair concur with the report recommendations.
1:49:01 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN asked whether the real estate recovery fund is a
sweepable account.
1:49:09 PM
MS. CURTIS replied no, the fund would not be sweepable if the
funds were used for a certain purpose.
1:49:28 PM
MS. CURTIS continued with the Board of Social Work Examiners'
audit report and read the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
The board served the public's interest by generally
conducting meetings in an effective manner and
actively amending regulations. Licenses were found to
be issued in compliance with state law except for
licenses renewed through the online portal, which
lacked adequate documentation. The audit also found
one board position had been vacant for an extended
period. We recommend an eight year extension.
On page 6 you will find the board's schedule of
licensing activity. As of January 2025, the board had
around 1,300 active licenses. The schedule of revenues
and expenditures is on page 7. We concluded that board
fees were not set at a level that covered regulatory
costs but general fund allocations prevented a
deficit.
We have two recommendations beginning on page 9. First
we recommend that the office of the governor, boards
and commissions director take steps to ensure board
seats are filled in a timely manner. We found that a
board seat had been vacant for over a year and another
board seat had become vacant after we began the audit.
That left two of the five board seats vacant.
On page 10 We recommend that the board chair and DCBPL
director work together to ensure renewal applicants
comply with continuing education regulations or seek a
regulation change if deemed necessary.
Management's response to the audit begins on page 21
with the office of the governor. Generally the office
of the governor and the DCCED commissioner concurred
with the recommendation. The board chair also
concurred and notes that the board vacancies have led
to delays in processing applications, cancelled
meetings due to a lack of quorum, and delays in
closing out investigations.
1:51:45 PM
MS. CURTIS continued with the Board of Professional Counselors
audit report and read the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
This board generally conducted meetings in an
effective manner, actively amended regulations, and
effectively licensed professional counselors. The
audit also concluded that one board position had been
vacant for an extended period and license fees were
not sufficient to cover the profession's regulatory
cost. We recommended a six year extension.
If you turn to page 5 you will see that the board had
1,676 active licenses as of January 2025. On pages 6
and 7 we conclude that fees were not sufficient to
cover the cost of operations and fees were not
increases in a timely manner.
According to Division of Corporations, Business and
Professional Licensing (DCBPL) management, a fee
analysis was performed to determine whether board
license and renewal fees should be increased. The
analysis supported increasing fees and was presented
to the board at its September 2024 board meeting, at
which time the board supported the fee increases.
However, the fee increase was not made due to
noncompliance with a new fee approval process.
Please turn to page 19 of the audit where you will
find a memo from the Governor's chief of staff. The
subject line reads "No Tax/Fee/Revenue Increases
without Chief of Staff approval." Via this memo, the
governor's chief of staff declared that new or
increased taxes, fees, revenues, or any other
mechanism to collect new or additional revenue must be
approved by the chief of staff, with input from OMB
prior to the request being made. In accordance with
the new policy, OMB established a procedure whereby
all requests for fee increases were to be submitted to
departments' respective Divisions of Administrative
Services, whose staff, in turn, would submit the
requests to OMB for review. OMB staff were to
determine whether a request would be forwarded to the
governor's chief of staff for final review and
approval.
This audit found that DCBPL staff sent this board's
fee increase request to the Division of Administrative
Services; however, due to staff turnover, the request
was not forwarded to OMB. Consequently, fees were not
increased and the board's deficit is expected to grow.
The board had a deficit of $210,000 as of January
2025.
1:53:47 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR asked what is the statutory authority that allows
boards to set or recommend their fees, and where in statute is
there a requirement that this process be routed through the
Governor's Chief of Staff. Additionally, what discretion do
executive agencies have in setting fees versus following
directives established in law.
1:54:39 PM
MS. CURTIS replied that AS 08.01.065 requires the department to
set fees by regulation at levels that cover the cost of
regulating the profession. She argued the proposed fee increases
are therefore mandatory, and that adding extra approval steps
would delay implementation, worsen deficits, shift costs to
future licensees, and potentially require general fund support.
1:55:29 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR asked what recourse the legislature has if an
executive agency or the Governor's Office fails to follow a
statute that mandates fee-setting to cover the costs of boards
and commissions.
MS. CURTIS deferred the question to legislative legal.
1:56:09 PM
SENATOR YUNDT asked whether the fee deficits are typical, how
long they have persisted, and how severe they have become.
1:56:21 PM
MS. CURTIS replied that fee deficits were more common 1020
years ago due to reluctance to raise fees. Over the past eight
years, the administration has generally enforced statutory fee-
setting, keeping boards self-funded and building modest reserves
to stabilize fluctuations. She said the current deficits are a
recent development in this cycle.
SENATOR YUNDT sought confirmation that, in Ms. Curtis's opinion,
the board is not in fiscal distress, noting that while it has a
current fee deficit, it is not in negative territory.
MS. CURTIS replied the board is in negative territory with a
$210,000 in deficit. She said delaying fee increases will
require larger, more abrupt hikes later, which harms licensees.
SENATOR YUNDT stated that the department needs to address the
problem sooner rather than later. He asked what is a reasonable
timeline to resolve the approximate $250,000 deficit given other
boards have significant surpluses.
MS. CURTIS deferred the question to the Department of Commerce,
Community and Economic Development (DCCED).
SENATOR YUNDT asked if Ms. Curtis could talk to the department
and report back.
MS. CURTIS replied that licenses operate on a two-year cycle, so
if a fee increase is missed, it may be delayed for another two
years; however, an increase is likely to come soon and the
department can address it.
1:59:05 PM
SENATOR YUNDT asked why the request for the Board of
Professional Counselors is a six-year extension, while the Real
Estate Commission receives only a four-year extension and what
determines the difference.
MS. CURTIS replied that the extension length is subjective and
is determined individually by the legislative Auditor. She said
she never recommends. full extension for a board that has a
deficit. If a deficit is the only problem a board has then the
extension is about 6 years. The Real Estate Commission received
a shorter extension due to additional issues requiring ongoing
compliance monitoring.
1:59:55 PM
MS. CURTIS continued with the Board of Marital Family and
Therapy audit report and read the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
The audit concluded that the board served the public's
interest by conducting meetings in an effective
manner, amending regulations as needed, and generally
licensing marital and family therapists in compliance
with state law. The audit also found that a public
board member seat had been vacant for 32 months as of
March 2025. We recommend the legislature extend the
board's termination date eight years.
On page 5 of the audit you will find the board's
schedule of licensing activity. As of January 2025,
the board had 116 active licenses. The schedule of
revenues and expenditures is on page 7. As of January
2025, the board had a surplus of $196,835.
We have two recommendations beginning on page 9. We
recommend the Office of the Governor, Board and
Commissions director work with the board to identify
potential applicants to fill the vacant board seat in
a timely manner.
Rec 2 is on page 10. We recommend the board ensure the
renewal licensing application is sufficient to monitor
compliance with teletherapy-related continuing
education. The teletherapy continuing education
requirements are fairly new and are only applicable
for those licensees that provide services remotely.
The audit found that the board has no way to identify
which of their licensees are subject to the continuing
education requirement and are not tracking compliance.
Management's response to the audit begins on page 19.
The office of the governor, the DCCED commissioner,
and the board chair concur with the report conclusions
and recommendations.
2:01:33 PM
MS. CURTIS continued with the Board of Psychologist and
Psychological Associate Examiners audit report and read the
following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
The audit found that the board conducted meetings in
an effective manner, actively amended regulations, and
generally issued new licenses in compliance with
statutes and regulations. The audit also found areas
for improvement which led to five recommendations. We
recommend a five year extension to help ensure
corrective action is taken to address deficiencies
On page 6 you will find the Board's schedule of
licensing activity. As of January 2025, the board had
371 active licenses. On page 7 we explain that the
board's fees were not sufficient to cover the cost of
operations. DCBPL did a fee analysis which showed that
fees should be increased. However, management did not
present the analysis to the board in a timely manner.
Management chose not to submit a fee increase request
to their division of admin services in accordance with
the new fee approval process because they believed
that there would be delays in the approval process and
management wanted to prioritize other fee increases
which were associated with new license types. On page
8 you will find the board's schedule of revenues and
expenditures. As of January 2025, the board had a
deficit of just over 90,000.
2:02:35 PM
MS. CURTIS continued with her audit of the Board of Psychologist
and Psychological Associate Examiners and read the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
The audit has five findings and recommendations which
begin on page 11. We recommend the Governor's boards
and commissions director work with the board to
identify potential applicants to fill board seats and
take steps to ensure qualified applicants are
appointed in a timely manner.
Rec 2 on page 13 The board chair and DCPBL's
director should work together to ensure renewal
applicants comply with continuing education
regulations or seek a regulatory change if necessary.
Rec 3 on page 14, Board members should review
investigative cases in a timely manner. Auditors
reviewed two board cases that had been open for over
1,000 days and identified one unjustified period of
inactivity of 656 days. The delay was related to a
board member not completing their review in a timely
manner and a lack of alternate qualified board members
to review the case.
Rec 4, DCBPL's director should ensure courtesy
licensees comply with monthly reporting requirements.
Rec 5 on page 15. DCBPL's director should ensure the
board's fees cover the cost of regulating the
profession.
Management's response to the audit begins on page 27.
The office of the governor, DCCED commissioner and
board chair concur with the reports conclusions and
recommendations.
2:04:17 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN asked whether the change of Realtor appraisers
from employees to independent contractors raise any workers'
compensation concerns, and were any issues identified in the
audit.
2:04:55 PM
MS. CURTIS replied no. The individuals have long been
independent contractors, but application forms create confusion
between employee and contractor status.
CHAIR BJORKMAN asked for clarification that the discussion was
about the Real Estate Commission, not real estate appraisers.
MS. CURTIS replied in the affirmative.
2:05:45 PM
SENATOR YUNDT asked how many years were recommended for the
Board of Psychologist.
MS. CURTIS replied that the audit is recommending a five-year
extension.
2:06:00 PM
SENATOR GRAY-JACKSON expressed appreciation to the auditors for
their work with timeline extensions and for their oversight in
ensuring follow-up on recommendations.
2:06:56 PM
SYLVAN ROBB, Director, Division of Corporations, Business and
Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community and
Economic Development (DCCED), Juneau, Alaska, offered the
response by the Division to the findings of the Legislative
Auditor regarding the Real Estate Commission, Board of Social
Work Examiners, and Mental Health Board:
Real Estate Commission: The Real Estate Commission had five
audit findings, some requiring commission decisions. One
recommendationregarding the Real Estate Recovery Fundwould
require a statutory change and is under consideration, though
its necessity has diminished since errors and omissions
insurance became mandatory. The commission now requires proof of
that insurance at license renewal, resolving a prior issue.
Staffing is stable, with only one investigator vacancy due to
recent retirement.
Board of Social Work Examiners: One finding is the need to
ensure board seats are filled; efforts include outreach through
social media and industry associations to recruit qualified
applicants.
Mental Health Boards: Findings for the mental health board
focused on renewal issues, particularly related to telework and
documentation of continuing education. All issues have been
resolved quickly with updated forms and processes.
2:11:20 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR stated that there was discussion that some
recommended fee increases may be delayed by a more stringent
administrative process than what is outlined in statute. He
asked whether the recommended fee increases will be approved
soon enough to avoid significantly larger increases later.
2:11:51 PM
MS. ROBB replied that fees must be set through regulation, so
increases take effect only after completing the regulatory
process. The approach aims to avoid volatile fee swings by
maintaining modest reserves and implementing gradual increases.
She said programs in deficit are expected to recover once new
fees are adopted, with adjustments spread over time to minimize
financial impact on licensees.
2:13:20 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR stated that Ms. Curtis said that in statute fee
changes may be routed through the Governor's Chief of Staff. He
asked whether that is accurate, and if so, is such approval
required or authorized by statute.
2:13:45 PM
MS. ROBB replied that it is not specified in AS 08.01.065, which
authorizes fees. The statute does not mention other members of
the executive branch. She declined to comment on anything in the
executive budget act.
2:14:24 PM
SENATOR YUNDT asked how operations like payroll and basic
expenses are maintained when a board has a deficit of over
$200,000, and who covers those costs.
2:14:51 PM
MS. ROBB replied that the division operates as a single budget
unit, not separate line items by board. While statutes require
each program's fees to cover its regulatory costs, the division
can use surpluses from other programs to cover expenses, while
still tracking each program's finances closely.
SENATOR YUNDT commented that it may appear that boards with a
surplus are subsidizing those in deficit. He asked how that
works in practice and what is the short extension the Division
has given a board.
2:16:30 PM
MS. ROBB reassured that Real Estate Commission licensees are not
subsidizing professional counselors. She said the shortest board
extension she has observed is two years, though that decision is
primarily handled by Ms. Curtis.
2:17:23 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN asked for an explanation on how board funds are
accounted for and tracked to ensure each board's licensees cover
the costs of regulating their profession.
2:17:42 PM
MS. ROBB replied that each program's revenue and expenses are
tracked on separate spreadsheets. Staff time and investigator
work are recorded by program, including shared staff, using
detailed allocations and cost accounting to ensure each board's
licensees cover only the costs of regulating their profession.
2:20:02 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN solicited a motion.
2:20:04 PM
SENATOR MERRICK moved to adopt the committee substitute (CS) for
SB 211, work order 34-LS1252\N, as the working document.
2:20:15 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN objected for purposes of discussion.
2:20:28 PM
KONRAD JACKSON, Staff, Senator Jesse Bjorkman, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, presented the summary of changes
from version A to version N for SB 211.
[Original punctuation provided.]
Summary of Changes ver. A to ver. N
Page 1, lines 4-5: Bill title is amended by adding the
extension of the board of Certified Real Estate
Appraisers. The following sections are renumbered
accordingly.
New Section 5: Amends AS 08.03.010(c)(20) extending
the Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers from
2026 to 2032.
Page 2, line 20: Retroactive date is changed to June
30, 2026
2:21:22 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN removed his objection; found no further objection
and CSSB 211 was adopted as the working document.
2:21:36 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR asked to hear from MS. Curtis. He stated that
there are concerns about the real estate appraiser board's
deficit and recent administrative policy changes. He asked if
the extension is shortened to 2027 or 2028, would a new audit be
required or could the current audit be used, and if a new audit
is needed, how long would it take.
2:22:33 PM
MS. CURTIS replied that statute requires an audit the year
before the board's termination date, so shortening the timeline
would require a new audit. Audits typically take at least two
years, and shorter cycles are used only for serious issues. She
said as an alternative, the legislature can require follow-up
reporting on audit findings without conducting a full new audit.
2:23:45 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR stated his belief that the committee doesn't
think the board has severe issues, though a broader policy
change in the Governor's Office could lead to widespread
deficits if fee increases are not approved. He said while this
board is not a major concern, the issue could affect all boards
next year. He asked how to best address the deficit.
MS. CURTIS replied that the issue likely affects multiple
boards, not just a few, due to delays in fee increases. No clear
solution is identified and addressing it may raise legal
questions about legislative authority versus executive branch
decision-making.
2:25:21 PM
SENATOR DUNBAR asked when deficits occur, are they backfilled
through general funds.
MS. CURTIS replied that in the past, the department has
requested legislative appropriations to address deficits,
including general fund support during COVID due to a fee freeze.
She said deficits have arisen for various reasons, such as
changes in cost allocation methods, but more often the costs are
ultimately passed on to future licensees through higher fees.
2:26:31 PM
SENATOR YUNDT stated that costs are ultimately borne by future
licensees or the general fund. He asked what would happen if a
board were not extended at all.
2:26:51 PM
MS. CURTIS replied that licensing and operations would continue
under the Division of Corporation of Business Professional
Licensing (DCBPL), without a board's professional expertise,
likely increasing reliance on contracted experts. If not
extended, the board would enter a one-year administrative wind-
down period.
SENATOR YUNDT stated that he won't be proposing an amendment and
noted that he has concerns that delaying action until deficits
reach extreme levels is fiscally irresponsible.
MS. CURTIS replied that fee-setting is not affected by the
board's existence; the division, not the board, is responsible
for setting fees, and that process remains unchanged even if the
board is dissolved.
2:28:38 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN suggested having a joint meeting with Community
and Regional Affairs (CRA) to talk about the process.
2:29:46 PM
CHAIR BJORKMAN held SB 211 in committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB170 Draft Proposed CS ver. O.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 170 |
| SB170 Summary of Changes ver. T to ver. O.pdf |
SFIN 2/24/2026 9:00:00 AM SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 170 |
| SB211 ver. A.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB211 Sponsor Statement ver. A.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB211 Sectional Summary ver. A.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB211 Fiscal Note-DCCED-CBPL 01.30.26.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB211 Supporting Documents-Legislative Audit Reports Link Page.pdf |
SFIN 2/17/2026 9:00:00 AM SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB81 Sponsor Statement ver A.pdf |
SL&C 3/3/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 4/4/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 81 |
| SB81 ver A.pdf |
SL&C 3/3/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 4/4/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 81 |
| SB81 Sectional Analysis ver A.pdf |
SL&C 3/3/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 4/4/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 81 |
| SB81 Presentation to SLAC 04.04.25.pdf |
SL&C 4/4/2025 1:30:00 PM SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 81 |
| SB211 Draft Proposed CS ver. N.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB211 Summary of Changes ver A to ver N.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 211 |
| SB81 Fiscal Note-DOA-DRB 01.31.26.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 81 |
| SB170 Public Testimony-Letter-Diamond Game 02.01.26.pdf |
SL&C 2/2/2026 1:30:00 PM |
SB 170 |