Legislature(2017 - 2018)GRUENBERG 120
03/21/2017 05:30 PM House STATE AFFAIRS
Note: the audio ![]()
and video ![]()
recordings are distinct records and are obtained from different sources. As such there may be key differences between the two. The audio recordings are captured by our records offices as the official record of the meeting and will have more accurate timestamps. Use the icons to switch between them.
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SCR2 | |
| HB74 | |
| HJR15 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SCR 2 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 74 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HJR 15 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SCR 2-SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH:APRIL 2017
6:02:03 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS announced that the first order of business
would be SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 2, Proclaiming April
2017 as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
6:02:22 PM
SENATOR KEVIN MEYER, Alaska State Legislature, presented SCR 2,
as prime sponsor. He stated that the proposed concurrent
resolution would proclaim April 2017 as Sexual Assault Awareness
Month. He added that it was part of a national campaign to
raise public awareness and educate people on how to prevent
sexual violence. He said that he has introduced this resolution
every year since 2001. He maintained that he has not sought to
incorporate it into statute because of the importance of the
topic and because of public support to continue to introduce it
every year for education and awareness.
SENATOR MEYER asserted that the rates of sexual assault are
decreasing but are still staggering. Twenty percent of women
nationwide have been victims of sexual assault, and 30 percent
of women in Alaska have been victims of sexual assault. He
maintained that sexual assault is totally preventable; it is a
moral, social, public health, criminal justice, and human rights
issue; and it is unacceptable. He advocated for continuing
education and awareness on the topic until no longer necessary.
SENATOR MEYER said that the 2017 Sexual Assault Awareness Month
campaign will have "some new voices" to educate the public on
prevention efforts, and he expressed his hope that the proposed
resolution would strengthen that effort across the state.
6:04:57 PM
REPRESENTATIVE LEDOUX offered her opinion that a bill has more
gravitas than a resolution. She suggested that proclaiming
Sexual Assault Awareness Month in legislation would create as
much publicity and recognition as a resolution. She offered
that the increasing order of significance [of legislative
actions] is citation, resolution, then legislation.
SENATOR MEYER agreed that something in statute is more important
than a resolution; however, once something is in statute, then
it is forgotten over time. He opined that introducing a
resolution every year keeps the topic "in front of us" on a
yearly basis.
6:06:29 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS opened public testimony on SCR 2.
6:06:57 PM
CARMEN LOWRY, Executive Director, Alaska Network on Domestic
Violence and Sexual Assault (ANDVSA), testified that she is a
survivor of sexual assault. She stressed the importance of
public testimony of sexual assault survivors to help committee
members understand the impact that sexual violence has on
individuals, on communities, and on people's ability to be
functioning members of society. She encouraged the committee
members to talk to survivors, if they have questions about
sexual violence and about the laws they are passing that would
impact it.
6:08:51 PM
JANE ANDREEN, Executive Director, Alaska Council on Domestic
Violence and Sexual Assault (CDVSA), testified that CDVSA
supports the proposed concurrent resolution. She confirmed that
Alaska ranks highest in the nation for sexual assault rates.
She added that the 33 percent decrease in the number of [sexual
assault] incidences reported between 2010 and 2015 demonstrates
significant progress made through establishing a primary
prevention program with multiple components targeting many
different groups within Alaska. She attested that these efforts
have been done in conjunction with ANDVSA, the Department of
Education & Early Development (DEED), and many other partners.
MS. ANDREEN asserted that "keeping the message alive" every year
is important to the effort toward lowering the sexual assault
rates. She encouraged the committee to support SCR 2.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK asked what the impact was of the Choose
Respect campaign in lowering the sexual assault rates.
MS. ANDREEN expressed her belief that overall the Choose Respect
campaign helped to build and expand the primary prevention
efforts in the state. She said that in the course of using
evidence based programs and initiatives, CDVSA has not been able
to pinpoint what each effort has accomplished. She asserted
that the Choose Respect initiative provided prevention funding
to expand the program. She added that the Choose Respect
funding was eliminated at the end of the last administration,
and CDVSA is looking for other funding sources to maintain the
program.
6:11:10 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS closed public testimony on SCR 2.
6:11:21 PM
REPRESENTATIVE WOOL moved to report SCR 2 out of committee with
individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes.
There being no objection, SCR 2 was reported out of the House
State Affairs Standing Committee.