03/30/2017 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS

              SJR 2-CONST AM: APPROPRIATION LIMIT                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
3:34:57 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR DUNLEAVY announced the consideration of Senate Joint                                                                      
Resolution (SJR) 2.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
3:35:03 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR GIESSEL moved to adopt the committee substitute (CS) for                                                                
SJR 2, version: 30-LS0123\M.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DUNLEAVY objected for discussion purposes.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
3:35:26 PM                                                                                                                    
DANIEL   GEORGE,   Staff,    Senator   Dunleavy,   Alaska   State                                                               
Legislature,   Juneau,   Alaska,    paraphrased   the   following                                                               
"Explanation  of Changes"  document  for the  Senate  CS for  SJR
(STA), version: 30-LS0123\M:                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     Page 1, line 1: The  bill title is clarified to reflect                                                                  
     that the  Constitution will be  amended in  two places,                                                                    
     due to the addition  of an applicability section within                                                                    
     the CS. Article IX,  Section 16, Appropriation Limit is                                                                    
     a  revision of  an  existing section;  and Article  XV,                                                                    
     Section  30, Application  of Appropriation  Limit is  a                                                                    
     new section.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
     Page 1,  line 7:  Changes the appropriation  limit from                                                                  
     four billion two hundred fifty  million dollars to four                                                                    
     billion three hundred million dollars.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
     Page  1, lines  12-  13: Adds  receipts  of the  Alaska                                                                  
     permanent  fund which  are appropriated  to the  Alaska                                                                    
     Permanent   Fund    Corporation   to   the    list   of                                                                    
     appropriations exempt from the limit.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
     Page 2, lines  6-7: Clarifies the language  of the bill                                                                  
     to  explain   that  the   revenue  limit   excludes  an                                                                    
     appropriation that is  duplicating the authorization to                                                                    
     expend funds from another appropriation.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     Page  2, lines  21-25: Adds  a new  section to  clarify                                                                  
     that   the   appropriation   limit   would   apply   to                                                                    
     appropriations made for FY2020, and thereafter.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
3:36:31 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR COGHILL joined the committee meeting.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
3:37:03 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR DUNLEAVY  removed his objection.  He announced  that seeing                                                               
no other objection, the CS for SJR 2, version M was adopted.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
He explained that his intent is to  move slowly on SJR 2 and make                                                               
changes prior to moving the  resolution to the next committee. He                                                               
addressed page  1, lines  7-8 and noted  that an  issue regarding                                                               
the base that  will be used to calculate  the appropriation limit                                                               
will be continually  discussed. He set forth that  his office has                                                               
addressed the  base-formula component in terms  of percentage-of-                                                               
inflation and  population. He added  that committee  members will                                                               
receive "interesting  data" from  a recent  poll that  the Alaska                                                               
Chamber of Commerce commissioned  Dittman Research that addressed                                                               
a spending cap.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MR. GEORGE  pointed out that  a high-level  calculation worksheet                                                               
is  available  to committee  members  which  shows how  the  base                                                               
number in the bill was determined.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DUNLEAVY held SJR 2 in committee.