02/24/1998 08:40 AM Senate FIN

                                                                               
 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 19                                           
Relating to the use of prototype designs in public                             
school construction projects.                                                  
                                                                               
                                                                               
CS FOR SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 19(HES)                                
Relating to the use of prototype designs in public                             
school construction projects.                                                  
                                                                               
Senator Adams said he thought they had gone through the bill                   
and that only amendments were going to be presented today.                     
Co-chair Sharp indicated the bill had been previously heard                    
and noted amendments in the file for consideration.                            
                                                                               
(Tape #43, Side A switched to Side B.)                                         
                                                                               
Senator Gary Wilken was invited to join the committee.  He                     
indicated that there were two amendments and they were both                    
fine with the sponsors.  One amendment was from Senator                        
Adams to strike "elementary" on page two of the bill; the                      
other two were from Senator Torgerson and more clearly                         
defined the bond reimbursement committee.  They will help                      
the bill.                                                                      
                                                                               
Senator Adams MOVED amendment #1, page two, line thirteen,                     
to strike the word "elementary" and WITHOUT OBJECTION it was                   
ADOPTED.                                                                       
                                                                               
Senator Torgerson MOVED amendment #2, which would better                       
define what the bond council was as reflected in that                          
portion of the legislation.  Senator Donley asked what AS                      
14.11.014 and Senator Torgerson responded that there was a                     
regular bonding committee that makes recommendations and                       
sells bonds for the State of Alaska.  It is made up of the                     
Commissioner of Revenue, the Commissioner of Commerce and                      
the Commissioner of Administration.  It would direct that                      
they would be required to make determinations as to                            
Prototype Schools, but in further speaking with the sponsor,                   
section 14.11.014 has a special committee within the                           
Department of Education that is already designated to                          
analyze existing prototype designs for school construction                     
projects.   It was the intent of the sponsor that this                         
committee should be doing the review, not the general bond                     
committee of the State of Alaska.  (pause on tape)                             
                                                                               
Co-chair Sharp announced that WITHOUT OBJECTION, amendment                     
                                                                               
Senator Adams said this was a very good bill but the fiscal                    
note should also be looked.  There should be a presentation                    
due to the fact that it is indeterminate and perhaps there                     
would be problems on the floor.  It is necessary to have the                   
cost of something like this.  What is seen as the cost of                      
this and where would the money come from?                                      
                                                                               
Senator Wilken said he has not seen the fiscal note.  They                     
are trying to get more schools for their money.  He noted                      
the effort of Fairbanks to have prototypical schools.  That                    
has been extremely successful.  There has been some money                      
out of deferred maintenance effort set aside in order to                       
explore the idea of having what conceptually are three                         
elementary prototype schools that would be used by people                      
around the State.  One of the seven charges of the bond                        
reimbursement committee that was put in place in 1984 was to                   
evaluate the prototypical issue and bring to the Legislature                   
a plan.  He said he thought the deferred maintenance task                      
force was a perfect opportunity to do that.  Especially in                     
travels through Kotzebue, Senator Adams district, he saw                       
perfect application for prototypical schools; put three                        
schools on a barge and build the same three schools in three                   
different villages rather than starting from scratch.  If                      
ten percent is saved on every school that is one school free                   
with ten.                                                                      
                                                                               
Senator Parnell noted that most everyone around the table                      
agree with the concept of prototypes.  He asked about page                     
two, lines fourteen through sixteen, and quoted the                            
following:  "Further Resolved that the Governor is requested                   
to direct the Department of Education to develop prototype                     
school designs for schools in consultation with engineering                    
and architecture design professionals..." and while the                        
resolution does not have the force of law and he can ignore                    
it, if it is being requested of him to direct DOE to develop                   
prototype school designs in consultation with engineering                      
professionals there is going to be some cost.  He can be                       
told how much to spend if there is a fiscal note.  Otherwise                   
next year the department can come before the Legislature for                   
more money.  He said he felt better direction was needed as                    
to how much this was going to cost and what DOE's position                     
is depending on what they are requested by the Governor.                       
                                                                               
Senator Wilken responded that there was a meeting with the                     
bond reimbursement committee at their quarterly meeting last                   
week.  He said he thought that group would be charged with                     
the effort to develop the prototypical designs.  They would                    
quantify the cost and go to DOE because the bond                               
reimbursement committee does not have the authority to spend                   
money.  DOE must spend it.  The bond reimbursement committee                   
would organized and ask for the appropriation.  The group is                   
made up of two legislators, two individuals from the                           
Department of Education and three professionals.  It is not                    
dominated by DOE.  There is some concern for the $3.9                          
million set aside for prototypical schools.  There needs to                    
be some oversight on how the money would be used and the                       
bond reimbursement committee would provide just that.                          
                                                                               
Senator Parnell said the Governor did not have to comply                       
with direction to DOE because this is only a resolution and                    
had no force of law.                                                           
                                                                               
Senator Torgerson said the resolution was only reinforcing                     
what was already in existing law which is currently being                      
ignored.  He quoted existing law under paragraph three of                      
14.11.014 "...to develop criteria for construction of                          
schools in the State.  Criteria developed under this                           
paragraph must include requirements intended to achieve cost                   
effective school construction."  and then a subsection of                      
that is:  "...analyze existing prototypical designs for                        
school construction."  He said the difficulty in generating                    
a fiscal note is not the cost of doing their job, which is                     
clearly defined by statute, as to the savings to the State                     
of Alaska if one design for all the schools was to be                          
utilized.                                                                      
                                                                               
Co-chair Sharp indicated there was one individual on                           
teleconference that would like to testify.                                     
                                                                               
Phillip Skilbred via teleconference from Fairbanks testified                   
before the committee.  He asked the committee to look at                       
page two, lines twenty-eight through thirty-one.  He said he                   
felt that if statutory changes were to be made in order to                     
implement the referred to program the alarms would go off in                   
every office in Juneau.  He felt the bill was loaded and                       
corruptible beaurocracy.  (There was very poor sound quality                   
due to the fact that our bridge was not being used and                         
miscellaneous conversation between members during the                          
testimony taken.)  Co-chair Sharp thanked Mr. Skilbred and                     
the meeting continued.                                                         
                                                                               
Senator Adams MOVED CSSCR 19 (FIN) with accompanying fiscal                    
notes and WITHOUT OBJECTION it was REPORTED OUT with                           
individual recommendations and an indeterminate fiscal note                    
from the Department of Education.