Legislature(1995 - 1996)
02/27/1995 03:02 PM House L&C
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HL&C - 02/27/95 HB 146 - SLED DOG RACE CLASSIC BRYCE EDGMON, LEGISLATIVE ASSISTANT to REPRESENTATIVE RICHARD FOSTER, stated that HB 146 was intended to give the Iditarod Race an alternative method to raising funds. He stated that the siege by animal rights activists has caused many corporate sponsorships to withdraw their financial support. This, combined with the removal of legislative funds has put the Iditarod in a precarious position and threatens the future of the race. MR. EDGMON stated that HB 146 creates a separate category in the charitable gaming statutes that devises the sled dog classic enabling the Iditarod Trail Committee to conduct a statewide sweepstakes. The trail committee would sell raffle tickets to contestants, both in Alaska and outside, for wagering on arrival times both at the check points and into the finishing line in Nome. He added, there is a minor change to tighten the title to make the language exclusive to the Iditarod Sled Dog Race. Number 378 REPRESENTATIVE ELTON asked why the sponsor felt it necessary to change the title. MR. EDGMON stated this was a technical change. The Senate version has that same title, and they felt that the vote could go through in its original form. Tightening this would make further assurance that this was specifically for the Iditarod Race. Number 388 REPRESENTATIVE GENE KUBINA disagreed with Mr. Edgmon. He felt that the language within the legislation should be changed if they wanted to tighten it. MR. EDGMON explained that the category of sled dog race classics is supported by Section 4. It defines sled dog race classic pertaining to Iditarod Sweepstakes, operated and administered by the Iditarod Trail Committee. Number 420 REPRESENTATIVE BEVERLY MASEK asked why this should be just for the Iditarod when there are two major sled dog races in the state of Alaska; the Yukon Quest being one of them. She explained that many races in the state were in financial trouble, and that is why the language should be changed so as not to focus on just one race. MR. EDGMON commented that the charitable gaming issues are a sensitive subject, and that many bills have not made it through the legislature. He explained that Representative Foster's position in introducing this bill is that the Iditarod Race represents the state of Alaska. Certainly there are many regional races that could stand to benefit from using this kind of mechanism, but if they open this legislation up to other races, then they may as well open it up to gaming activities for other organizations. He stated the Iditarod Race is "The Last Great Race" and benefits the entire state. Number 452 REPRESENTATIVE SANDERS observed that dog mushing is like baseball; if you eliminate the smaller races, wouldn't you be left with a hollow Iditarod Race. He stated that he would be more comfortable supporting this if it covered sled racing as a whole and not just the Iditarod. MR. EDGMON brought up the Nenana Ice Classic which has raised a large amount of money for worthwhile organizations. He stated the Iditarod Race means a lot to the state of Alaska, and without a mechanism to raise money, the future of the Iditarod is in peril. REPRESENTATIVE SANDERS asked if he felt that broadening the legislation would hurt the Iditarod. MR. EDGMON stated that broadening this legislation would hurt the chances of this bill getting through. REPRESENTATIVE MASEK stressed that accountability should be kept in mind with any type of organization. She felt they shouldn't just focus on the Iditarod, but they should look beyond that. Number 489 REPRESENTATIVE KUBINA noted there had been mention of the Nenana Ice Classic, and its restrictiveness because it existed before 1959. He didn't feel that you would want to have an Ice Classic in every river. He summarized that he was sympathetic to this bill and wouldn't want to expand it. REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG recalled that there had been a Tanana Ice Classic. Number 509 STAN HOOLEY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, IDITAROD TRAIL COMMITTEE (ITC), testified in favor of HB 146. He stated the Iditarod and its large national sponsors had been the target of an ever-increasing amount of negative and harmful publicity by various radical (indisc.--coughing). He said they needed a way to diversify their funding base. This past spring, the two remaining outside sponsors announced that they wouldn't be renewing their sponsorship due to various pressures. As a result, $300,900 disappeared from the race budget this year, and an additional $190,000 will disappear next year. He stated for the past six months, they have worked hard to recoup those lost revenues. These revenues had made it possible for the ITC to stage the caliber of race that Alaskans have come to expect. Through international and national coverage, ITC has been able to help the visitor industry. He concluded that the ITC believes it vitally important to put a mechanism in place to insure the long term financial stability of the race, and HB 146 does just that. In a game of chance for prices, money would be awarded to the closest guess of the winning time of the Iditarod. He stated this measure is not a way to wager on the race, but a way to predict the winning time. They felt that would do away with any mischief or potential fraud. The economic impact report of 1992 indicated that the Iditarod attracted 16 percent of out-of-state visitors during the fall, winter and spring seasons. Today, the percentage is much higher than this. He mentioned that the television coverage of the race has significantly benefitted the visitor industry. Approximately half of the broadcast time accentuated issues and images support tourism. He pointed out they weren't saying that the Iditarod was a better race than the others. The Iditarod has borne the brunt of these groups because it's so visible. REPRESENTATIVE MASEK asked if the Iditarod was supposed to be the Last Great Race, the greatest in the United States, the world, why were they undergoing so many financial problems. She further stated the Humane Society issues had been brought up many years ago. She asked why the committee doesn't work with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). She also asked what the relationship was with the villages along the trail. MR. HOOLEY responded that as an organization, the ITC is forced by large national sponsors to work with animal rights groups to insulate them from being publicly attacked by these groups as well. In their opinion, the various animal rights groups want to use this event and the visibility that surrounds this event to more effectively compete for a larger share of that multi-million dollar pie that is donated to these groups annually. The HSUS manipulated certain facts, arranged for exclusive interviews on Good Morning America and were not dealing with the ITC in good faith. The ITC didn't see the benefit of working with People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)., International Society for Animal Rights (ISAR), and HSUS. He stated this legislation is an attempt to return the control of the race to Alaska. MR. HOOLEY responded to the question of relationships with the villages. He said that more of an effort would be put into enhancing those relationships in the years to come. He stated they were sensitive to the need of making this race more accessible to the Native community. He said that this year there was only one Native participating. REPRESENTATIVE MASEK interjected that there weren't any. MR. HOOLEY stated that Ramy Brooks is a Native and he strongly objected to the media reporting that there weren't any Natives participating. The ITC and the media heard about it. He explained that as this race becomes more competitive, it becomes more expensive to participate. People off the road system, be it in the Native community or otherwise, find it very difficult to be a part of this race. TAPE 95-11, SIDE A Number 000 REPRESENTATIVE MASEK noted that in the past few years she had received correspondence and phone calls from villagers that were negative towards the ITC. She clarified that the children playing along the trail were finding discarded syringes from vaccinations and garbage, and this was very disturbing to the villagers. She asked what level of funding goes out to the cleanup effort. Also, she said she hasn't seen much effort in putting any type of education out to the Native communities. MR. HOOLEY stated that an advisory council of leaders from around the state was formed specifically to address key issues. One of those was village relationships. He noted that this takes some time to work through what specific actions should be taken. He stated they had discussed trail cleanup some time ago. He asked whether those complaints came subsequent to the 1994 race, and he recalled that this was an issue in the 1993 race. He did not think those were issues this past year. REPRESENTATIVE MASEK stated that being a participant from 1990 to 1993, going through the check points and meeting the people, that she still hears from them today. Number 067 CHAIRMAN KOTT asked what kind of revenue would be brought in, and how the moneys would be disseminated. MR. HOOLEY said his organization would look at all the important issues. Their ability to do all they should do, such as sweeping the trail, is limited by the amount of money they have at this point. They do have a line item plugged in this year specifically for trail cleanup. They expect to make even more progress this year than they did last year. He explained that they had not worked out a specific plan for the sharing of the proceeds yet. They are going to work with the Department of Revenue, Division of Charitable Gaming, to establish something that makes sense. If the Nenana Ice Classic sells over 250,000 tickets, the ITC feels that it's not unreasonable to think that they couldn't sell 1 million tickets given the right effort. REPRESENTATIVE ELTON asked for a copy of the articles of incorporation for the ITC. REPRESENTATIVE SANDERS asked if any members on the board of directors were past or present mushers. MR. HOOLEY indicated that of the ten member board, five of the members were mushers. He didn't have the exact list in front of him. He stated the board had been dominated by active members of the mushing community. The current board has recognized the need to balance this; as organization has become more of a business, it is important that it be run like a business. Number 196 REPRESENTATIVE SANDERS compared the smaller races to farm teams in baseball. He asked if most of the mushers in the Iditarod come from these smaller races and work their way up. He stated that if this is true, and they fail, won't the Iditarod run out of young people working their way into the system. MR. HOOLEY stated that the Iditarod certainly isn't the first race that is run. There are specific qualifying procedures in which individuals need to complete 500 miles to compete, and they do this through the other races. He stated they had a great interest in insuring that dog mushing, particularly mid to long distance mushing, remain viable and healthy. The overall health of the Iditarod translates directly back into how much interest people are going to have in mushing. Number 286 DAVE LAMBERT, PRESIDENT OF THE ALASKA DOG MUSHER'S ASSOCIATION (ADMA), testified via teleconference that he was against HB 146. He stated the gaming laws currently allow for sled dog classics. The ADMA has a yearly classic on the Open North American Sled Dog Race. The law allows for betting on finishing places and finishing time. He said that at this time, it was legal to do parimutuel betting in the state just as if you were doing it on horses. He said the ADMA had talked about having a sled dog classic on the Iditarod, but decided they didn't want to be associated with the Iditarod. He stated that the last paragraph of the legislation would bar any organization from having a sled dog classic, and the Iditarod would be the one and only. He said the classics were a viable fund raising tool for many organizations and villages. In conclusion, he stated that if the trail committee wanted to have a classic, they could do that legally now. CHAIRMAN KOTT asked if he was opposed to having any betting on dog racing now or would he agree to allow betting on other races. MR. LAMBERT reiterated that it currently is legal to bet on finishing places and finishing times in all dog sled races under dog sled contests. He stated that this legislation would simply bar anyone else from having a classic. REPRESENTATIVE PORTER stated it was his understanding that this bill wouldn't change the kind of betting described by Mr. Lambert. MR. LAMBERT stated that the parimutuel betting was a separate issue. The sled dog classic and betting on finishing times, under the regulation states "sweepstakes offered and administered by the Iditarod Trail Committee." REPRESENTATIVE PORTER stated this was under definition of sled dog race classic. He assumed there was also a definition in the statute of dog musher's contests. He stated this definition does not seek to limit or expand that definition; therefore, if it were legal it would continue to be legal. MR. LAMBERT explained it covers that you can bet on the finishing time, and the sled dog classic is betting on the finishing time. Therefore, if you limit betting on the finishing time to the sled dog classic through the Iditarod Sweepstakes, how does that allow anyone else. REPRESENTATIVE PORTER replied that you could still do it under dog musher's contests. MR. LAMBERT then asked what was the purpose was of this legislation. Number 318 JOHN HANDELAND, MAYOR, CITY OF NOME, and MEMBER OF THE ITC, testified via teleconference in support of HB 146. He commented that during the last couple years, the attack by special interest groups has resulted in severe financial hardship. He stated that the board has been reviewing their operations and is making ongoing operational change. As a short term solution for their crisis, they've turned to state sponsors. With the elimination of the controlling animal rights groups, many of the old sponsors in the state increased their sponsorship. He didn't see how they could continue to milk the instate sponsors. They feel that this legislation is an opportunity to increase revenue. He stated this wouldn't change the particular item with dog musher's classic. As a separate provision under the definition of Alaska Statute 05.15.690, Subsection 11, this would be in addition to the statute, similar to the Nenana Ice Classic. They believe that the Iditarod has a year-round impact on the economy in Nome, as well as around the state as a whole. Media coverage exports Alaska's name to the world, which generates interest and intrigue; translating into tourism throughout the state. He stated being the city at the end of the trail, they have seen changes to the race organization. The board made amendments for funding the cleanup of the villages. They made rules requiring the mushers to take with them many of the items previously disposed of in the villages. He stated they were committed, as a board, to work on any problems that do exist and, once again, to make this an event that all Alaskans can be proud of. They would like to stand on their own without having people from the Lower 48 dictate how they're going to operate. EARL NORRIS testified via teleconference that he has been mushing since 1946. He is considered the founder of the Anchorage Fur Rendezvous and is a charter member of the Alaska Dog Musher's Association in Fairbanks. He stated he was against HB 146. Dog racing as a whole needs support. It shouldn't be limited to one organization. He pointed out that he wasn't against the Iditarod; he had competed in it. Number 421 NATALIE NORRIS concurred with her husband, that the sport of sled dog racing in Alaska does need help. All the races contribute; therefore, she would like to have the last paragraph of the bill changed to include other races. CHAIRMAN KOTT stated that HB 146 would be held over until the next committee meeting.
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