Legislature(2011 - 2012)BARNES 124
02/07/2011 03:15 PM House LABOR & COMMERCE
Audio | Topic |
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Start | |
HB114 | |
HB28 | |
Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
*+ | HB 114 | TELECONFERENCED | |
*+ | HB 28 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 28-TEMP LICENSES FOR PROFESSIONALS 4:10:49 PM CHAIR OLSON announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 28 "An Act relating to temporary licenses for certain nonresident professionals." REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON moved to adopt 27-LS0192\E, Kirsh, 2/2/11 as the working document. There being no objection, Version E was before the committee. 4:11:22 PM KACI SCHROEDER, Staff, Representative Bill Thomas, Jr., Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of Representative Bill Thomas, Jr. a joint-prime sponsor of HB 28, stated this bill is focused on bettering the lives of our military families, which are dominated by frequent deployment, relocations, and single parenthood. Military spouses are some of the most mobile populations in the U.S., with some 14.5 percent of military spouses crossing state lines each year as compared to 1.1 percent for their civilian counterparts. When deciding whether to stay in the military, service members will often consider their family's well being, with spousal employment as one big factor in the decision-making process. This directly affects the readiness of our armed forces, she said. Military spouses are less likely to be employed and if so, typically earn less than civilian counterparts due to their transient lifestyle. These military families, like others, often depend on two incomes in a family. This bill would help address the transient nature of military spouses by allowing the military and military spouses to obtain temporary licenses when they move to Alaska. 4:12:54 PM REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES referred to page 2, line 15, of HB 28, to proposed subsection (c), which states a temporary license is valid for 180 days and could be extended for an additional 180 days. She asked whether the extension is intended to allow one extension or for multiple extensions. MS. SCHROEDER answered that the intention is for one temporary license extension. REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES offered her belief the language may need to be clarified. 4:13:45 PM REPRESENTATIVE MILLER applauded the goal. He asked whether HB 28 could be expanded to spouses of those classified as civilian personnel working for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD). MS. SCHROEDER answered that civilian personnel are not currently included in the bill. 4:14:30 PM REPRESENTATIVE MILLER referred to the fee exemption contained in proposed subsection (d) noting the fee exemption for temporary licenses. He inquired as to the amount the state would lose in license fees. MS. SCHROEDER responded that she was unsure, but the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development (DCCED) should be able to answer that question. MS. SCHROEDER, in response to Representative Saddler, related that subsection (d) would refer to the service member and not the military spouse. REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER referred to the language in the original bill on page 2, to paragraphs (2), (3), and (4), which basically highlight that a person receiving a temporary license would be considered a person in good standing if not under sanction in another jurisdiction. He asked for the reason that this language is not included in Version E, the proposed committee substitute. MS. SCHROEDER offered her belief that while the language in the original bill is cleaner, that the license action would still be at the discretion of the specific board and language is probably contained in the regulation or statute that pertains to the specific board. REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER, related in his experience as deputy director of the Boards & Commissions, some professional groups would like to have seen its temporary professional courtesy licenses extended. He thought that the language in the original bill, just mentioned, would provide protection against someone who had disciplinary action taken in another state from coming to Alaska to practice. 4:16:48 PM REPRESENTATIVE MILLER referred to page 2, line 13, to subsection (b), relating that this subsection requires the department to expedite the procedure for temporary licenses. He asked for clarification on the meaning of "expedite." MS. SCHROEDER answered no, since the Division of Business and Professional Licensing regulates 30 to 40 professions and each profession has different requirements, including a requirement for a background check, which could take longer. She indicated the sponsor's intent was to have the department act quickly as possible. 4:18:08 PM MARK SAN SOUCI, Regional Liaison Northwest, Defense State Liaison Office, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Military Community and Family Policy), U.S. Department of Defense, stated that Ms. Schroeder captured the essence of the bill. He offered some data obtained from the Defense Manpower Data Center, including statistics: 59 percent of military members are married, 72 percent of the noncommissioned officers and 73 percent of officers are married, which represents the backbone of the professional armed services, he said. He explained that 70 percent of military spouses want to be able to go to work. In FY 10 in Alaska, 1,012 military people separated from duty and 274 military personnel retired. These personnel either moved back or claimed Alaska as their resident state. Currently, Alaska has 13,229 active duty military spouses and 2,700 military reserve spouses. Additionally, about 53 percent of military spouses are employed, which totals approximately 7,000 military spouses in Alaska who work, although he was unsure of the percentage of those spouses that hold professional licensees. He suggested that HB 28 could help the licensed person coming to Alaska by assisting them to get to work faster, and allow them up to six months to fulfill any requirements that Alaska may deem necessary to comply with professional licensure, including any fees. MR. SAN SOUCI remarked that Florida, which is one of the best practices states, recently adopted changes so if a family has orders to Florida from Elmendorf AFB, and a spouse has a professional license, the spouse can go on-line, find his/her occupation, pay his/her fee, and be issued a license that allows the spouse to work for six months in Florida. During these six months, the spouse can work to meet Florida's license requirement, he reiterated. He said he appreciated members considering HB 28 and hopes that Alaska will join Florida as one of the "best practices" states by helping military families. 4:21:16 PM REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER offered his support for HB 28. He asked which professions would be most affected by this bill. MR. SAN SOUCI answered that he was unsure. He related that he had skipped over the data rather quickly. He then listed the "highest in demand" professions as reported by the U.S. Department of Labor, including nursing, preschool teachers, real estate, and cosmetology. He also listed the fasted growing occupations as veterinarian technicians, physical therapy assistants, preschool teachers, dental hygienists, and occupational therapy assistants. He surmised that it could take up to a few months for a family to move and satisfy another state's requirements. REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER commented that some of the professions noted are high skilled, reasonably paid professions. He asked whether this bill would provide any help in the event that a person served in the position for six months that he/she may gain extra points towards licensure in Alaska. MR. SAN SOUCI offered his belief that the intent of HB 28 is more to help get the person to work more quickly and to allow the person time fulfill the requirements for Alaska's licensure than to provide other advantages. 4:23:58 PM SARA CHAMBERS, Program Coordinator, Division of Corporations, Business, and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community, & Economic Development (DCCED), stated she is available to answer any questions. REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES related her understanding that the DCCED currently has the ability to expedite temporary licenses. MS. CHAMBERS acknowledged that the DCCED currently has provisions for courtesy licenses, and some statutes for temporary licenses. The element missing that HB 28 proposes to remedy is a special consideration for military spouses and military personnel. REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES related her understanding this bill would not create any hardships but would make the DCCED's process more standardized for one particular class for professional licenses. MS. CHAMBERS stated the DCCED has a variety of standards for temporary licenses. She explained that courtesy licenses tend to be for people who wish to enter Alaska on a short term basis such as for a doctor traveling with a college sports team or for a fellowship in Alaska. The courtesy license would apply to someone who may not be pursuing a permanent professional license whereas a temporary license would be someone who is pursuing ongoing permanent license. She related her understanding that the impact this bill would have for military spouses would be to expedite the application. She explained that the military spouse would still meet the same requirements since this bill would not amend or repeal AS 08.01.062 and would retain the department's high standards for licensees. Those requirements may include a background check for someone in the medical field, she said. She assured members that the DCCED would work to figure out the best way to expedite the temporary licenses above the efficient service the DCCED already strives to provide for applicants and licensees. 4:26:55 PM REPRESENTATIVE SEATON referred to page 2, lines 25-27, of HB 28, which excludes two professions, which are marine pilots and attorneys. He asked whether other professions should be exempted, and if the background checks for doctors would be done by regulation while two professions are excluded by statute. MS. CHAMBERS advised that the DCCED has not really vetted the bill to that extent or held discussions with the sponsor on these specific provisions. She surmised that marine pilots and attorneys may need to have familiarity with the state, which is why those professions are not subject to temporary licenses. She related that AS 08.01.062 language specifically requires the department to maintain that "high bar." She stated that her initial assessment is that no other professions would need to be excluded. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON offered his belief that when a statute lists two professions that it implies that these are the only two exempt from the provisions. He wanted to draw attention to sponsor and the DCCED, since a fixed list has legal implications for those professions not listed. 4:29:20 PM REPRESENTATIVE SEATON then referred to page 2, lines 18-19 of HB 28, to the language "...on active duty who is a licensee under this title in good standing..." He asked for clarification on whether this refers to someone in Alaska licensed in Alaska, not a person from another state. MS. CHAMBERS related her understanding that the provision would apply to someone who is a current Alaska licensee, licensed under this title, which would expand to a permanent, professional license, not just a courtesy or temporary license. She stated a current licensee would be granted an exemption and an extension as needed to serve on active duty and for a transition period after that provided the person did not pursue a for profit practice in the private sector. She referred to line 23, and further explained that once a for-profit practice in the private sector was pursued, the person would waive the exemption and would need to maintain current licensure under the permanent license provisions. 4:30:39 PM CHAIR OLSON, after first determining no one else wished to testify, closed public testimony on HB 28. REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON made a motion to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1, on page 2, line 16, after "for", delete "another" and then add "one additional." He explained that this would clarify any perceived ambiguity about the additional 180 extension. There being no objection, Conceptual Amendment 1 was adopted. 4:32:18 PM REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER made a motion to adopt Conceptual Amendment 2. On page 2, lines 1-11, paragraphs (2), (3), (4), of the original bill should be inserted in Version E, perhaps on page 2, line 11 after ";and" and then renumber the paragraphs. REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES and Chair Olson objected for the purpose of discussion. MS. SCHROEDER stated that the sponsor has no objections to Conceptual Amendment 2. 4:33:50 PM REPRESENTATIVE SEATON referred to page 2, lines 2-4 of HB 28, paragraph (2), which read, "for at least two of the five years preceding the date of the application," stating he was uncertain about the language and any ramifications it may have on military spouses. He related a scenario in which a spouse may practice his/her profession for a year and then his/her spouse serving in the armed forces is transferred to Alaska. In that instance the military spouse would not have at least two years of professional service. REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER recalled this issue came up during a Board of Nursing matter, as to whether a candidate's experience was recent enough and in the proper area of practice. He further recalled that some deference was given to an applicant who had practiced two of the five preceding years that the candidate's practice would be considered current. He acknowledged some benefit was derived but was unsure of the number of people who would be excluded. He reiterated that the benefit is candidates would have practiced his/her profession recently. MS. SCHROEDER, in response to Representative Seaton, said that she may have spoken too soon, that inserting paragraph (2) into Version E may be problematic since an instance could arise in which a spouse is overseas, while his/her spouse is serving overseas for a lengthy period of time and the spouse would not have engaged in the professional practice during that time. 4:35:55 PM REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER made a conceptual motion to amend Conceptual Amendment 2, to delete paragraph (2). This would allow further discussion with the sponsor in order to consider how to better amend the language, he stated. REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER clarified that he made a motion to amend to Conceptual Amendment 2, to delete the language contained in paragraph (2). CHAIR OLSON objected for purpose of discussion and then removed his objection. There being no further objection, the amendment to Conceptual Amendment 2 was adopted. CHAIR OLSON removed his objection to Conceptual Amendment 2. REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES also removed her objection to Conceptual Amendment 2. There being no further objection, Conceptual Amendment 2, as amended, was adopted. 4:37:57 PM REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON moved to report HB 28, labeled 27- LS0192\E, Kirsh, 2/2/11, as amended, out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 28(L&C) was reported from the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee. 4:38:19 PM