Legislature(2011 - 2012)BARNES 124
02/20/2012 01:00 PM House RESOURCES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HCR23 | |
| HB263 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HCR 23 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 263 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HCR 23-ALASKA ARCTIC POLICY COMMISSION
1:04:23 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON announced that the first order of business would
be HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 23, Establishing and relating
to the Alaska Arctic Policy Commission.
1:04:42 PM
REPRESENTATIVE REGGIE JOULE, Alaska State Legislature, speaking
on behalf of the House Finance Committee, sponsor by request of
the Alaska Northern Waters Task Force, explained that HCR 23
proposes establishing an Alaska Arctic Policy Commission, which
was one of the recommendations from the Alaska Northern Waters
Task Force (ANWTF). The ANWTF was established in 2010 in
response to the discussions being held in Washington, D.C., the
Canadian North, and the Circumpolar North regarding the Arctic
and Alaska's Arctic waters. One of the goals of ANWTF was to
get the legislature engaged in these conversations as opposed to
waiting for budgetary items to come forward. In the process of
engaging the legislature, the task force would also engage the
communities and seek areas of expertise to provide information.
The task force held a series of meetings around the state. He
characterized the process as a very interesting journey.
1:06:55 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE directed the committee's attention to the
information in the committee packet from the National Security
Presidential Directive and Homeland Security Presidential
Directive. These directives were created in January 2009 under
the George W. Bush Administration. He told the committee that
the committee packet should include information regarding
Canada's strategy with the Arctic, but he would provide the
committee with information regarding Denmark's strategy with the
Arctic. The aforementioned illustrates that other countries
have been developing policies related to the north. He then
informed the committee that the Arctic Council is currently
chaired by Sweden. In 2013 Canada will assume the chair of the
Arctic Council for two years, which will be followed by the U.S.
chairing the council, he highlighted. Therefore, for a four-
year period the Arctic Council will be chaired by North America.
By working with Canada and by chairing the council, there's the
ability to have some impact on the policies and decisions of the
Arctic Council. The aforementioned is, in part, why this
resolution is before the committee. Collectively, the ANWTF
believed that the next step should be taken because although
there is a national policy regarding the Arctic, there is no
strategy in terms of implementation of that policy. In
conclusion, Representative Joule opined that establishing the
Alaska Arctic Policy Commission would help Alaska stay engaged
in the conversation regarding the Arctic.
1:10:22 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER recalled testimony from Canadian visitors
who relayed that Canada already views itself as an Arctic
nation. However, the U.S., save Alaska, is largely unaware of
the Arctic issues. She, therefore, asked if the Canadian
territories and provinces that border the Arctic have a separate
policy or commission separate from the national policy or
commission. She then questioned in what ways Alaska's Arctic
policy would be different than that of the U.S. national policy.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE confirmed that Canada does have an Arctic
policy and three of Canada's Arctic provinces/territories have
put forth their own Arctic visions. Therefore, he recommended
that Alaska should do much the same.
1:12:02 PM
CHRISTINE HESS, Staff, Representative Reggie Joule, Alaska State
Legislature, related that the Nunavut and Northwest Territories'
Arctic policies are new and Canada's [national] policy was
established in 2009. Canada's Arctic policy is geared toward
military and national sovereignty and resource development,
whereas the Arctic policies of Nunavut, the Northwest
Territories, the Yukon, and Greenland are more about regional
cooperation and economically sustainable communities and
resource development. Therefore, the policy of the territories
and provinces are more regionally based.
1:13:03 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DICK expressed concern from his constituents that
this proposal might result in the U.S. sacrificing a bit of its
national sovereignty and joining a global [effort]. He
requested assurance that is not the case.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE remarked, "I guess one of the options is to
do nothing; where would that take us?" Because of Alaska's
location, the U.S. sits on the Arctic Council as one of the
Arctic nations. With regard to whether it's appropriate to
allow the federal government to make the decision and follow its
lead, he opined that Alaska has a bit of independence and would
like to be able to influence some of the decisions being made at
the federal level as well as at the international level. He
suggested, "If anything, it would be asserting our sovereignty."
1:14:53 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON, referring to the membership of the Alaska
Arctic Policy Commission, asked if the intent is for the members
to be Alaska residents.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE answered that for the most part the members
of the commission should be Alaska residents.
1:15:41 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON then inquired as to the reasoning behind
requiring the final report one year after the preliminary report
is due.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE responded that the preliminary report
provides an update to the legislature, basically a progress
report.
1:16:51 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON inquired as to what state should stand up
for its interests in the Arctic.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE answered Alaska.
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON then questioned who should respond when
actions are taken by others that impact Alaska's national
interest and undermine relationships the state has built or lack
sensitivity to Alaska's interests and perspectives.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE again answered Alaska.
1:17:49 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FOSTER commended Representative Joule for his
work on this. He pointed out that the task force focused on
ensuring that the benefits would be shared amongst those who are
most effected. He then asked if the Inuit Circumpolar Council
(ICC) would be an example of an international Arctic
organization from which one of the members of the commission
would represent.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE replied yes.
1:19:01 PM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON inquired as to whether these will be
permanent positions since there is no mention of rotating the
membership. She related her belief that it's advisable to have
the rotation go through a governor's terms in order to provide
some continuity between administrations.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE clarified that once appointed the
individuals would serve on the commission; there would be no
rotation. The membership is a little larger than the membership
of the ANWTF because it was realized that there were some
individuals that would have been helpful to have involved with
ANWTF. For instance, the oil and gas industry, the University
of Alaska and its research capabilities, and tribal members
weren't members of ANWTF. The membership of the proposed Alaska
Arctic Policy Commission would bring more of the stakeholders
together to shape this policy. He them emphasized that one of
the important pieces of ANWTF was the dialogue with communities
and continuing that effort is very important.
1:22:00 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON recalled from Representative Joule's earlier
remarks that the majority of the membership of the proposed
Alaska Arctic Policy Commission should be Alaskans. Therefore,
he surmised that there should be a qualification for the
language on page 3, lines 8-17, to specify the members are to be
Alaskans.
MS. HESS pointed out that the member representing an
international Arctic organization may or may not be an Alaskan.
Therefore, the Alaskan qualification would refer to the
membership on page 3, lines 8-16.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE interjected that he wanted to leave that
option open, but added that ICC would likely be the
international Arctic organization from which the membership
would come.
1:23:19 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON directed attention to the language on page 3,
lines 26-29, as follows:
FURTHER RESOLVED that the public members and, if
the member representing the federal government does
not receive reimbursement for expenses from the
federal government, the federal government member of
the commission may receive per diem and travel
expenses authorized for boards and commissions under
AS 39.20.180;
CO-CHAIR SEATON questioned whether the intent is to cover the
expenses of the individual or is the desire for [the member of
the international Arctic organization] to be an Alaskan.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE said that he would consider an amendment to
require all the members of the commission be Alaskans as a
friendly amendment.
MS. HESS, drawing from the experience with ANWTF, related that
although ANWTF provided for international fees, about $100,000
was left over because not everyone could attend every meeting.
Therefore, that $100,000 could be re-appropriated to help cover
the expenses of this proposed Alaska Arctic Policy Commission.
She suggested that if there was an international member on the
proposed commission, the cost of that member could be absorbed
into the budget.
1:25:10 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON clarified that he is trying to understand how
the sponsor would like to structure this.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE stated that he would like for the
membership of commission [specified on page 3, lines 8-17] to be
composed of Alaska residents, particularly since it would be an
Alaska strategy and policy.
CO-CHAIR SEATON commented that was his thinking that as well.
1:25:40 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON recalled discussions of other legislation
involving Norway and the Arctic Council that revealed they were
about nation-to-nation interactions. This proposal would
provide the state with a structure to influence and participate
in the Arctic Council. He asked if that is part of the
intention of this resolution.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE acknowledged that the State of Alaska is
already engaged in some of the discussions regarding the Arctic.
The difference, in part, with this proposal is that this is an
opportunity for the state, including the legislature, to remain
active and engaged in discussions and the process of the Arctic
vision. A result of the "Findings & Recommendations of the
Alaska Northern Waters Task Force" report is that he and
Commissioner Hartig will travel to Washington, D.C., to meet
with the U.S. Arctic Council senior advisor. He noted that the
Department of Interior and the U.S. Coast Guard are very
interested [in ANWTF's findings and recommendations as well].
1:29:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON agreed that this is an extremely
important issue that should be moved forward. She questioned
whether Arctic policy is an important enough issue that someone
from the House Finance Committee should be on the proposed
commission.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE pointed out that the resolution
specifies there are to be three representatives appointed by the
Speaker of the House of Representatives and three senators
appointed by the President of the Senate. The members who are
appointed would be left to the discretion of the Speaker and the
President. He then highlighted that both co-chairs of the
Senate Finance Committee and himself, a member of the House
Finance Committee, were members of ANWTF as well as alternates
Representative Edgmon, member of the House Finance Committee,
and Senator Olson, member of the Senate Finance Committee.
1:30:48 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER said she was struck by the language used
regarding the membership of the proposed commission, which
include "appointed", "representing", and "from". She opined
that the language is problematic. For example, it is difficult
to represent the federal government unless he/she is an
ambassador. Therefore, she questioned how an Alaskan employed
by the federal government, perhaps through the Department of
Interior or the Bureau of Land Management, would have the
authority from their employer to represent the federal
government. She suggested that the language needs to be
wordsmithed a bit.
MS. HESS informed the committee that the language is the same as
that used for the resolution [that created ANWTF], which didn't
seem to cause any problem. She explained that [with ANWTF] the
member representing the federal government became a liaison
because the President of the U.S. would have to approve for the
individual to actually represent the federal government. The
ANWTF included two rear admirals as members and they were very
active contributing members. In further response to
Representative Gardner, she confirmed that the members
representing the federal government on ANWTF were in effect
delegated to represent the federal government.
1:32:34 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON related his understanding that the U.S.
Arctic policy essentially says that the U.S. is an Arctic nation
and that it is the policy of the U.S. that it will involve
Alaskan communities in the decisions impacting them. Therefore,
he encouraged the sponsor to include a "Whereas" clause that
speaks directly to the involvement of Alaskans. In response to
Co-Chair Seaton, Representative Herron specified that the
language he is referencing can be found in the National Security
Presidential Directives (NPDS) - 66 on page 2 in the Background
section where it says, in part, "The United States is an Arctic
nation, ..." and on page 2 in the Policy section where it says,
in part, "5. Involve the Arctic's indigenous communities in
decisions that affect them;".
1:34:22 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON invited public testimony.
1:34:59 PM
REPRESENTATIVE BRYCE EDGMON, Alaska State Legislature, informed
the committee that he was an alternate member of the ANWTF and
was able to participate in all the meetings. He then related
his strong support for HCR 23 as there are a host of reasons to
discuss the importance of Alaska being fully engaged in the
opening of the Arctic. Moreover, he expressed the importance of
Alaska being engaged with the U.S. in terms of Alaska being
strategically aligned in the opening of the Arctic as a foreign
policy matter for the U.S. He stated that there are many
details from ANWTF that need to be shared. He then highlighted
the importance of keeping the commission going in order to keep
the awareness level current in Alaska.
1:37:07 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON, after ascertaining no one else wished to
testify, closed public testimony.
1:37:16 PM
CO-CHAIR SEATON moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1, as
follows:
Page 3, line 6, following "follows";
Insert "of which (B) through (I) will be Alaska
residents"
1:37:43 PM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON objected for discussion purposes and
questioned whether Conceptual Amendment 1 should include
subparagraph (A) on page 3, line 7.
CO-CHAIR SEATON explained that subparagraph (A) refers to the
federal government.
1:38:25 PM
CO-CHAIR FEIGE also questioned why not include subparagraph (A).
CO-CHAIR SEATON pointed out that there are a number of entities
for which individuals may work and who may be in the appropriate
status to represent the agency. He said he wasn't sure where it
would structurally make sense for the federal agencies, and
therefore he didn't include subparagraph (A).
1:39:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON removed her objection to Conceptual
Amendment 1. There being no further objection, Conceptual
Amendment 1 was adopted.
1:39:55 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 2,
which would insert language in HCR 23 relating that "the United
States calls itself an Arctic nation and it does have a policy
that does involve the Arctic's indigenous communities and
decisions that affect them." The aforementioned essentially
says that Alaskans do as well.
CO-CHAIR SEATON surmised then that Conceptual Amendment 2 would
say that "The policy of the United States for the Arctic region
is that the United States will involve Arctic indigenous
communities in decisions that affect them." He related his
understanding that Conceptual Amendment 2 would essentially be
an additional "WHEREAS" clause.
REPRESENTATIVE HERRON replied yes.
There being no objection, Conceptual Amendment 2 was adopted.
1:41:43 PM
CO-CHAIR FEIGE moved to report HCR 23, as amended, with
individual recommendations and accompanying fiscal notes. There
being no objection, CSHCR 23(RES) was reported from the House
Resources Standing Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HCR 23.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HCR 23 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HCR 23 Fiscal Note.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HCR 23 Arctic Calendar.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HB 263.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HB 263 |
| HB 263 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HB 263 |
| NWTF_Full_Report_Color.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| CS For HB 263 Ver E.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HB 263 |
| HB 263 changes between Version E and original.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HCR 23 Canada Arctic Policy.docx |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HCR 23 National Security Presidential Directive - 66.docx |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HCR 23 |
| HB 263 Backup.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HB 263 |
| HB 263 Legal Opinion on Confidentiality.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HB 263 |
| HB 263 Sectional Analysis.pdf |
HRES 2/20/2012 1:00:00 PM |
HB 263 |