Legislature(2003 - 2004)
03/23/2004 08:01 AM House STA
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 201-HOME & RESPITE CARE: CRIMINAL RECORDS Number 1700 CHAIR WEYHRAUCH announced that the next order of business was CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 201(HES), "An Act relating to home care and respite care; and providing for an effective date." Number 1710 [AN UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER moved to adopt CSSB 201(HES) as a work draft.] CHAIR WEYHRAUCH objected for discussion purposes. Number 1725 BRIAN HOVE, Staff to Senator Ralph Seekins, Alaska State Legislature, presented SB 201 on behalf of Senator Seekins, sponsor. He turned to the sponsor statement, which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: Senate Bill 201 corrects errors identified by the Revisor of Statutes in Chapters 45 and 118, SLA 1994. Specifically, Chapter 45 enacted various provisions containing a reference to a section that at the same time was repealed by Section 4 of Chapter 118. The section in question was former AS 12.62.035, relating to access to certain crime information. As a consequence of the enactment of these two bills, various sections contain a reference to something that no longer exists. Senate Bill 201 corrects this error by replacing the repealed information with criminal history record information permitted by "Public Law 105-277 and Alaska Statute 12.62". Number 1749 CHAIR WEYHRAUCH asked, "Why wasn't this in the revisor's bill." MR. HOVE offered his understanding that the revisor thought that the change [proposed in SB 201] was substantive and warranted a stand-alone vehicle rather than be "rolled into a revisor's bill." Number 1811 REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG pointed to a handout [in the committee packet, entitled "Federal Statutes Authorizing Criminal Background Checks for Nursing Facility Job Applicants and Employees"]. He then turned to the memorandum to Senator Robin Taylor from [Assistant Revisor] James Crawford, [dated December 18, 2002 and included in the committee packet]. In the fifth paragraph, he noted, the term "criminal justice information" is used, as opposed to "history record information". He also noted that in the next paragraph, the term "past conviction information" was used. He asked why that term was used rather than "criminal justice information." He said the memorandum seems to state that "criminal justice information" would include the terms of sentences and information of conviction and would perhaps be more appropriate. MR. HOVE deferred the question to Mr. Luckhaupt. Number 1900 GERALD LUCKHAUPT, Attorney, Legislative Legal Counsel, Legislative Legal and Research Services, indicated that Mr. Crawford was pointing out that there are various alternatives. He said, "This could be a judgment that the legislature should be making as to what term to use." He continued as follows: The criminal justice information term is not one that we usually use for ... any employment screening for noncriminal justice purposes. The term we use is "criminal history record information." As you may know, there are a lot of times people are arrested and nothing ever comes of that arrest. And so, for the most part, ... that information is usually not available to employers where the legislature has chosen to give out that information. Where we have chosen to give out information is using the term "criminal history record information," which means a record of conviction. It includes current offender information and current arrests that are out there. Criminal history record information also includes identification information - you know, a photo or something so they can identify that this person is who they are. ... In Alaska, the way we use that term - and also the feds for that matter - ... you limit access to correctional information and the record of how the person did in a penitentiary and things like that; you don't allow that out to the public. Number 1995 REPRESENTATIVE BERKOWITZ read from a one-page handout [included in the committee packet, labeled "SB 201 - Notes for the record"], which read [original punctuation provided, but some formatting changed]: Criminal justice information provided under AS 12.62 is generally limited to the information that may be released under 12.62.160(b)(8) and (9). AS 12.62.160(b): Subject to the requirements of this section, and except as otherwise limited or prohibited by other provision of law or court rule, criminal justice information (8) may be provided to a person for any purpose, except that information may not be released if the information is nonconviction information or correctional treatment information; (9) including information relating to a serious offence, may be provided to an interested person if the information is requested for the purpose of determining whether to grant a person supervisory or disciplinary power over a minor or dependent adult. "interested person" means a person as defined in AS 01.10.060 that employs, appoints, or permits a person to serve with or without compensation in a powetion [sic] in which the employed, appointed, or permitted person has or would have supervisory or disciplinary power over a minor or dependent adult." AS 12.62.900(18). REPRESENTATIVE BERKOWITZ stated, "In essence, ... you can't release information if it's nonconviction information or correctional treatment information." He said he thinks those are the most relevant factors for [the legislature] to consider. He said, "To try and modify the proposed language in the proposed bill is a huge, huge effort; it connects to all kinds of other statutes and, cumbersome that it might be, this is probably the simplest way of addressing the issue." Representative Berkowitz suggested that the aforementioned handout could be incorporated into a letter of intent that would accompany the bill. Number 2029 REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG said he wants to know why it's "limited to information under PL 105-277, rather than also including the National Child Protection Act of 1993, and possibly Public Law 92-544." [SB 201 was held until later the same day.] SB 201-HOME & RESPITE CARE: CRIMINAL RECORDS TAPE 04-43, SIDE A Number 0001 CHAIR WEYHRAUCH announced that the committee would return to CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 201(HES), "An Act relating to home care and respite care; and providing for an effective date." Number 0015 REPRESENTATIVE BERKOWITZ moved to report CSSB 201(HES) out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSSB 201(HES) was reported out of the House State Affairs Standing Committee.
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