Legislature(2023 - 2024)GRUENBERG 120
03/14/2024 03:00 PM House STATE AFFAIRS
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Audio | Topic |
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Start | |
HB287 | |
HB101 | |
HB228 | |
Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ | HB 234 | TELECONFERENCED | |
*+ | HB 287 | TELECONFERENCED | |
*+ | HB 101 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | HB 228 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | TELECONFERENCED |
HB 101-CAMPAIGN FUNDS FOR DEPENDENT CARE 3:29:27 PM CHAIR SHAW announced that the next order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 101, "An Act relating to the use of campaign funds for dependent care, protection, and supervision." 3:29:50 PM REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG, Alaska State Legislature, presented HB 101 as prime sponsor. She provided a sponsor statement for HB 101 [included in the committee packet], which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: Political campaigns are incredibly demanding and time- consuming. Having support to manage family responsibilities can be central to a candidate's decision to run for office and their ability to successfully campaign. However, under current law, it's unclear whether campaign funds can be used by candidates for dependent care. This bill would explicitly permit candidates to use campaign funds to provide for the care of dependent children, as well as elderly and disabled dependents. To date, sixteen other states have enacted similar legislation. By passing this bill, we can take a meaningful step towards making Alaska a truly pro-family state, at the ballot box and beyond. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG explained that campaigning for office is unpaid, hard work and occurs after work on evenings and weekends. Working full-time, campaigning for office, and paying for supplemental childcare on top of existing childcare costs can be prohibitive for many who hope to run for office. There are fewer parents with young children who run for office and thus the perspectives of those parents are underrepresented. She noted the outmigration of young families from Alaska. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG said that she is the only mother in the legislature who has a toddler or an infant. She described long waitlists for childcare. She explained that she is not presenting this bill for herself as she is not running for reelection. This legislation has widespread bipartisan support. In 2018, the Federal Election Commission approved spending campaign funds on child and dependent care for federal candidates with unanimous bipartisan support. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG said that HB 101 has a zero fiscal note and is regulated and monitored like any other campaign expenditure. She noted some of the ways that campaign funds are utilized including gala tickets, car and private plane maintenance, wine, fancy food, professional photos, and more. She argued that childcare is aligned with the intended use of campaign funds. She said HB 101 would put Alaska in line with campaign regulations in 31 other states. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG, regarding the proposed use of campaign funds and the definition of "dependent" directed attention to the language on page 1, lines 5-11, which read as follows: A candidate who requires assistance with the care, protection, and supervision of a dependent because of the demands of the candidate's campaign activities may use campaign contributions for the direct care, protection, and supervision of the dependent. In this subsection, "dependent" means (1) the candidate's minor child; (2) a person with a disability or medical condition for whom the candidate has direct caregiving responsibility. 3:35:07 PM REPRESENTATIVE ALLARD asked how many dads in the legislature have toddlers. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG responded that there are several. REPRESENTATIVE ALLARD asked if any dads in the legislature have wanted to utilize campaign money to be used for childcare. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG said that she didn't think it would be appropriate to share information about other representatives' childcare situations on the record. 3:36:18 PM REPRESENTATIVE STORY expressed her appreciation of the inclusion of "persons with disabilities or medical condition" in the bill. 3:36:47 PM REPRESENTATIVE ALLARD expressed her concern about "faulty" candidates who may take advantage of campaign funds. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG responded that abuse of expenditures is a common concern regarding all campaign fund uses. She explained that there is a robust public process with ethics standards that would be applied just as with any other use of campaign funds. She made note of the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC). REPRESENTATIVE ALLARD expressed her dislike of APOC. CHAIR SHAW asked Representative Allard to stick to the bill discussion. 3:38:26 PM REPRESENTATIVE CARRICK asked if there is a current prohibition on the use of campaign funds for dependent care or if it is not explicitly stated as an acceptable use of campaign funds. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG said that current statute does not explicitly state that campaign funds can be used for dependent care and is ambiguous. 3:38:56 PM HEATHER HEBDON, Executive Director, Anchorage Office, Public Offices Commission, Department of Administration, confirmed that there is not a prohibition on utilizing campaign funds for dependent care. She said that current statute is written broadly and only requires that the expenses be reasonably related to campaign activities. REPRESENTATIVE CARRICK expressed her appreciation of the intent of HB 101. She mentioned many major financial challenges that may prevent a person from running for office. She asked if there are other life circumstances that could prevent someone from running besides strictly their salary, for example high energy costs. CHAIR SHAW asked Representative Carrick to stay focused on the subject of the bill, which is campaign money use for dependent care. REPRESENTATIVE ARMSTRONG emphasized the global struggle with representation. She explained that HB 101 is targeted for people who wouldn't be able to attend a campaign event or fundraiser without dependent care. 3:41:41 PM REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER commented that he finds HB 101 to be intriguing. He jested and said he would encourage future candidates to spend money on childcare instead of ads on TV and radio. REPRESENTATIVE C. JOHNSON asked about the chair's intention with the bill. 3:42:18 PM CHAIR SHAW announced that HB 101 was held over.
Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
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HB 287 Sectional Analysis .pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/4/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 287 |
HB 287 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/4/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 287 |
HB0287A.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/4/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 287 |
HB0101A Full Text 011524.PDF |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |
HB 101A Supporting Document - the 19th.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |
HB101 Sectional Analysis 01152024.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |
HB101 Sponsor Statement 01152024.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |
HB101 Ver A Supporting Document - Time.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |
HB101 Ver A Supporting Document-Vox Media 5.11.2018.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |
HB 228 Sponsor Statement Version P.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/2/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 228 |
HB 228 Version P.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 228 |
HB228 Fiscal Note - DCCED.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/2/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 228 |
HB 228 Sectional Analysis Version P.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/2/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 228 |
HB228 Presentation - STA.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM HSTA 4/2/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 228 |
HB101 Support Doc - Campaign Funds for Childcare Report.pdf |
HSTA 3/14/2024 3:00:00 PM |
HB 101 |