Legislature(2013 - 2014)BARNES 124
03/26/2013 01:30 PM House TRANSPORTATION
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB176 | |
| HJR13 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HJR 13 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 176 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HJR 13-COAST GUARD NAT'L SECURITY CUTTER FUNDING
2:35:00 PM
CHAIR P. WILSON announced that the final order of business would
be HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 13, Urging the United States
Congress and the President of the United States to complete the
funding and acquisition of three additional National Security
Cutters and to home port one of the cutters in Kodiak, Alaska.
2:37:12 PM
MELANIE LESH, Staff, Representative Alan Austerman, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of the sponsor, stated that HJR 13 would
urge the U.S. Congress and the President of the U.S. to complete
the funding and acquisition of three additional National
Security Cutters (NSCs) and request one of the cutters should be
homeported in Kodiak. She explained HJR 13 aims to raise
awareness that the U.S. Coast Guard is in the process of
replacing 12 high-endurance cutters with eight technologically
advanced NSCs and stressing the necessity to deliver all eight
vessels. The sponsor wishes to highlight the strategic
importance of Alaska in the region and focus on the importance
of the increasing role in the Arctic with more open water in the
summer resulting in increased maritime traffic. She stated that
Kodiak is the nearest USCG port and would be the base of
operations for vessels such as the Bertholf, which is one of the
three completed NSCs which patrolled the Arctic this past summer
in Operation Arctic Shield. She related that the USCG assists
the U.S. Department of Defense's national defense efforts with
its specialized capabilities in the region and elsewhere.
2:39:07 PM
MS. LESH said that recently, at a national military conference
the three chiefs met to discuss the maritime strategic issues,
including the Commandant of the USCG, Admiral Robert Papp; the
Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, General James Amos; and the
Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Jonathan Greenert. The main
topic of discussion was the Commander-in-Chief's strategic
guidance which, in part, requires that the U.S. military will,
of necessity rebalance towards the Asia-Pacific region. In
conclusion, HJR 13 has been designed to send a reminder to the
Congress and the U.S. President to complete the program of
record for the funding and acquisition of three additional NSCs
cutters. She recognized two retired U.S.C.G. captains in the
room here to testify on the resolution.
2:40:22 PM
CARL UCHYTIL, Captain, Retired, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), stated
that he is a retired USCG captain who sailed in Alaska's waters
and served as the commanding officer of the icebreaker Polar
Sea. He commended the committee and said he wholly supports the
committee for taking action to encourage the federal government
and Department of Homeland Security to maintain a NSC presence
in Alaska. Having an NSC specifically homeported in Alaska
would not only provide a multi-missioned platform to serve the
coastal communities in times of need, but perhaps more
importantly, would build mission capacity for the Alaskan
resident crew to better understand the unique challenges faced
by mariners sailing in the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska.
He thanked members for their support for the USCG in Alaska.
2:41:19 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON asked whether three NSCs would provide
enough support and if one NSC will provide enough coverage in
Alaska.
CAPTAIN UCHYTIL stated one liberty he has as a retired Captain,
he cannot speak on behalf of the USCG's needs, but he can speak
frankly and provide his opinion based upon his three decades of
service in the USCG. Certainly, Alaska has 3,300 miles of
coastline. Thus, to adequately cover Alaska would require more
than three NSCs, he said.
2:42:47 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON realized that the resolution does not
empower any demand since it is not an executive order. He
recalled Captain Uchytil is a retired ice breaker captain.
CAPTAIN UCHYTIL answered yes; that he served half of his time on
icebreakers. He understood the resolution has to do with NSCs
so if this were a different venue he would tout the needs of the
nation and encouraged Alaska to build and sustain a viable
icebreaker fleet.
2:43:51 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON asked whether it is feasible to support
an icebreaker homeport in Alaska.
CAPTAIN UCHYTIL stated that the NSCs have very high technical,
high-demand shore side needs to meet the requirements of the
crew, which doesn't mean it couldn't be built in a port such as
Kodiak, but it probably does not yet exist to really maintain
the NSC. Similarly, staff and technical support to maintain the
icebreakers would need to be developed.
2:45:03 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON asked for clarification on whether he is
saying Alaska does not currently have the technical expertise
for the NSC.
CAPTAIN UCHYTIL answered that the expertise could be built but
it does not currently exist.
REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON suggested that passage of the resolution
would encourage the build out.
2:45:41 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE said HJR 13's supporting documents indicate
that the NSC is a legend class of the USCG's fleet. He asked
what vessels are currently based in Kodiak.
MR. UCITEL answered that the USCG's cutter Munro is a 378 foot
high-endurance cutter, which are part of a class of 12 cutters
built in the 1960s or 1970s. The USCG has been in the process
of decommissioning these 12 vessels and will replace then with
the eight NSCs. He said that only five of the eight NSCs have
been funded so part of this resolution is to encourage the
federal government to build the remaining three vessels. He
remarked that his son is currently assigned to the Munro in
Kodiak.
2:46:46 PM
REPRESENTATIVE LYNN asked why not include the Under Secretary of
the Treasury and the U.S. President among those receiving a copy
of the resolution.
CAPTAIN UCHYTIL answered that the USCG falls under the
Department of Homeland Security; that at one point the USCG was
under the U.S Department of the Treasury, then U.S. Department
of Transportation, and now falls under the jurisdiction of the
Department of Homeland Security.
2:47:27 PM
ED PAGE, Captain, Retired, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), stated that
he served in the U.S. Coast Guard for 30 years. He said he
served on the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Boutwell in 1973 in
Alaska. He appreciated the resolution, noting he has been
retired for 12 years, but served in Anchorage, Ketchikan, and
Juneau. The USCG feels appreciated by Alaskans, which makes
sense since Alaska is a maritime state. He characterized the
USCG's relationship as being a symbiotic and good relationship
with the state. He applauded the legislature's efforts to work
to obtain the presence of more USCG cutters. He pointed out his
perspective is different from Captain Uchytil's perspective
since he served on USCG cutters for many years in Alaska. He
pointed out his work has been in the field of marine safety
programs, relating he was the Chief of Marine Safety for the
Pacific Area and for Alaska. He explained that he was involved
in allocating cutters and enforcement oversight in fisheries.
Clearly, the enormity of Alaska makes the challenge even greater
and exacerbating that problem is the growing body of water due
to the environmental warming and climate change. Additionally,
Alaska has more traffic and more activity with offshore
exploration. He explained he was on some of the drilling
platforms in 1984 when they initially performed exploratory
drilling in the Chukchi Sea, but things have changed
substantially since then. He said the USCG's presence is
important, just as having policemen on the highway deters
motorists from speeding.
2:49:57 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said that the USCG's presence and monitoring is
important, but when something happens the USCG will provide an
effective response to help prevent loss of life, property, and
environmental harm. Thus it seems logical that with the opening
up of more water in Alaska, the USCG must have more USCG
cutters. In fact, it is one of the metrics used to determine
where cutters should go and how to allocate them. He emphasized
the USCG considers the size, the issues, how important the
issues are in determining the USCG's role. Certainly,
considering the reconnoitering Alaska's waters [the USCG has
discovered] other nations, such as China, have a great interest
in tapping Alaska resources just offshore.
2:51:07 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE anticipated it could happen that the U.S. will
extend its borders further, which could increase the USCG's
jurisdictional areas. He emphasized that the USCG is the right
agency and resource to carry this mission out. He offered his
support for HJR 13, which he said is appropriate, needed, and
timely. He offered his belief that Alaska also impacts the rest
of the nation, in particular, Alaska's resources has national
ramifications. The fisheries, resource protection, and oil
production development are all national issues, he said. He
offered his belief that people in Maine, Boston and New York are
paying attention and the USCG is best suited to ensure it is
done.
2:52:26 PM
CHAIR P. WILSON asked him to assess how many ships Alaska needs
[for adequate coverage of Alaska's waters].
CAPTAIN PAGE replied that with more vessels sailing in the
Alaska's waters enroute to the Far East, and with more vessels
using the Northern sea route and the Northwest passage that even
with three [vessels] the fleet will be stretched for resources.
He pointed out these ships typically have six months of
maintenance annually and servicing. He concluded that the
proposed three vessels represent a good presence and is
realistic in terms of the nation's status and resources.
2:53:59 PM
CHAIR P. WILSON said that Kodiak is a long way from the Bering
Sea. She wondered if Alaska will need another port that is
better situated for impacts in the arctic.
CAPTAIN PAGE answered that the real challenge will be to support
the vessels, which is why the USCG likes to comingle vessels,
which helps provide technical support to maintain the vessel.
He suggested that spreading them out is less effective. As a
practical matter, due to the speed of vessels, a vessel is only
24 hours away from any point.
2:55:20 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KREISS-TOMKINS pointed out that three NSCs are
built, five are funded, and eight are planned. He asked whether
he knew where the other NSCs will be homeported, and whether
there is a possibility any others may be stationed in Kodiak.
CAPTAIN PAGE said was unsure. He offered his belief that the
USCG will try to accommodate all the maritime interests in the
country. The Alaska's Congressional Delegation has been
influential and the USCG has been quite responsive to the needs
of Alaska; however, he was unsure.
2:56:19 PM
CHAIR P. WILSON, after first determining no one else wished to
testify, closed public testimony on HJR 13.
2:56:35 PM
REPRESENTATIVE LYNN moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1, on
page 2, line 20, to include the President of United States,
[Barack Obama], and the [U.S.] Secretary of Homeland Security,
[Janet Napolitano], to the list of people to receive the
resolution. There being no objection, Conceptual Amendment 1
was adopted.
2:57:20 PM
REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON moved to report HJR 13, as amended, out
of committee with individual recommendations and the
accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, the CSHJR
13(TRA) was reported from the House Transportation Standing
Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB0176A.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HB 176 Sponsor Stmt ver A.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HB 176 FEDCO support letter.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HB 176 VWGoA memo.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HJR013A.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HJR 13 |
| HJR 13 Sponsor Statement Coast Guard Vessels.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HJR 13 |
| HJR 13 Support NSC fact sheet.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HJR 13 |
| HJR 13 support Arctic Shield 2012.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HJR 13 |
| HJR 13 support CGC Bertholf - Arctic Circle.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HJR 13 |
| HB 176 - CS version U.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HB176-DOA-DMV-3-22-13.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HB 176 - CS version U.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HB 176 |
| HJR-13-TRA-3-22-13 Home Port Coast Guard Cutter.pdf |
HTRA 3/26/2013 1:30:00 PM |
HJR 13 |