Legislature(1999 - 2000)
03/27/2000 09:07 AM Senate FIN
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HOUSE BILL NO. 112
"An Act establishing the Alaska public building fund;
and providing for an effective date."
This was the fourth hearing for this bill in the Senate
Finance Committee. Co-Chair Torgerson spoke of a proposed
Senate Finance Committee substitute explaining that it
addresses his concerns voiced at an earlier hearing.
[TAPE MALFUNCTION - Power outage, meeting recessed to wait
for generator power.]
Co-Chair Torgerson continued that the committee substitute
limits the legislation to apply only to the eight buildings
identified in the fiscal note. Those buildings are: Alaska
Office Building, Robert B. Atwood Building, Court Plaza
Building, Douglas Island Building, Fairbanks Regional
Office Building, Juneau Community Building, Juneau Public
Safety Building, and Juneau State Office Building.
Co-Chair Parnell moved to adopt, as a workdraft, HB 112, 1-
LS0522\D.
Senator Green objected to ask about the earlier question of
consistency of charging private and government tenants and
whether this committee substitute resolves the issue
because of the limited number of buildings.
Co-Chair Torgerson responded that the committee substitute
doesn't differentiate between private and federal
occupancy. He explained that the intent was to limit the
Department of Administration from instituting this
depreciation calculation and subsequent rent collection on
other state-owned facilities.
Senator Green wanted to know how the committee substitute
impacts the depreciation calculation method.
Co-Chair Torgerson stressed that the purpose of the bill is
to capture federal and other revenues as rent payments. He
continued that the committee substitute recognizes this but
doesn't allow the department to expand the process beyond
the eight buildings.
Senator Adams wanted to know if the Administration had
plans to include any other state-owned buildings besides
the eight identified here.
ALISON ELGEE, Deputy Commissioner, Department of
Administration confirmed the chairman's assessment. She
elaborated that these facilities had been selected because
they presented the best opportunity to maximize the
collection of additional federal and other funds through
the agencies located in the facilities. She stated that the
Administration did not intend to expand the program before
FY 03, after the program operated a full year and was
established.
There was no objection to the motion and the committee
substitute was adopted as a workdraft.
Amendment #1: This conceptual amendment makes a technical
correction to page two line six of the committee substitute
to delete "unexpected" and insert "unexpended". The amended
language reads:
"(d) The unexpended and unobligated balance
of an appropriation from the Alaska public
building fund lapses into the Alaska public
building fund at the end of the fiscal year for
which it was appropriated."
Co-Chair Parnell moved for adoption. Without objection, it
was ADOPTED.
Co-Chair Torgerson requested that the Administration
explain the fiscal note to the Committee.
Ms. Elgee apologized that she could not and that the
sponsor's staff had been expected to attend the meeting for
the purpose of explaining the fiscal note.
Co-Chair Torgerson told the Committee that David Teal,
Director, and Danith Watts, Fiscal Analyst, of the Division
of Legislative Finance, as well as other co-chair staff had
reviewed the fiscal note. The consensus, according to Co-
Chair Torgerson, was that the fiscal note adequately
reflected the Committee's intent in establishing the Alaska
public building fund. However, he noted that he disagreed
with the department's claim that two staff positions would
need to be added to implement the program, as indicated on
the fiscal note.
Ms. Elgee explained that the funds allocated on the fiscal
note for personal services would be used to offset
vacancies for existing positions and that no new positions
would be created. She noted that the positions were
classified as accounting positions and would manage the
bill-paying process and to work with the federal government
to secure federal funds. She added that a portion of the
funds noted on the fiscal note was intended to help with
the vacancy of the facilities planner position.
Senator Wilken asked how the funding for these positions
factored in with the supplemental budget request for vacant
facilities planner positions. He wanted to know if the
total was funding for four positions if the bill and the
supplemental request were both adopted.
Ms. Elgee corrected that the intent was to only have two
facilities planner positions. She clarified that the
funding requested in the supplemental budget was for a
contracting officer, which did not apply to this program.
She stated that accounting was this program's the greatest
need.
Co-Chair Torgerson relayed a previous conversation where
the question was posed as to how many existing positions
that performed the same duties required for this program
were in the Department of Transportation and Public
Facilities.
NANCY SLAGLE, Director, Division of Administrative
Services, Department of Transportation and Public
Facilities, responded that the department currently does
not have any staff that collects rent since rent is not
currently charged. She continued that the funding received
for building maintenance is general fund dollars. This
bill, she said transfers those general funds to other
agencies to be combined with other types of funds, such as
federal receipts to be paid to the Department of
Transportation and Public Facilities as rent.
Co-Chair Parnell asked who currently negotiates leases for
state-owned facilities.
Ms. Slagle replied that the Department of Administration
currently performs that function. She said that the
Department of Transportation and Public Facilities only
deals with state-owned facilities.
Co-Chair Torgerson said this bill affects approximately 30
tenants, including state agencies. Of those tenants, he
said six would be able to collect federal or other funds,
such as the permanent fund. Therefore, he had a hard time
understanding why two positions were needed to negotiate
two-thirds of the rental agreements with state agencies.
Ms Elgee replied that besides the actual collection of rent
payments, there was development work required to
substantiate the actual replacement value of the buildings,
which the depreciation is based upon. She talked about the
necessity to reimburse the Department of Transportation and
Public Facilities for the maintenance and operations of the
facilities noting that this would be additional work.
AT EASE 9:28 AM / 9:33
Co-Chair Torgerson announced his intent to change the
fiscal note to reflect funding for only one new position.
Co-Chair Torgerson ordered the bill HELD in Committee.
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