Legislature(2005 - 2006)BUTROVICH 205
03/27/2006 01:30 PM Senate HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
Audio | Topic |
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Start | |
HCR5 | |
HJR31 | |
Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+= | SB 281 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | HJR 31 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | HCR 5 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | TELECONFERENCED |
HCR 5-FLUORIDATION 1:33:48 PM CHAIR DYSON announced HCR 5 to be up for consideration. REPRESENTATIVE PAUL SEATON, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor, paraphrased the sponsor statement, which read: HCR 5 encourages Alaskan communities to incorporate fluoride in their public water systems. Fluoridating water has been shown to dramatically reduce dental cavities especially in children. Fluoride is one of the most efficient ways of providing cost-effective preventative dental health care. Every dollar spent on fluoridation saves $37 in future dental expenses. Currently, all cities in Alaska with a population exceeding 30,000 have access to fluoridated water. The benefits of fluoridated water should be extended to all Alaskans. HCR 5 requests that all new community water systems be engineered with the capacity for incorporating fluoride. Tooth decay is a serious problem in Alaska, particularly in rural areas where access to dentists is not easily available. Poor dental health also puts a major burden upon Medicaid/Medicare programs. Fluoridating community water systems is an investment in Alaska's public health that would provide returns both in dental health and to the pocketbook. HCR 5 makes it clear that the state supports communities in taking this step to improve the dental health of their residents. He emphasized that HCR 5 leaves up to local communities the decision whether to fluoridate. SENATOR OLSON arrived at 1:36:08 PM. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON referred to a study by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), brought attention to numerous Alaskan organizations in support and noted that 69 world health organizations support community fluoridation. In response to Chair Dyson, he mentioned the zero fiscal note from the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) as well as a figure of $2,500 for engineering to add this ability. CHAIR DYSON suggested costs would vary, depending on the plant. 1:38:55 PM SENATOR OLSON asked how often a wrong concentration has been put into a water supply. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON noted there'd been one very serious problem in Alaska. He pointed out that monitoring equipment has vastly improved over time. He said he didn't know the number of times an individual plant had been involved in such an incident. SENATOR WILKEN arrived at 1:40:09 PM. [Audio recording begins.] 1:41:45 PM SENATOR ELTON began discussion of what became Conceptual Amendment 1. He said he had no problem with the resolution, but suggested clarification was needed on page 2, line 17, perhaps to say "to allow easy later incorporation of fluoridation". He added that he needed to think about it further. 1:42:16 PM SENATOR GREEN highlighted the same wording, but a different concern: since communities don't design or pay for these systems, she questioned whether they really have a choice regarding what is incorporated into a system. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON indicated someone from "Village Safe Water" was on teleconference. He then specified the intent: the State of Alaska, when it goes through the design criteria and designs water systems, will incorporate into those systems the necessary connections. The choice of whether to fluoridate the water is up to the community, however. He pointed out that the state doesn't want to have to re-engineer a system. He said he wasn't opposed to clarifying the language. 1:44:52 PM SENATOR GREEN asked, if this requires DEC to take action, whether a resolution is the proper vehicle and whether perhaps it should be a bill instead. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON agreed that if the desire is to mandate that DEC do it, there'd be a bill. He indicated the intent is that this be included in the request for proposals (RFP) for design, as one design criterion. 1:46:18 PM SENATOR GREEN said she believes it goes beyond a resolution, since if the community desires it and requests it, then DEC will be responsible for making it available. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON suggested the Village Safe Water person could say whether that is normally included in designs anyway. He stated his intention to let DEC know that the legislature would appreciate it if DEC designed the taps into all future facilities so that communities could select the option at a future time without great cost. 1:47:11 PM CHAIR DYSON offered his experience that a resolution is one way for the legislature to declare its intention. He said he sees no harm in making this statement. If DEC concurs, it will probably happen if the administration doesn't disagree. 1:47:57 PM CHAIR DYSON proposed amending page 2, line 17, to say, "all new public water systems incorporate engineering designed to facilitate incorporation of fluoridation if the community so desires at a [later] time." REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said he had no problem with that. 1:49:15 PM SENATOR ELTON remarked that he was comfortable with the language proposed by Chair Dyson, but asked whether Representative Seaton intended this to include all new water systems. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON replied, "The intent here is the ones that we fund, and so we're funding public water systems and Village Safe Water systems." 1:49:46 PM CHAIR DYSON pointed out that some public water systems might not have a state component in their funding. He surmised that Representative Seaton meant to imply the ones under the jurisdiction of the state inspectors, regardless of whether state money is involved. He requested confirmation. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON nodded and replied, "Thank you." 1:50:14 PM SENATOR GREEN interpreted the foregoing to mean this includes a private builder, and again said she doesn't see how this can be done by resolution. CHAIR DYSON clarified that he intends to ensure it doesn't include a private builder. He pointed out that the original language referred to all new systems. He said he didn't want private individuals, with their own wells, to suddenly have to deal with this. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said he appreciated the clarification. 1:51:24 PM CHAIR DYSON moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1, page 2, line 17, to read: "Further Resolved that all new public water systems incorporate engineering design to facilitate incorporation of fluoridation if the community so desires at a later time." Suggesting it was a bit awkward, Chair Dyson slightly reworded it to say "at a later time if the community so desires it." 1:52:17 PM SENATOR ELTON said he liked the second approach, but would be comfortable leaving it to the drafter. CHAIR DYSON asked whether there was any objection. No objection was stated, and Conceptual Amendment 1 was adopted. He announced that the wording would be left to the drafter. 1:52:40 PM REPRESENTATIVE SEATON noted that on teleconference was Troy Ritter of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, which works with fluoridated water systems and Village Safe Water. CHAIR DYSON asked whether Mr. Ritter had any information that he believed members needed to know before moving the bill. 1:52:58 PM TROY RITTER, Environmental Health Specialist, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, offered some clarification. Reporting that he sits on the Indian Health Services sanitation (indisc.), he said this system provides about $20 million a year for village water and (indisc.) in Alaska. The state's Village Safe Water program is kind of a partner funding organization. "We work together to build pretty much all Alaskan water and sewer infrastructure," he said. Mr. Ritter reported that, from a practical standpoint, this ability to add fluoridation later is already being incorporated - at least it is supposed to work that way, although a couple of times it wasn't done because of an oversight or an engineer's opinion. 1:54:16 PM SENATOR GREEN asked whether anyone from DEC was available. REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said no. He noted that Mr. Ritter works with DEC in designing water systems. 1:54:46 PM SENATOR ELTON moved to report HCR 5, as amended, from committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes. Without objection, SCS HCR 5(HES) was reported from the Senate Health, Education and Social Services Standing Committee.
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