Legislature(1997 - 1998)
01/20/1998 03:30 PM Senate STA
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 209 - TASK FORCE ON PRIVATIZATION SENATOR WARD, prime sponsor of SB 209, explained that this was the exact same bill that appeared before the legislature last year, just with the time frame reduced by one year. He said the Governor had vetoed the bill and everyone had heard the same sponsor statement and bill last year. MR. MIKE MCMULLEN, representing the Department of Administration, Division of Personnel, agreed that the concept of the new bill was the same and so was the position of the division. They still have concerns regarding the requirements of the state collective bargaining agreements. He said the agreements contain requirements for formal feasibility studies before any layoffs of bargaining unit members. He quoted a projected cost of $20,000 - $50,000 per study and said they take some time to conduct. He said the bill's time line would make the affected agencies lag behind legislative changes. He said the task force findings and the feasibility studies might not agree and it would be particularly problematic if the legislative changes precede the findings of the feasibility studies. He hoped the committee would perhaps take another approach and quoted the Governor's veto message saying, "the Administration stands ready to cooperate and provide available information to any committee or task force legislative leadership may appoint to review possible privatization opportunities." PAM LABOLLE, President of the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce said the Chamber supports the bill as one of their top priorities. She feels business supports the state and the state should support business. She said they believe there are many opportunities within government for many new ways of doing business. She informed the committee that Mr. Craig Holt, nationally recognized speaker on "right sizing" government was going to be available later in the week. She said the Chamber has worked with Mr. Holt in the past and he educated them about privatization opportunities. She listed some advantages of competition, including reduced cost and high quality goods and services. SENATOR DUNCAN asked if after the seminars and training the State Chamber had, she thought it would be an easy job to determine which areas might be privatized. MS. LABOLLE responded that it would not be easy but some difficult jobs are the ones worth doing. She said it is a good piece of legislation which identifies a few departments in order to take an initial look at the possible opportunities. SENATOR DUNCAN asked if she had looked at this year's bill. MS. LABOLLE admitted she had not. SENATOR DUNCAN explained he asked because he believes this to be a complex issue where it will be difficult to determine which departments might lend themselves to privatization and review the procedures involved. He said this bill does not look at a few departments, this bill indicates all departments will be reviewed and they will be reviewed by November 15th, 1998. He said he is not speaking against the legislation but, in his opinion, this seems to be too much too soon. He asked Ms. LaBolle if it seemed possible to meet this deadline and do a good job. MS. LABOLLE replied that the task force could identify objectives, much like was done by the Long Range Financial Planning Task Force in three or four months. TAPE 98-2 SIDE A Number 001 SENATOR DUNCAN asked how much of that was adopted. He went on to say he thinks this may be more complex than what was tackled by the Long Range Planning Task Force. He believes there may be legal constraints due to contractual agreements with unions and competitive bidding. He asked her opinion on whether it could be done in a four month period. MS. LABOLLE said it was unfortunate that the bill was vetoed last year or they would have had an additional year to do this. She said it must start somewhere as it is so important. She said state government is growing while the private sector shrinks and business supports the state and must increase. SENATOR DUNCAN did not disagree with supporting the private sector but took exception to the statement that the government has grown while the private sector has been shrinking. He said the government has also been shrinking and there were figures to back that up. He added he did not think Senator Miller and others with their five year plan would be happy with her saying government has grown during their leadership. He stated perhaps the legislation should be pared down so it could be done right. He thinks this may be biting off more than anyone can chew and perhaps it was meant for failure. He said if the sponsor really wanted to get something done, maybe a smaller start would be better. SENATOR WARD moved the bill out of committee with individual recommendations and accompanying fiscal notes. SENATOR DUNCAN objected. Roll was called and the bill passed out with a three to one vote.
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