Legislature(2009 - 2010)BELTZ 211
03/19/2009 09:00 AM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB69 | |
| SB78 | |
| HB63 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| = | SB 69 | ||
| = | SB 78 | ||
| = | HB 63 | ||
SB 69-COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN
CHAIR MENARD announced the consideration of SB 69.
9:02:47 AM
SENATOR BETTYE DAVIS, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor, said
the Commission on the Status of Women functioned well for quite
awhile, but it went away once it was combined with another
commission that never really got funded. Many women asked her to
reestablish it.
CHAIR MENARD asked what commission it was combined with.
9:03:44 AM
LYNDA ZAUGG, Staff to Senator Davis, Alaska State Legislature,
said it was the Alaska Human Relations Commission. She read the
following sponsor statement:
It is time to once again acknowledge the
contributions of women across Alaska. It is time to
re-establish the Commission on the Status of Women.
In 1976 the legislature established the first
Commission on the Status of Women to address the
unique needs of Alaska's women and children. The
Commission was tasked with implementing the
recommendations contained in the preliminary study on
the status of women. The Commission was to improve the
status of women in Alaska through research and making
and implementing additional recommendations on the
opportunities, needs, problems, and contributions of
women. The improvements made by the commission were to
include, but not limited to, the areas of education,
homemaking, civil & legal rights, labor, and
employment. The Women's Commission was merged with
Alaska Human Relations Commission in 1993, which
continues to exist in state statute but has never been
funded and was declared inactive in 1996.
Since 1993, the problems identified by the
Commission on the Status of Women have continued to
exist with minimal change and with ongoing negative
impacts for Alaskan women and their families. Women
represent half of our state, half of our work force,
and consequently half of our ability. In order for us
to continue to explore and develop our state to its
full potential we must improve the opportunities for
all citizens, including women.
In Alaska, women in government still earn only 80
percent of the income of men, while in the private
sector women earn 62.4 percent of men. Women and
children continue to be the most common victims of
domestic abuse. Women in Alaska lead the nation as
victims of sexual assaults. We have a struggling
foster child system. Our high school students, both
male and female, drop out at alarming rates. We have
one of the lowest percentages of students entering and
completing higher education programs. We have a
significant economic divide between our urban and
rural communities which negatively impacts all of us.
These are just a few of the issues facing women and
children in our state that need to be addressed.
Reestablishing the Commission on the Status of
Women is an excellent way to focus attention on the
major issues that impact women and children.
The purpose of the commission would be to improve
the status of women by conducting research, as well as
serve as a referral service for information and
education to help women avail themselves of existing
resources to meet their needs. Additionally, the
commission would make and implement recommendations on
the opportunities, needs, problems, and contributions
of women in the areas of education, homemaking, civil
and legal rights, and labor and employment.
Alaska, with its unique culture, history, and
challenges combined with its large size and small
population, calls for innovative forward thinking to
deal with many of the difficult issues facing Alaskan
women and their families. The creation of a Commission
on the Status of Women will once again focus the
attention of Alaskans on these critical issues.
9:07:13 AM
ARLISS STURGULEWSKI, Former Alaska State Senator, Anchorage,
said she is affiliated with many groups. She was a senator in
the 1980s when the commission was very active, and she was sad
to see its demise. It is critical that it be reestablished. This
is an important time. Research is needed in domestic violence,
single head of household families, shelter, the increasing and
shameful dropout rates, the need for quality foster care, and
the need for referral services to assist women in gaining
information and education. The non-profit YWCA worked with the
University of Alaska Anchorage to provide scholarships for 10
women who were the single heads of household. It was a major
cooperative effort and showed what can be done when people work
together. The commission is needed to help women, children, and
families. It is a crime that the commission disintegrated.
9:10:24 AM
CHAIR MENARD thanked Ms. Sturgulewski for her endless hard work.
CAREN ROBINSON, Lobbyist, Alaska Women's Lobby, Juneau, said
the women's lobby is a statewide steering committee in
Fairbanks, Anchorage, and Juneau. Its mission is to defend and
advance the rights and the needs of women, children, and
families in Alaska. The lobby fully supports re-establishing the
women's commission. It is Alaska's 50-year anniversary, and re-
establishing the commission is a wise investment that can move
us forward in the next 50 years. Women have made significant
economic, political, and social advances, but women are far from
enjoying gender equity. Women earn less then men, are seriously
underrepresented in political offices, and make up a
disproportionate share of people in poverty. Even in areas that
have seen significant advances in women's status, rates of
progress are very slow. At the rate of progress of the past 10
years, women will not meet wage parity for more than 50 years.
It women represented in Congress changes at the rate it did in
the 1990s, it will take more than a century to achieve equity in
political representation. To make significant progress, policy
researchers and advocates need reliable data about women.
9:13:01 AM
MS. ROBINSON said the first Alaska Women's Commission initiated
a series of reports on the status of women in Alaska. It was one
of the most valuable things it did in advancing the rights of
women. The work of the commission addressed domestic violence,
welfare reform, and other issues. The reports are needed today
to inform citizens about the progress of women in Alaska related
to women in other states, to men, and to the whole nation. The
commission can analyze and disseminate information, provide
baseline measures, and most importantly, identify measures and
solutions to equality barriers. "We've come a long way." Women
in Alaska and the U.S. have seen important changes in their
lives and their access to political, economic, and social
rights. There is still more to do. Alaska women could benefit
from stronger enforcement of equal opportunity laws, better
political representation, adequate and affordable childcare,
stronger poverty reduction programs, and other policies. A
women's commission would provide the focus and direction to
achieve these goals. She noted her collection of historical
booklets from the commission. Joan Katz wrote the first status
report. Later work was done by the last commissioner and
director Ruth Lister. She understood women's problems. She wrote
a report about young women dropping out of school, and her
recommendations likely have not been followed.
9:15:45 AM
MS. ROBINSON said she also wrote about teen pregnancy and how to
educate young men. The Women's Legal Rights Handbook was used
the most, and it needs to be updated.
9:16:26 AM
HATTIE GARDNER, President, Alaska Federation of Business and
Professional Women, Anchorage, said the federation was founded
in 1919 and chartered in Alaska in 1945. There are three local
chapters in Alaska. The national federation concentrates on fair
pay and getting veteran women back into work. It works with AARP
on divided-we-fall health issues and the American Heart
Association on reporting heart health. The local federation
concentrates on scholarships for young women and sometimes men,
global warming, individual development for women, and training
for young women and women who head the household. Reinstituting
this commission is important to the federation. The statistics
will be used to plan programs to supply information to the
national group. The group wants a place to draw statistics from
for things like domestic violence and children in need.
9:19:02 AM
ANNABELLE STEVENS, Member, Federation of Business and
Professional Women, Anchorage, said she has been coming to
Juneau for over 35 years on different issues, but reestablishing
the women's commission is one of the most important. It is
"vital to the civil rights, the labor, the employment, equal pay
of women, and I hesitate to say homemaking because 100 years ago
women were homemakers." Now they are bread winners, and it is
important to show how much women do. "Behind every successful
man is a woman that has given him a hand up."
9:20:22 AM
RAMONA DUBY, Member, Federation of Business and Professional
Women, Anchorage, said she supports the re-establishment of the
women's commission and she echoes every comment made by Ms.
Sturgulewski. She got involved in public policy at the women's
commission in the 1980s. It assisted her with a legal issue
against a state nonprofit. She wants more meat in the commission
and have it report to the legislature or governor. It is one
thing to get this vitally needed information, but she would like
to see the information put to use.
9:22:13 AM
JANE ANGVIK, Member, Alaska Girl Scouts, Alaska Women's
Political Caucus, Anchorage, said she has been involved in
women's issues for many years. She supports SB 69 because it
will do research to assist women in economic situations. Alaska
women are underpaid relative to men. It is important to focus on
women's capacity to be able to support themselves and their
families, and the women's commission can do research and make
recommendations on that. The previous commission developed a
body of research that informed citizens and legislators.
9:23:54 AM
BRITTANY GOODNIGHT, Member, Alaska Women's Political Caucus
board, Anchorage, said she is a young professional, and she is
in Juneau for the Women's Summit. She was born and raised in
Chugiak. As a young woman, she is shocked that this commission
doesn't exist. It could guide the legislature and governor in
the advancement for women in all kinds of realms. It is
important to the state, her future, and her children's future.
LATANYA SEMONES, Fairbanks, said she is in Juneau for the
Women's Summit, and she echoes what everyone has said. She is a
young Native woman. Re-establishing the commission would offer a
huge opportunity for her aunts, sisters, brothers, grandmothers,
and all her family in rural Alaska.
KATHERINE FOREST, Anchorage, said she was born and raised in
Anchorage and is from a big Hispanic family. She agrees with all
the previous testimony.
9:26:17 AM
CLOVER SIMON, Alaska Vice President, Planned Parenthood of the
Great Northwest, Anchorage, said her organization serves women
and children and employs mostly women. Her staff are often
single mothers. "Having the information out there to legislators
about the importance of bringing women up, I think is paramount
to the future of our state." Improving the lives of women
improves the lives of everyone in the community, especially
children. She wants the bill to move forward.
9:27:27 AM
SENATOR MEYER said a witness said that the commission should be
implemented by the governor or legislator. Page 4 has the
commission preparing a report and will provide the governor with
copies of the report. He asked that the legislature be included.
SENATOR DAVIS said the last commission reported directly to the
governor. It can report to the legislature, but the closer to
the legislature and the governor the better. She will consider
any recommendation that makes the bill stronger.
SENATOR MEYER said it is fine for the report to go to the
governor, as long as the legislature is kept informed.
SENATOR DAVIS said that can be addressed in the bill if the
committee wants.
SENATOR MEYER said a simple amendment can do that.
9:29:21 AM
CHAIR MENARD noted the fiscal note of $505,000.
SENATOR DAVIS said that is what came back to her, and it
establishes the same positions from the old commission,
including executive director and staff. The human relations
commission was never funded. The commission went away in 1993.
CHAIR MENARD asked if other states have similar commissions.
SENATOR DAVIS said all other states have them in various forms.
SENATOR FRENCH said Senator Meyer made a good suggestion, so he
moved Amendment 1, as follows: Page 4, line 5, after "governor"
insert "and the legislature", and strike all of the words on
line 6. Hearing no objection, Amendment 1 was adopted.
SENATOR FRENCH moved to report SB 69, as amended, from committee
with individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s).
There being no objection, CSSB 69 (STA) passed out of committee.
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