Legislature(2025 - 2026)BARNES 124

01/30/2025 08:00 AM House COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS

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Audio Topic
08:01:59 AM Start
08:04:03 AM Overview: Department of Public Safety
08:56:34 AM Adjourn
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
-- Testimony <Invitation Only> --
+ Overview: Department of Public Safety by TELECONFERENCED
Commissioner James Cockrell, Department of Public
Safety
                    ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE                                                                                  
    HOUSE COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE                                                                   
                        January 30, 2025                                                                                        
                           8:01 a.m.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS PRESENT                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Representative Rebecca Himschoot, Co-Chair                                                                                      
Representative Donna Mears, Co-Chair                                                                                            
Representative Carolyn Hall                                                                                                     
Representative Ky Holland                                                                                                       
Representative Mike Prax                                                                                                        
Representative Justin Ruffridge                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS ABSENT                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
All members present                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
COMMITTEE CALENDAR                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
OVERVIEW: DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
     - HEARD                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
No previous action to record                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
WITNESS REGISTER                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
JAMES COCKRELL, Commissioner                                                                                                    
Department of Public Safety                                                                                                     
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT:  Presented an overview of the Department of                                                               
Public Safety.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
ACTION NARRATIVE                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
8:01:59 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  DONNA  MEARS  called  the  House  Community  and  Regional                                                             
Affairs  Standing  Committee  meeting  to order  at  [8:01]  a.m.                                                               
Representatives Hall, Holland, Himschoot,  and Mears were present                                                               
at  the  call  to  order.   Representatives  Prax  and  Ruffridge                                                               
arrived as the meeting was in progress.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
^OVERVIEW: Department of Public Safety                                                                                          
             OVERVIEW: Department of Public Safety                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR MEARS  announced that the  only order of  business would                                                               
be an overview of the Department of Public Safety.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
8:04:03 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
JAMES  COCKRELL,   Commissioner,  Office  of   the  Commissioner,                                                               
Department  of  Public  Safety  (DPS),  presented  a  PowerPoint,                                                               
titled  "Department   of  Public  Safety  Overview"   [hard  copy                                                               
included in  the committee packet].   He shared  the department's                                                               
mission  and key  objectives,  including recruitment,  retention,                                                               
and wellness;  rural Alaska law enforcement;  establishing parks;                                                               
purchasing  long-range aircraft;  illicit  drug  and child  abuse                                                               
investigations; and fisheries and wildlife resource protection.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
8:16:32 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
COMMISSIONER  COCKRELL,  in   response  to  committee  questions,                                                               
acknowledged  the  gaps within  DPS  and  said crime  levels  and                                                               
resource allocation  are two examples of  performance indicators;                                                               
statewide drug  units interface with  law enforcement  in Western                                                               
states to combat drug trafficking  from Mexico; and a Ferry ride-                                                               
along  program was  successfully used  as  a test  case to  deter                                                               
drugs  from entering  Alaska through  the  Alaska Marine  Highway                                                               
System (AMHS).                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
8:28:50 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
COMMISSIONER   COCKRELL   resumed   the  presentation   with   an                                                               
explanation  of  the  department's   organizational  chart.    He                                                               
emphasized the  importance of maintaining a  degree of separation                                                               
from  the  state   crime  lab  to  maintain   the  appearance  of                                                               
impropriety when  evidence is tested.   He gave a summary  of the                                                               
Alaska State Troopers' (AST) history.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
8:36:08 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
COMMISSIONER COCKRELL,  in response to committee  questions, said                                                               
aside   from  drug   enforcement,   AST  does   not  patrol   the                                                               
Municipality of  Anchorage (MOA); the  Matanuska-Susitna Borough,                                                               
Kenai  Peninsula Borough,  and the  Fairbanks North  Star Borough                                                               
are   without  police   power,  leaving   AST  to   handle  those                                                               
jurisdictions;  and there  is no  mechanism for  MOA to  contract                                                               
with AST.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
8:41:37 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
COMMISSIONER  COCKRELL resumed  the presentation  by sharing  the                                                               
department's following successes:                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
      Since 2018  overall crime rate  has decreased  37% and                                                                    
     drug seizures have increased 733%                                                                                          
      Number  of  felony  sex  offenses  has  decreased  27%                                                                    
     statewide (2023 to 2024)                                                                                                   
      No   backlog  of   sexual  assault   examination  kits                                                                    
     awaiting testing at the Alaska Crime Lab                                                                                   
      2024: established online system  for victims of sexual                                                                    
     assault to track their sexual assault examination kit                                                                      
      2024: the  Alaska State Troopers (AST)  awarded as the                                                                    
     US  Postal Services  National  Exemplary partner  after                                                                    
     AST  was   identified  as   the  most   productive  law                                                                    
     enforcement agency in the country  working with USPS to                                                                    
     interdict drugs                                                                                                            
      Troopers  seized  1,262  pounds of  illegal  narcotics                                                                    
     across  the state  including  approximately 42  million                                                                    
     potentially fatal doses of fentanyl in 2024                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
COMMISSIONER COCKRELL  gave an  overview of  the Division  of the                                                               
Alaska  State  Troopers  (AST)  and its  four  detachments.    In                                                               
response to committee questions, he  said the North Slope Borough                                                               
has its  own police  department, for  which AST  offers technical                                                               
support and additional assistance for  homicides.  He resumed the                                                               
presentation with  graphics on Uniform Crime  Reporting (UCR) and                                                               
the Statewide  Drug/Alcohol Enforcement  Unit, noting  that there                                                               
has been an increase in  alcohol seizures in western and northern                                                               
Alaska.   In  response  to committee  questions, he  acknowledged                                                               
that crime is  down, but declined to attribute it  to an increase                                                               
in funding.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
8:51:09 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
COMMISSIONER COCKRELL  resumed the presentation with  an overview                                                               
of  drug seizures  in  2023 and  2024.   He  confirmed that  more                                                               
resources have been put towards  drug interceptions to combat the                                                               
high volume of drugs entering Alaska.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
8:56:34 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ADJOURNMENT                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
There being no  further business before the  committee, the House                                                               
Community  and Regional  Affairs Standing  Committee meeting  was                                                               
adjourned at [8:56] a.m.                                                                                                        

Document Name Date/Time Subjects
HCRA DPS Presentation1 1.30.2025.pdf HCRA 1/30/2025 8:00:00 AM
DPS