Legislature(2003 - 2004)
02/11/2003 01:39 PM House FIN
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
JOINT HOUSE & SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE
February 11, 2003
1:39 P.M.
TAPE HFC 03 - 16, Side A
TAPE HFC 03 - 16, Side B
CALL TO ORDER
Co-Chair Harris called the Joint House & Senate Finance
Committee meeting to order at 1:39 P.M.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative John Harris, Co-Chair
Representative Bill Williams, Co-Chair
Representative Kevin Meyer, Vice-Chair
Representative Eric Croft
Representative Richard Foster
Representative Mike Hawker
Representative Carl Moses
Representative Gary Stevens
Representative Bill Stoltze
Representative Jim Whitaker
Senator Con Bunde
Senator Lyman Hoffman
Senator Donny Olson
Senator Ben Stevens
Senator Lyda Green
Senator Gary Wilken
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Reggie Joule
Senator Alan Austerman
Senator Lyda Green
ALSO PRESENT
Representative David Guttenberg; Representative Carl Morgan;
Representative Ralph Samuels; Jeff Staser, Federal Co-Chair,
Denali Commission; Yuri Morgan, Legislative Representative
Denali Commission; Rachel Petro, State Co-Chair, Denali
Commission, Office of the Lieutenant Governor; Tessa Delong,
Graduate Intern for the Denali Commission; Joe Cladouhous,
Norton Sound Health Corporation; Steve Agloinga, Norton
Sound Health Corporation; Emily Hughes, Norton Sound Health
Corporation; Helen Pootoogooluk, Norton Sound Health
Corporation.
PRESENT VIA TELECONFERENCE
There were no teleconference participants.
GENERAL SUBJECT(S):
OVERVIEW:
DENALI COMMISSION
The following overview was taken in log note format. Tapes
and handouts will be on file with the House Finance
Committee through the 23rd Legislative Session, contact 465-
2156. After the 23rd Legislative Session they will be
available through the Legislative Library at 465-3808.
LOG SPEAKER DISCUSSION
TAPE HFC 03 - 16, SIDE A
000 Co-Chair Harris Convened the Joint House and Senate
Finance Committee meeting at 1:40 P.M.
He noted the handout provided by the
Denali Commission. (Copy on File).
DENALI COMMISSION
006 JEFF STASER, FEDERAL Introduced Yuri Morgan, Legislative
CO-CHAIR, DENALI Representative for the Denali Commission.
COMMISSION
032 YURI MORGAN, Stated that he had been assigned to the
LEGISLATIVE Denali Commission in order to represent
REPRESENTATIVE the Legislature's interests in the
DENALI COMMISSION business and programs of the Commission.
He added that it was the intent of the
meeting to outline what the Denali
commission does. He added that he and
Mr. Staser would leave a large block of
time for questions and answers.
153 Mr. Staser Described how the Denali Commission was
achieving accountability.
227 Mr. Staser Introduced key staff person, Rachel
Petro.
307 RACHEL PETRO, STATE Explained that her job was to act as a
CO-CHAIR, DENALI resource for the State within the
COMMISSION, OFFICE Administration and that she would be
OF THE LT. GOVERNOR working to make the Commission more of a
State program.
354 Mr. Staser Reiterated the role that Rachel plays for
the State of Alaska. He introduced Tessa
DeLong, Ketchikan.
414 TESSA DELONG, Explained her role with the Commission
GRADUATE INTERN FOR working in problematic areas and most
THE DENALI specifically with the health care and
COMMISSION economic development.
445 Mr. Staser Provided information on the Commission,
which is a federal/state partnership.
The Commission was created in 1999 as a
result of legislation drafted by Senator
Stevens in 1998. The law provided for
five statewide organizations to
participate as voting members along with
the two co-chairs, one State and one
federal. He referenced the slide shown.
The Commission has been pursuing the
principle themes of energy and health.
536 Mr. Staser The Commission has completed or under
construction 50 health clinics. He noted
that there are principles which the
Commission will be accountable for:
· Effective and efficient
· Implement policy
607 Mr. Staser Referenced the Denali Commission's
website. (Presentation & slides provided
to Committee only). He noted that any
person in the State could access the web
site. He walked members through on how
to use the site. Logging on to the site
and entering the 'public reports'.
652 Mr. Staser From the database, every project that the
Commission is involved with is indicated.
He suggested 'clicking' on the project
map referencing the project charts. Mr.
Staser explained how to zoom into map
areas.
805 Mr. Staser Data is populated by the State database.
Each project is presented with the status
of the project is represented in the
database.
1006 Mr. Staser Denali Commission has helped train many
people for jobs. He referenced the
"report by the Committee" icon indicated
on each site.
1109 Mr. Staser Referenced the 'Performance Indicators'.
The same thing indicated to the federal
government is reported and available to
each and every citizen. He emphasized
that all this information is available to
everyone who can use a computer. He
stressed that this is what
'accountability' looks like.
1201 Mr. Staser Pointed out that partner agencies are
checking on the plans, which is the
future of the program.
1229 Mr. Staser Referenced the "project reports" icon.
1254 Mr. Staser Explained how to print the reports.
1347 Mr. Staser Mentioned that using the site makes
accessing any report easy.
1405 Representative Noted that Joe Cladouhous from the Norton
Foster Sound Health Corporation was present at
the meeting. Mr. Cladouhous introduced
the members of his agency.
1501 Mr. Staser Explained that some of the projects were
'sub-casts' of the larger projects and
each was separately funded. He explained
that the program was created as an Excel
sheet but it could be downloaded as a
file.
1603 Mr. Staser He demonstrated other features of the
'Program Icon'. The program update will
provide the monthly information.
1656 Mr. Staser The report indicates the one person
responsible for everything in the energy
area. All partner agencies are listed
such as Alaska Industrial Development
Export Authority (AIDEA) and Alaska
Village Cooperative (AVC). He noted that
they have requested proposals with other
partners in that entity can help to
deliver quicker and cheaper. In order to
guide what currently happens at the
Denali Commission, there are policy-
guiding groups. He emphasized that the
projects are not prioritized.
1800 Representative Asked about resources of the Commission
Stoltze going toward communities with economic
distress issues.
1844 Mr. Staser Stated yes. The law indicates that the
word 'rural' should not be defined. It
is important to look at the federal
rational for becoming involved. Each
program has its own distress criteria.
He asked if it would make cost effective
sense for a primary health clinic. He
noted that there is a steering committee
for health concerns. That Committee lays
out the guidelines regarding clinics. He
emphasized that there are projects
underway in all the cities in Alaska.
1948 Mr. Staser He noted that the Commission is dealing
with the challenge of how to prioritize
the next power line extension. He asked
what the criteria should be. Until that
criterion is established, the Commission
will be 'stumbling' in that area. The
Commission should not be deciding where
to put the next power line extension;
that should be a State or regional plan.
The Commission attempts to do well in
whatever they do. The eligibility is
there and the Commission guides the
action taken. The five commissioners are
non-State, non-federal employees.
2041 Mr. Staser Continued, Each of the staff, on the
program side is borrowed from an agency.
The Commission's overhead rate is about
2% and 98% of the money goes into
projects. When a staffer arrives on the
team, they each have individual capacity
that is unique to them. He noted that Mr.
Morgan was the program manager for
everything that has to do with 'access'.
2131 Mr. Morgan Noted that there is a question that the
Commission often receives regarding
assistance. The delegation in Washington
D.C. has asked that access and
transportation is something that the
Legislature can address. The
Commission's response is if that is
needed, then the State will do it. To
date, an allocation is in the basic
information-gathering mode. The goal is
to understand what opportunities exist
for the Commission to participate in
access. Access means land, sea & air.
2248 Mr. Morgan Discussed that the Commission has
identified the community needs and has
met with various agencies and
departments. He added that they have
asked many people what should is needed
in the State of Alaska. He noted that
there are four issues, which have
resulted.
· Authority
· Privatization
· Delivery
· Sustainability
2351 Mr. Morgan Noted that Senator Lisa Murkowski last
week created a bill authorizing the
Denali Transportation System. That would
authorize a funding level in the bill
that Department of Transportation &
Public Facilities currently gets. He
advised that the Denali Commission had
gone to many interested parties to
determine how they feel about the
language of that bill and how it should
be changed or modified.
2444 Mr. Morgan Reminded members that the Denali
Commission is a federal agency.
2525 Mr. Morgan He added that the final decisions are up
to the communities and the Commission.
2538 Mr. Morgan Addressed forthcoming issues.
2550 Co-Chair Harris Inquired how the issues of sustainability
are determined.
2558 Mr. Morgan Replied that when something is built, it
must be determined how much it will cost
to build but also how much it will cost
to operated and maintain. He asked how
to determine who would take care of the
structure and where that money would come
from. The guidelines need to be adapted.
2636 Senator Bunde Questioned the relationship of Mr. Morgan
and whom he works for.
2665 Mr. Morgan Explained he works for Legislative Audit,
Representative Samuels and that he was
paid through the Legislature. He noted
that he works with the Denali Commission
because the Legislature believes that the
Commission 'is a good idea'.
2727 Senator Bunde Did not remember that position being
funded by Legislative Budget and Audit
(LBA) Committee previously. He commented
that Mr. Morgan was a 'Liaison' and also
working for the Denali Commission.
2750 Mr. Staser Responded, referencing a slide indicating
the position currently held by Mr.
Morgan. He emphasized that the Denali
Commission needs input from the State in
order to undertake the needed projects.
2832 Mr. Staser He noted that Creg Johnston was the
previous staff member working for the
Commission. There are additionally, nine
federal staff members located throughout
the State. He noted that Mr. Morgan
keeps tracks of all the work done by the
Commission in the State. The permanent
staff positions are hired and fired
through the federal Co-Chair.
2944 Mr. Staser The program 'stuff' is not federal work.
If the State policy is to have Davis-
Bacon wages required, then there will be
fewer clinics as there is a funding
ceiling, which includes cost and labor
combined.
3030 Mr. Staser He emphasized that the role of the
Legislature has been invaluable for the
Commission to do the correct thing.
3044 Representative Noted that when session began this year,
Foster he requested an update of what the
Commission was doing and that Mr. Morgan
came to his office and outlined all the
Commission's projects.
3113 Mr. Morgan Added that his role could be defined and
that it is not static. He reminded
members that he did work for them.
3124 Senator Bunde Noted that not only was he working as a
Legislature Liaison but that he was
assigned also to other projects.
3143 Mr. Morgan Responded that his loyalty was work as
the Legislature Liaison.
3153 Mr. Staser Noted that it was a 'secondary' duty that
provides focus. He added that the
position brings together various State
interests. Mr. Morgan is doing
essentially staff research in order to
determine State priorities.
3241 Representative Pointed out that Mr. Morgan's primary
Hawker role was to do whatever the Legislature
chooses him to do. Otherwise, he will
address the larger activities of the
Denali Commission. He conceded that it
was a well-structured line of authority.
3338 Mr. Staser Stated that the Denali Commission wants
to be a learning and responsive agency.
He referenced the performance indicators.
3410 Mr. Staser Referenced the website and the monthly
reports. Program updates, hit the
subscribe button and insert your email
address and then every month you will be
updated.
3455 Mr. Staser Advised that there is so much going on
within the Commission. He stressed that
this is a unique partnership between the
federal and State government. He
acknowledged the amount provided through
the non-profits. Mr. Staser noted that
the Commission cannot do the work alone.
The strength exists within the
collaborative efforts of all entities
involved.
3607 Mr. Staser Commented on the number of people that
have been to Alaska and support the work
of the Denali commission.
3633 Co-Chair Harris Asked about the rural road situation and
the Denali Commission's access to
minerals and energy projects.
3657 Mr. Staser Stated that there is nothing that
prohibits that from happening now if it
is consistent with the federal law that
provides the funding.
3719 Mr. Staser Added that the new legislation currently
introduced on the U.S. House Floor to
fill gaps within the federal system.
Some standards are only appropriate for
the areas that they are in and would not
be appropriate for rural Alaska. He
asked if there is something that needs to
be done that no one else can do. He
noted that they do not have a program yet
to address the fundamental needs in
Alaska. There are a lot of common
interests and looking the Commission is
looking for the common ground. There is
no indication that Congress will be
funded at the authorization level
proposed by the U.S. Senate.
3850 Mr. Staser He noted that they are currently basing
staff on the possibilities of the "what
if's".
3906 Representative Noted the gradual decrease in the State
Foster general fund match monies. He validated
the work provided by the Commission over
the years. He stated that it was the
only thing that has provided "hope" for
rural Alaska. He asked the future of the
program.
3945 Mr. Staser The federal FY04 budget has not yet been
released. All those numbers are
operating under last years proposed
budgets. Every single regional authority
throughout the US has been cut. The
budget that the President requested for
the Denali Commission is $63 million
dollars. The present budget proposal has
been forwarded to Congress. He noted
that Senator Stevens has been held
hostage over this proposal for many
years. He reiterated that the
President's budget was fair based on his
budget priorities.
4123 Mr. Staser Continued, if the U.S. goes to war, we
cannot count on federal money. The State
cannot count on federal funds and the
State needs to get into a sustainable
economy. If there was a plan, the State
could execute it. He spoke to the public
infrastructure to create economic
opportunities. It is important to drop
the cost of power to help the
communities, and get the workforce
development issues under control.
4224 Senator Wilken Thought that that there is not a way to
have multi year funding to avoid the
appropriation angst.
4243 Mr. Staser Replied that was correct. Currently, the
Commission does not have multi year
funding. It has been requested.
4252 Senator Wilken Asked about the status of the T-21
authorization for service transportation.
4306 Mr. Staser That bill is in draft form in the House
of Representatives. It is the largest
Committee in the Congress. There are
many people that have to come together to
make it work. There must be agreement
and acknowledged that the staff is
working with the draft of the bill.
4330 Mr. Morgan Added that this is just beginning. The
State can only provide input at this
time.
4349 Mr. Staser Interjected that the staff needs to get
all their comments in by the end of
month.
4402 Senator Wilken Asked if that would continue to be at six
years, $400 + million dollars.
4416 Mr. Staser Replied that the bill was for a six-year
authorization. Within that bill, if the
money is coming from the Highway Trust
Fund, it is inherent that the
appropriation will come with the
authorization.
4444 Senator Wilken Asked if there was anything that the
Legislature could do to help with that
effort.
4455 Mr. Staser Replied that there is a model for how
that works in other parts of the country.
4522 Mr. Staser Added that in the absence of a plan, it
makes it more difficult for the federal
delegation.
4538 Senator Wilken Suggested that was what the Legislature
should be working on.
4550 Mr. Morgan Added that before there can be a plan
assembled, everyone should be 'working
off the same page'. He noted that they
are working with Department of
Transportation & Public Facilities in
that regard. They are the largest agency
database of information. The challenge
is to gather all lists from each page.
4634 Senator Wilken Listed the four categories of focus:
· authority
· project prioritization
· delivery
· sustainability
TAPE HFC 03 - 16, Side B
4700 Senator Wilken Commented that the presentation had been
well prepared.
4616 Mr. Staser Pointed out that the packet contained a
map of the United States with a map of
Alaska super imposed over the top of it
indicating the transportation risks.
4520 Co-Chair Williams Mentioned the access system and how that
it could affect the Alaska ferry system.
4452 Mr. Staser Noted that the Commission does not use
the word 'transportation' but rather the
word 'access' to get every citizen access
to whatever citizen should have access
to. He noted that the Commission depends
heavily on the Department of
Transportation & Public Facilities and
the non-profit groups that represent
some of the Native communities to get the
issues on the table. The State of Alaska
already has several plans completed.
4335 Senator Bunde Asked about the Commission's funding
summary.
4242 Mr. Staser Reviewed the Commission's funding
summary. Base funding comes from the
federal government. There is an automatic
funding source managed by the U.S. Coast
Guard from the Trans-Alaska Pipeline
Liability Fund. Discussed the USDA Rural
Utilities Service funding and he added
that the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) funding was new.
4021 Mr. Staser Observed that another chart had been
added demonstrating the matching funds.
He emphasized a need to be fiscally
responsible.
3933 Senator Bunde Observed that the total funding is a
little over $200 million dollars. He
reminded members that future federal
dollars is not guaranteed. He was
concerned with unrealistic expectations
throughout the State.
3822 Mr. Staser Stated that the Commission shares that
concern. He referenced the unfunded
federal mandates to create underground
fuel tank storage. He added that the
Denali Commission was going to try to do
172 bulk fuel projects.
3718 Senator Bunde Questioned what enforcement and the
transferring of ownership meant.
3704 Mr. Staser Explained that sometime training is
needed to allow communities to get their
tanks up to standard. Sometimes
communities are encouraged to band
together for economy of scale projects.
He questioned what the State would do to
drop the insurance cost to the facilities
so that the communities can afford to
operate them.
3534 Mr. Staser Observed that the Commission is currently
looking at what constitutes a sustainable
community.
3503 Senator Hoffman Asked what is being accomplished. The
goal is to allow people to be more self
sufficient and responsible. The Denali
Commission is allowing people to do that.
The driving force is to sustain projects.
He pointed out that there has been a lack
of emphasis on maintenance.
3329 Representative Recalled that during the late 1980's,
Foster large projects would occur in the rural
areas, where the contracts would be won
and operated by out-of-state entities
without a local hire. He emphasized the
changes that had been made by the
Commission toward local hire.
3214 Mr. Staser Pointed out that there is a balance
between financing and the results. Life
cycle projects are important. Research
and development are critical components.
He admitted that the question should be
asked whether we are using our resources
to our greatest advantage.
3045 Senator Wilken Requested information on the efforts to
address water and sewerage concerns.
3012 Mr. Staser Observed that the Commission does not
handle village safe water. The
management team of the Village Safe Water
is doing a good job at identifying
lessons learned over the past couple
years. However, the water sewage systems
are not built in concert with a
sustainability plan. Currently, there is
a inter agency collaboration resulting in
a steering committee to determine
specific criteria for sustainability.
That committee is lead by Ernesta Ballard
from Department of Environmental
Conservation and Bill Allen from USC
Rural Development.
2902 Mr. Staser Acknowledged that the Commission does
have concerns regarding the village safe
water, but that is not their program.
2845 Senator Olson Report on the radio regarding the number
of projects undertaken by the Denali
Commission. He mentioned the concerns
with the village of Shishmaref and their
need to move that village.
2758 Mr. Staser Replied that the situation in that
village is not unique. There has been an
assessment to determine which communities
are at risk, what are the costs to
mitigate the risk and the cost of
relocation. He noted that they are
meeting with the appropriate agencies
2720 Mr. Staser Noted that they were working with Norton
Sound to determine what makes the best
sense. Questions are being asked
regarding if a community can be moved and
still meet the needs of what is
important. He noted that it was
discussed in January with the
commissioners and will come back in April
with a more clarified resolution. Access
to health care is essential. He
mentioned that communities at risk for
being moved would need to redesign their
health facilities.
2626 Senator Olson Questioned if Mr. Staser was saying that
they had the ability to fund a temporary
facility. He asked what would be told to
the workers at the health care facility.
2601 Mr. Staser Replied that there are both State and
Federal program funds. The State does
have an emergency program. They are more
able to respond and perhaps there could
be an interim solution.
2457 Senator Olson Noted that Mr. Joe Cladouhous, Norton
Sound Health Corporation could address
funding a temporary facility.
2445 Mr. Staser Acknowledged that there are options. The
bottom line will come in after their
April, 2003 meeting.
2410 Senator Olson Applauded the representatives from the
Norton Sound Health Corporation.
2328 Mr. Claudous [testimony inaudible].
2318 Mr. Staser Stated that was why the meeting had been
scheduled in Nome.
2314 Co-Chair Williams Asked who manages the construction
projects.
2303 Mr. Staser Replied that the Commission partners with
various agencies. Norton Sound is a
partner. He noted that they give the
feds the ability to opt out of any of
those partnerships.
2231 Senator Bunde Asked when the report would be available.
2215 Mr. Staser Reported that by the scheduled meeting in
April something would be available for
distribution.
2152 Mr. Staser Pointed out that preparation and
distribution of the report was a part of
Mr. Morgan's job.
2135 Mr. Staser He added that Mr. Morgan could provide a
briefing of the anticipated contents of
the report.
2108 Representative Commented on the "drying up" of the
Foster general fund and how the situation has
caused grasping within the villages. He
stressed that the Denali Commission was
keeping rural Alaska going.
2086 Mr. Staser Appreciated the support. He added that
the Commission was "just the meeting
place". He reminded members that the
work of the Commission was a
collaborative effort.
2017 Co-Chair Harris Mentioned that accountability and
sustainability are important concepts for
Alaska at this time. He acknowledged
that the needs continue to grow as the
budget decreases. There needs to be an
economic availability to maintain any
projects undertaken. Sustainability
needs to be present. He voiced
appreciation for the role of the
Commission.
1913 ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 2:57 P.M.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|