Legislature(1997 - 1998)
04/16/1998 03:12 PM House HES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HOUSE HEALTH, EDUCATION AND SOCIAL
SERVICES STANDING COMMITTEE
April 16, 1998
3:12 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Con Bunde, Chairman
Representative Joe Green, Vice Chairman
Representative Brian Porter
Representative Fred Dyson
Representative J. Allen Kemplen
Representative Tom Brice
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Al Vezey
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
* HOUSE BILL NO. 388
"An Act relating to the right to refuse to sell, give, or serve an
alcoholic beverage."
- PASSED HB 388 OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 401
"An Act relating to contracts for the provision of state public
assistance to certain recipients in the state; providing for
regional public assistance plans and programs in the state;
relating to grants for Alaska tribal family assistance programs;
and providing for an effective date."
- PASSED HB 401 OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 302
"An Act relating to the University of Alaska; and providing for an
effective date."
- HEARD AND HELD
(* First public hearing)
PREVIOUS ACTION
BILL: HB 388
SHORT TITLE: RIGHT TO REFUSE TO SERVE LIQUOR
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVES(S) DYSON
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
2/06/98 2241 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRAL(S)
2/06/98 2241 (H) HES, LABOR & COMMERCE
4/09/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
4/09/98 (H) MINUTE(HES)
4/16/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
BILL: HB 401
SHORT TITLE: STATE/REG'L/TRIBAL FAMILY ASS'T PROGRAMS
SPONSOR(S): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
2/12/98 2308 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRAL(S)
2/12/98 2308 (H) C&RA, HES, FINANCE
2/12/98 2308 (H) ZERO FISCAL NOTE (DHSS)
2/12/98 2308 (H) GOVERNOR'S TRANSMITTAL LETTER
3/04/98 (H) CRA AT 8:00 AM CAPITOL 124
3/04/98 (H) MINUTE(CRA)
3/04/98 2497 (H) CRA RPT 3DP 1DNP 1NR
3/04/98 2497 (H) DP: DYSON, KOOKESH, IVAN; DNP:
SANDERS;
3/04/98 2497 (H) NR: RYAN
3/04/98 2497 (H) ZERO FISCAL NOTE (DHSS) 2/12/98
3/04/98 2497 (H) REFERRED TO HES
4/16/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
BILL: HB 302
SHORT TITLE: UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA OPERATING BUDGET
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVES(S) BUNDE
Jrn-Date Jrn-Page Action
1/12/98 2023 (H) PREFILE RELEASED 1/2/98
1/12/98 2023 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRAL(S)
1/12/98 2023 (H) HES, FINANCE
2/12/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
2/12/98 (H) MINUTE(HES)
2/27/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
2/27/98 (H) MINUTE(HES)
4/07/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
4/07/98 (H) MINUTE(HES)
4/09/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
4/09/98 (H) MINUTE(HES)
4/16/98 (H) HES AT 3:00 PM CAPITOL 106
WITNESS REGISTER
LORI NAMYNIUK
Address Not Provided
Telephone Not Provided
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 388.
MORRIS BENTELY, Member
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal Alcohol Effects Task Force
P.O. Box 287
Bethel, Alaska 99559
Telephone: (907) 543-2914
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 388.
JAY LIVEY, Deputy Commissioner
Department of Health and Social Services
P.O. Box 110601
Juneau, Alaska 99811-0601
Telephone: (907) 465-3030
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 401.
BOB CHARLES, Vice President of Operations
Alaska Village Council Presidents
Bethel, Alaska 99559
Telephone: (907) 543-7300
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 401.
TERRY HOEFFERLE, Chief of Operations
Bristol Bay Native Association
P.O. Box 310
Dillingham, Alaska 99576
Telephone: (907) 842-5257
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 401 and HB 302.
DON SHIRCEL, Director
Tanana Chiefs Conference Family Services
122 First Avenue, Suite 606
Fairbanks, Alaska 99701
Telephone: (907) 452-8251
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 401.
SHARON OLSEN, Director
Employment and Training Programs
Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indians of Alaska
320 West Willoughby Avenue, Suite 300
Juneau, Alaska 99801
Telephone: (907) 463-7134
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 401.
RICHARD BENAVIDES
P.O. Box 190821
Anchorage, Alaska 99519
Telephone: (907) 337-0658
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 302.
PEARL STRUB, Representative
Bristol Bay Campus Advisory Council
P.O. Box 1070
Dillingham, Alaska 99576
Telephone: (907) 842-5109
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 302.
KEVIN TRITT, President
Union Students
University of Alaska Anchorage
3211 Providence Drive
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Telephone: (907) 786-1205
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 302.
ANDREW HUND
6110 Blackberry Street
Anchorage, Alaska 99504
Telephone: (907) 243-0428
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of HB 302.
JUDITH NELSON, Executive Director
Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation
P.O. Box 1464
Dillingham, Alaska 99576
Telephone: (907) 842-4370
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 302.
PATRICK CASEY, Student
University of Alaska Fairbanks
2154 Noah Court
North Pole, Alaska 99705
Telephone: (907) 488-6729
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 302.
JEAN RICHARDSON, Student
University of Alaska Fairbanks
1716 South University Avenue, Apartment B
Fairbanks, Alaska 99709
Telephone: (907) 479-5071
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified on HB 302.
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 98-47, SIDE A
Number 0001
CHAIRMAN CON BUNDE called the House Health, Education and Social
Services Standing Committee meeting to order at 3:12 p.m. Members
present at the call to order were Representatives Bunde, Green,
Porter and Dyson. Representatives Brice and Kemplen arrived at
3:23 p.m. Representative Vezey was absent.
HB 388 - RIGHT TO REFUSE TO SERVE LIQUOR
Number 0024
CHAIRMAN BUNDE announced the first order of business to come before
the committee was HB 388, "An Act relating to the right to refuse
to sell, give, or serve an alcoholic beverage." He asked
Representative Dyson to present his bill.
Number 0071
REPRESENTATIVE FRED DYSON said one of the key issues he's been
working on for the past couple years is fetal alcohol syndrome and
fetal alcohol effects and in his efforts toward prevention, he
spent time with ARBA/CHAR, the professional organization of bar
owners and bar workers in the state. During his visit, concern was
expressed regarding the legality of refusing to serve someone who's
pregnant out of concern for alcohol poisoning of the unborn child.
He explained Alaska's rights to refusal law states that an employee
can refuse to serve a person if there is belief they'd be
endangering themselves or others. Bar owners in Oregon have been
sued both ways; for refusing to serve someone who is obviously
pregnant and for not refusing. He understands that both lawsuits
were unsuccessful, but still it remains an open question.
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON said, "The current state of the research says
that we do not know that there's any safe period or safe amount of
alcohol to be consumed that there's no danger to the unborn child.
Apparently, the earlier in the pregnancy, the greater the danger,
but there is apparently impact on the unborn child all the way
through gestation." He said he introduced this legislation at the
request of the bar owners. Many of the industry representatives
refuse to serve pregnant women as a matter of protecting the unborn
child and there haven't been any lawsuits filed for refusal to
serve; however, he thinks that day is coming.
Number 0302
REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN PORTER asked if Representative Dyson's
research on this issue indicated what the intent was of the
existing statute to which this legislation is being added.
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON surmised that a bar owner does not want to
continue to serve someone who is getting violent and may be a
danger to others or to themselves personally.
Number 0386
REPRESENTATIVE JOE GREEN inquired, "In drafting this, did you
discuss with the attorneys whether by including this, there could
be an implied problem built for a bar owner who decides to go ahead
- since it's a "may" not a "shall not" - and goes ahead and serves
a pregnant woman and something happens, are you building any
concern here by including this specifically in the law?"
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON said industry representatives and their
advisors have not been wary about that.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE noted there were individuals standing by on
teleconference to testify on HB 388. He asked Lori Namyniuk to
testify at this time.
Number 0463
LORI NAMYNIUK testified via teleconference from Anchorage, and
thanked Representative Dyson for his efforts in the prevention of
fetal alcohol syndrome and for bringing a very serious problem to
the forefront by introducing HB 388. She believed in the concept,
but thought it would be difficult to legislate. She said it is
known that harm can be caused to a fetus prior to a woman being
visibly pregnant which would make it difficult for bar owners to
recognize the pregnancy. Her research on fetal alcohol syndrome
indicates that more serious damage is caused within the first and
second trimester. Also, alcohol isn't the only substance that
causes severe damage to unborn children; smoking also does so if
alcohol consumption by pregnant women is legislated where will it
stop. She said, "I guess instead of sort of following suit with
the work you've been doing currently, I think it would be better to
continue those efforts and put our focus toward education in a hope
that individuals would make informed positive choices for their
health and the health of their children and families. It would not
just focus on the woman, but realize that it's a whole family
problem." She said Representative Dyson's efforts with the
statewide coordinator and the Governor's Smart Start program were
the beginnings of working toward both providing education and
direct services for women and families. Her concern is that
pregnant women would view HB 388 as a punishment, and go
"underground" or drink in private for fear of being punished or for
the societal judgment, and may not seek out social services or
residential treatment for their substance use, or worse yet, would
not seek medical care.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Ms. Namyniuk for her testimony and asked
Morris Bentely for his comments.
Number 0628
MORRIS BENTELY, Member, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal Alcohol
Effects Task Force, testified via teleconference from Bethel in
support of HB 388. He discussed some of the problems associated
with alcohol in the Bethel area and even though Bethel doesn't have
any bar owners, he thought perhaps it would keep the bootleggers
from selling alcohol to pregnant women. He supported efforts to
stop the problem or solve the problem before the birth of a child
who could end up with lifelong behavioral problems.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Bentely for his comments. He closed
public testimony and asked the wishes of the committee.
Number 0688
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER made a motion to pass HB 388 from committee
with individual recommendations. Hearing no objection, HB 388
moved from the House Health, Education and Social Services
Committee.
HB 401 - STATE/REG'L/TRIBAL FAMILY ASS'T PROGRAMS
Number 0704
CHAIRMAN BUNDE announced the next bill for consideration was
HB 401, "An Act relating to contracts for the provision of state
public assistance to certain recipients in the state; providing for
regional public assistance plans and programs in the state;
relating to grants for Alaska tribal family assistance programs;
and providing for an effective date." He asked Jay Livey to come
forward to the witness stand.
Number 0727
JAY LIVEY, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Health and Social
Services, commented that before getting into the specifics of the
bill, he would give the committee some background information as to
why the department is considering this issue at this particular
time. He said federal welfare reform established a process, as
part of the federal welfare reform, by which Alaska Native
nonprofit regional corporations, if they wished, could apply to the
federal government and receive authorization to administer welfare
programs in the regions. As part of the process, the regional
corporations would be eligible to receive from the federal
government the equivalent of the federal funds that the state spent
on welfare services within those regions in 1994. It basically
establishes a federal block grant for regional corporations
deciding to take on welfare responsibilities for their region.
MR. LIVEY said the federal funds, however, will only be about half
of the funds that have historically been spent on welfare in
regional corporation areas. He pointed out the current welfare
program is partially state funded and partially federally funded.
The mechanism in the federal welfare reform law only deals with the
federal funds and HB 401 sets up a mechanism by which the state can
fund the other half needed to run the entire program.
MR. LIVEY said the state and regional corporations have had ongoing
meetings for the last couple years regarding the federal language
and through those discussions, the state has come up with five
principles used to guide the development of HB 401. First, the
state and regional corporations both recognized the primary goal to
support self-sufficiency; everyone wants individuals to be
economically independent and to not be dependent on public
assistance programs and services. The second principle is to
promote flexibility in designing local approaches to achieving
self-sufficiency. The state recognized that regional corporations
have specific conditions as well as specific economies, and wanted
to give freedom to those corporations to develop regional
assistance plans that make sense to their area. The third
principle was to ensure that any programs set up were efficiently
managed, avoiding any duplication of effort and creating an economy
of scale with regard to administrative expenditure. Fourth was to
discourage disparity in benefit levels in order to avoid having
similar-situated Alaskans being treated differently with respect to
benefits. Fifth was to address the complex legal issues relating
to the delegation of state authority.
Number 0945
MR. LIVEY directed the committee's attention to a flow chart
describing the mechanism set up by HB 401.
Number 0959
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON asked if there was any opposition to this
legislation?
MR. LIVEY responded that most people support the concept.
Number 1011
MR. LIVEY, referring to the flow chart, explained if this
legislation passes, the regional corporations would send the
department a copy of their tribal assistance plan to be reviewed
for two sets of standards. He continued, "First of all we would
review those standards to make sure that the service delivery area
that the regional corporation's proposing to serve makes sense and
we want that to make sense in terms of the state's obligation to
provide services. Also, we just want to make sure the two fit
together so we're not duplicating administrative costs and we're
providing the services most efficiently. Secondly, there are five
requirements that we believe should be in the regional
corporation's assistance plan - that those are five principles of
welfare reform that we believe should be in any program in the
state. Briefly, there must a dependent child in the household; the
regional corporation payment amount must be in line with the
state's payment amount; minor parents must live within an approved
adult-supervised setting; able-bodied participants must work; and
participants must comply with child support. If the regional
corporation meets those requirements, then they are eligible to
receive a grant and the grant that we send to the regional
corporation then provides the state portion of the program.
Remember, they're already getting the federal money directly -
they're already getting money from the federal government - the
state portion fills out the program for them."
CHAIRMAN BUNDE observed the department had submitted a zero fiscal
note.
MR. LIVEY said the funds being sent to the regional corporations
would already be in the department's budget or subject to future
appropriation by the legislature.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE said there should be a fiscal note showing the flow
of funds and the volume.
MR. LIVEY explained one of the reasons for the zero fiscal note is
that the amounts of money flowing back and forth will depend on how
many regional corporations choose to participate in the program.
MR. LIVEY continued with his explanation of HB 401 and said, "If
the commission determines that it's -- you mentioned before that
within a regional corporation there may be nontribal members who
are being served in that area through the state program -- if the
commission determines as a condition of receiving money from the
state, the state can require that those individuals would be served
by the regional corporation, again as a way of making sure that the
state's not duplicating administrative services in those areas."
MR. LIVEY concluded the department considers this a good bill for
three reasons: 1) welfare will be more successful if locally
administered and locally designed to meet local economic
conditions; 2) there's a benefit for the state in partnering with
the regional nonprofit corporations, many of whom have fairly
extensive employment and training programs already operating; and
3) it makes sense to encourage areas of the state to take some
responsibility for welfare services and public service in the
respective areas.
Number 1220
CHAIRMAN BUNDE questioned first what system would account for the
expenditure of funds and secondly, what rights of appeal is
available for individuals who feel they are being treated unfairly.
MR. LIVEY said the fiscal oversight would be the same as for
existing state grants and contracts with a single audit as well as
all the department's grant regulations. With respect to appeals,
the regional corporation would need an approved appeal process in
their original plan for individuals served by the regional
corporation program and nontribal members served by the regional
corporation would have appeal rights through the state.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE verified for the record that the program would serve
all residents in the area, both tribal and nontribal.
MR. LIVEY confirmed that.
Number 1270
REPRESENTATIVE GREEN inquired if this was merely a transfer of
funds rather than new funds.
MR. LIVEY explained the general fund portion is money that is
already being spent on behalf of welfare clients in those areas.
For example in the Alaska Village Council Presidents (AVCP) region,
the state is already paying for welfare services in that region.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE asked Bob Charles to present his remarks at this
time.
Number 1300
BOB CHARLES, Vice President of Operations, Alaska Village Council
Presidents (AVCP), testified via teleconference from Anchorage that
AVCP supports HB 401 and urges its adoption by the legislature. He
said the AVCP was established in 1964, incorporated in 1978 and
serves 47 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim-Delta region. In 1978,
the AVCP began contracting with the federal government primarily
with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, to provide services to the
people in the Yukon-Kuskokwim-Delta area. The AVCP has formed the
Yukon/Kuskokwim Health Corporation and the regional housing
authority as separate organizations to provide health and housing
services. He described the services provided by AVCP for families,
children and elders in the region including a variety of training
and technical assistance services for village administrators; a
fairly large village public safety officer program; a Head Start
Program and various other programs.
Number 1485
CHAIRMAN BUNDE observed that AVCP must be very busy, and asked if
they could take on another project like administering the welfare
program proposed under HB 401.
MR. CHARLES explained the AVCP has a fairly good sized structure in
place in all the villages that allows AVCP the opportunity to
administer this as just another program. He noted that recently
AVCP operated a contract with the Division of Public Assistance for
the Work Force Development Project, in which the division initially
wanted AVCP to work with 328 two-parent families, but AVCP set a
goal of 510 families and since starting last July, the number has
increased to 760 families.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Charles for his testimony and asked Mr.
Hoefferle to present his comments.
Number 1544
TERRY HOEFFERLE, Chief of Operations, Bristol Bay Native
Association (BBNA), testified via teleconference from Dillingham.
He said the Bristol Bay Native Association is an association of 31
tribal communities in Bristol Bay. He noted he would address two
issues in his testimony. First, the capacity of organizations like
BBNA to operate a program such as that being proposed in HB 401 and
BBNA's accountability for operating programs such as this. He said
there are 12 regional nonprofit Native associations in the state of
Alaska which have many similarities. Generally, the associations
were formed to work toward passage of the land claims settlement
act and once regional corporations were formed under that act, the
12 regional nonprofit associations took on the task of not for
profit social issues - issues such as education and the economies
of the region, et cetera. Currently, the BBNA operates over 30
programs ranging from the village public safety officer program to
Head Start to elderly nutrition programs to employment and training
program. The association has an annual budget of $16 million and
294 employees; 55 of which are employed in the central office and
239 are employed at village locations throughout the region.
Currently, BBNA operates nine programs that are directly related to
employment and training, education on welfare assistance type
programs, general assistance employment and training, higher
education and child care programs with a budget of $1.7 million.
All the programs are operated under Public Law 103-477 which allows
tribal organizations to combine the funding for similar kinds of
federal programs that are operated either from the Departments of
Education or Health and Social Services or the Bureau of Indian
Affairs. By combining the operation of these programs, BBNA has
achieved a number of administrative savings; it reduced the
administrative costs of those programs by 30 percent and has placed
those savings directly into increased client services. The PL 103-
477 programs years ago began to set the stage for much of what is
now called welfare reform as enacted by the federal government and
the state of Alaska in recent years. A combination of those
programs has provided a model for "one stop shops" that the state
of Alaska is utilizing to implement the temporary assistance for
the needy families' program enacted by the legislature two years
ago. The Tribal Work Experience program which BBNA and their
sister organizations operate throughout the state marked the way
for Work fare where individuals are required to provide local work
service in order to receive general assistance benefits. The
Bristol Bay Native Association has operated these programs under
the (indisc.) of the United States Government and also operated
similar types of programs under contract with the state of Alaska.
MR. HOEFFERLE said BBNA is familiar with not only operating
programs that apply to all the residents in Bristol Bay but also
operates different programs that only Native members of the
association are eligible for. For 30 years BBNA has adequately
reported and accounted for the expenditure of federal funds.
During his eight year tenure at BBNA, the audits have never raised
a question regarding cost.
MR. HOEFFERLE concluded the PL 103-477 program provides the model
by which their association would implement HB 401. Currently, in
the state of Alaska, the implementation of welfare reform
legislation in the urban areas provide the way for the people to
get on welfare and a way for people to get into a job. In rural
Alaska, the system provides for a way to get on welfare, albeit a
much harder way to get on welfare and it provides no road to jobs.
This is just a recognition that it's much more difficult to develop
jobs than it is to cut a welfare check. But the Alaska Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families Act includes a counseling and
planning individual work responsibility plan to help people find
their way off welfare and into work, but it's impossible to provide
this counseling and assistance by means of telephone, particularly
where cultural and language differences may be quite different from
one community to another. The BBNA employs approximately 60
employees that are performing different jobs whose expertise could
be used to leverage state funds to provide a better service to the
residents of the state who need these services.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Hoefferle for his comments and asked Don
Shircel to testify at this time.
Number 1860
DON SHIRCEL, Director, Tanana Chiefs Conference (TCC) Family
Services, testified via teleconference from Fairbanks. He holds a
Master of Science degree in behavioral disabilities and administers
$6 million of the total $55 million annual budget of state and
federal health and social service programs operated by Tanana
Chiefs Conference. He said as a social service professional and
program planner, he strongly supports HB 401. In a state,
especially of our size, it makes a lot of sense to regionally
design and administer temporary assistance programming. House Bill
401 is consistent with the same rationale from which state and
federal welfare reform emerged. Programs closest to the people are
more responsive, relevant, effective and efficient than large
centrally administered "one size fits all" programs planned and
administered outside the community.
MR. SHIRCEL gave the committee a little background on some of TCC's
efforts to date. He remarked that since 1993, member communities
of the Tanana Chiefs Conference initiated and have been jointly
implementing over $1.3 million annually of "workfare" assistance
programming under the BIA assistance grant program. Over the
course of the past three years, the Tanana Chiefs Conference has
conducted regional, subregional and village community meetings and
teleconferences regarding the development and implementation of
state and federal welfare reform legislation and programming. As
part of the Interior region's TANF program planning process, TCC
conducted a regionwide survey in December 1996 of its member
communities to determine local preferences in program design. In
March 1997, TCC developed and circulated for discussion a draft
regional TANF program concept paper based on consensus elements of
the survey. They solicited and received comment on each program
element of the plan at the TCC annual convention and board of
directors meeting and held a special board of directors meeting in
June 1997 to establish consensus on all key program design
elements. Additional discussion and input from Interior
communities was initiated through separate subregional board
meetings in the fall of 1997 and a draft regional TANF plan was
developed and distributed for public review by each of the 37
communities in the service area and three separate teleconferences
were held to solicit additional comments on the draft plan. In
February 1998, a final draft of the plan was developed which
incorporated the comments garnered through the community public
review process. The executive board of directors of TCC reviewed
and approved the regional TANF plan on February 24, 1998, and TCC
has submitted the plan for approval to the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. These formal decision processes, along
with a regionwide public awareness effort utilizing the agency's
regional newsletter and ongoing planning sessions with other
regional Native nonprofit corporations and the state of Alaska,
Division of Public Assistance, constitute the broad range of
sustained planning and public awareness efforts utilized by TCC
which were incorporated into the development of their plan. In the
truest sense of the word, the TCC plan is programming developed by
the communities themselves. The deliberate actions that have been
taken to reach consensus on all aspects regarding the design of
their region plan, assures maximum ongoing collaboration between
the local and regional partners of the project, creates a
collective ownership, investment and commitment by all parties
regarding the goals of the plan and establishes a shared
responsibility toward reaching the objectives of the joint
programming. The TCC plan has been developed by Interior Alaska
communities with and for their families.
MR. SHIRCEL continued the regional plan is designed through ongoing
local discussion and regional consensus decision making processes,
focusing on available resources, practical realities and the joint
investments and commitments of over 37 Interior communities. While
many of the specific elements of the TCC TANF plan are identical to
those of the state to assure standards of fairness to all Alaskan
citizens, many key elements differ as a reflection of the strong
attitudes and local values of communities in Interior Alaska. The
TCC plan incorporates the same standards relative to available
income and allowable exemptions. It incorporates the same
definitions for earned and unearned income, the same standards of
need and eligibility, the same amount of benefits for children,
pregnant women and disabled adults and the same 60 month life-time
limit to assistance. The TCC TANF plan differs from the state's
temporary assistance plan only in that their regionally designed
plan gets a far bigger bang for the buck than the state's current
program. For the same dollar amount under the TCC plan, all
applicants are required to undergo alcohol and substance abuse
evaluations and follow the recommendations of the evaluation or
lose a percentage of their benefit. For those who comply with the
evaluation recommendation within six months, their benefits are
restored and the percentage withheld is returned to them upon
successful completion of their treatment. Under the TCC plan, all
parents receiving benefits are required to attend their children's
parent teacher conferences and include their children in regular
health screenings made available in the community. Failure to do
so results in a reduction in their benefits. Under the TCC plan in
two-parent households in which domestic violence is a problem, the
perpetrator is required to leave the home and receive counseling,
by court order if necessary. He may receive a portion of the
household benefit only if he continues counseling outside the home.
The TCC TANF plan actually reduces the benefits of nondisabled
adults by 5 percent and requires more households to work more than
does the current state plan. Under the current state TANF plan,
households are required to engage in 20-35 hours of work activities
within two years from the time of their application. Under the TCC
plan, the same households are required to engage in 25-35 hours of
work activities within two months of the time of their application
for benefits. Under the same current use of these same funds, one-
stop centers are financed and available in only a handful Alaska's
urban centers. The TCC plan incorporates a service delivery system
that includes 37 existing community based offices and assigned
staff located in one-stop centers in each of the communities of the
service area created through shared funding from new and existing
federal program funds. These shared staff and facilities are
funded through the combined resources of multiple federal programs
to minimize administrative cost and maximize the level of
collaboration with other support services needed by families
seeking to enter the labor market.
MR. SHIRCEL concluded Alaska's rural communities, through the
regional nonprofit corporations, have been designing programs to
better fit the needs of their families. Many have also been
developing local and regional infrastructures that now rival the
state's capacity to provide a comparable level of local service
delivery especially in rural remote areas. For communities in the
Interior, this is and has been the case for quite some time. House
Bill 401 would maximize our efforts to combine programs and funding
streams to more efficiently and effectively get people off of
welfare and on to work. He said TCC requested the committee to
seriously consider moving this bill out of committee and onto
passage.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Shircel for his remarks and asked Sharon
Olsen to come forward to the witness table.
Number 2202
SHARON OLSEN, Director, Employment and Training Programs, Central
Council Tlingit and Haida Indians of Alaska, said much of her
testimony had already been discussed by previous witnesses.
Central Council is made up of 22 communities through the Southeast
region and has found that with industries like logging and fishing
slowing down or even closing, many tribal members are in need of
assistance. According to BIA's 1995 Labor Force Report, the
overall unemployment percentage of Indians residing in Southeast
Alaska unemployed or not in the labor force is about 60 percent.
MS. OLSEN had prepared a brief summary of Central Council's tribal
TANF plan including their goals, principles and strategies, some of
which are to emphasize work, promote self-sufficiency, promote
education, discourage unwed pregnancies, promote family stability,
promote responsibility, discourage dependency, minimize bureaucracy
and maintain a safety net. She directed the committee's attention
to a letter written to Commissioner Perdue supporting HB 401 and
expressing the concerns of the Central Council. Also included with
her materials was a special report she had prepared which discusses
what Central Council is doing in terms of their involvement in the
welfare reform movement. For example, Central Council implemented
the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills program in 1989, has a one-
stop shop and has consolidated under Public 103-477, and made major
expansions in employment and training, one of which is the new
regional vocational training and resource center under
construction.
MS. OLSEN noted that Sealaska Corporation had just presented
Central Council with $150,000 ....
TAPE 98-47, SIDE B
Number 0002
MS. OLSEN continued .... had computer training, small business,
tourism, mining, construction and a variety of other training that
Central Council has actually taken to the villages and helped train
and place people in their respective villages. She noted that her
briefing statement discusses some of the impacts of welfare reform.
Oftentimes being forced to work first without adequate training
reduces the likeliness of success in the work force. Central
Council views that as a very serious issue and as such designed
training and concentrated on preparing individuals for work so an
individual is not just placed in a job but keeps and grows in the
job. She said Alaska Natives make up about 17 percent of the
state's total population and about 36 percent of the state's
welfare assistance caseload. She has been stressing to the tribal
leaders and organizations that everyone needs to play a part in
reducing welfare. Her report talks about conducting tribal census
which would identify needs of the tribal members by community,
encourages contact with legislators and congressmen to advocate for
a state match, to insist on equal access of services, to prepare
for census 2000 by making sure there's accurate information, to
work with the state on the economic development plan, to support
the state/tribal liaison position which has now been filled, to
monitor the impacts of the food stamp and child support enforcement
programs and stresses that tribal leaders must play an active role
in the state's strategic plan for welfare reform.
Number 0374
REPRESENTATIVE GREEN referred to the chart Ms. Olsen had
distributed and asked, "I see this very impressive chart and if we
were to overlay the population of Natives in these various
communities would it look similar; in other words, is there a
geographic difference in the unemployment or the recipient rate or
is it far less, say they're more job opportunities in a place like
Juneau than there would be in some of these other communities."
MS. OLSEN said "There are; in fact, Juneau, Sitka and Ketchikan,
even though they have the largest number of people on welfare,
those seem to be the only places where there's permanent type work.
Otherwise we deal with seasonable work situations."
CHAIRMAN BUNDE asked if there would be any net loss of benefits to
recipients under this plan and if there was an administrative cap?
MR. LIVEY replied there is an administrative cap of 20 percent set
in federal law which would be applied to the tribal assistance plan
as approved.
Number 0509
CHAIRMAN BUNDE closed public testimony on HB 401 and asked the
wishes of the committee.
Number 0515
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON made a motion to pass HB 401 from committee.
Number 0520
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER made the following comment for the record:
"The first time that I heard of this bill and was told of it, a
couple of things popped into my mind that would be of concern, but
the bill has anticipated them and met them. This isn't an
abdication of state power to anybody, it's just a delegation of
state power like the state does in a myriad of situations by
contracting out, if you will, to nonprofit organizations for the
delivery of services. It's, I guess in the Republican sense,
privatization - nothing wrong with that - and the only thing I'm a
little disappointed in is not seeing a negative fiscal note for
some of the money that's going to be saved by doing this.
Although, it's going to Finance .... It will serve nontribal
members as well as tribal members and it's a system that is set up
and in listening to some of the descriptions of the systems in
place, I'm not kidding when I say I wish we could do that in
Anchorage. I'm ready."
Number 0590
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON said there are several reasons he's
enthusiastic about it. One, it continues an effort that
Representative Ivan has been working on in trying to make
government and delivery of services work better all over Alaska.
Quite a number of rural communities have been contracting with
nonprofits and tribal organizations to deliver services of all
kinds and his sense is there's a significant amount of competency
developed in many communities.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE noted there was a motion before the committee. He
asked if there was objection. Hearing none, HB 401 passed out of
the House Health, Education and Social Services Standing Committee.
HB 302 - UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA OPERATING BUDGET
Number 0713
CHAIRMAN BUNDE announced the next item on the agenda was HB 302,
"An Act relating to the University of Alaska; and providing for an
effective date." He explained the basics of the bill would
suggest that if a foundation formula is valuable for an equitable
distribution of state funds in K-12, then it's very likely that
same philosophy would apply to postsecondary education. The bill
does include a formula for distributing state funds based on the
complexity of the study and the year in which a student is involved
assuming that a senior of engineering requires more financial
support than a freshman English major. The committee had before
them a committee substitute which needed to be adopted for
discussion.
Number 0784
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER made a motion to adopt proposed committee
substitute, 0-LS1285/F, Ford, 4/16/98, as the working draft.
Hearing no objection, that version was before the committee.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE directed the committee's attention to Amendment 1 to
page 2, line 14, which calls for inflation proofing at 2 percent of
the university's budget. He made a motion to adopt Amendment 1 on
page 2, line 14, following "year", insert ", plus two percent for
inflation".
Number 0835
REPRESENTATIVE BRICE objected. He questioned what the 2 percent
was based on - was it a conglomeration of all the various inflation
factors such as periodicals, book costs, academic learning, et
cetera.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE responded it reflects the consumer price index (CPI)
plus what he thinks is a reasonable amount in light of the state's
current financial setting.
REPRESENTATIVE BRICE inquired if it was straight CPI not adjusted
higher education CPI.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE said that was correct. He asked if there was
further discussion.
REPRESENTATIVE BRICE said he would feel more comfortable if it was
a floating inflation factor based on what the university is facing
in terms of funding.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE reiterated he thought the 2 percent was feasible in
today's financial situation.
Number 0941
REPRESENTATIVE BRICE made a motion to amend Amendment 1 to delete
2 percent and insert 3 percent.
Number 0958
CHAIRMAN BUNDE objected.
REPRESENTATIVE BRICE commented that while 2 percent is nice,
sometimes there's 10-15 percent inflation in certain areas of the
university and in other areas there's none. It's very complex, and
he thought a straight 2 percent would cause the university more
problems in the future. He withdrew his amendment to Amendment 1.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE asked if there was further objection to Amendment 1.
Hearing none, Amendment 1 was adopted. He noted there were a
number of individuals wishing to testify on HB 302. He asked
Richard Benavides to testify at this time.
Number 1032
RICHARD BENAVIDES testified via teleconference from Anchorage,
providing his experience with the university system in Anchorage.
He first attended the university in 1975 when there was just the
Anchorage Community College, obtaining an associates degree in
1982. He is anticipating getting his bachelor's degree in May in
journalism and public communication. He noted that Wendy Redman
had previously testified she wasn't real supportive of the
legislature micro managing the university system and the university
had set up different committees in an effort to make some changes.
For instance, the committee that's trying to increase the
reallocation from $6 million to $10 million over the next three
years from administration back into instruction which he thought
begs the question of changing how the university is funded. He
said, "We all realize that an English 111 class is going to cost a
heck of a lot less than a doctoral or master's degree program, but
I think we should stop this turf fighting where only doctoral
degrees are allowed at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF).
If they feel that that's part of the problem with funding them,
certainly the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) would love to
have a couple of doctoral programs and while HB 302 may not be the
answer to equitable or any more financing or funding for UAA, it
sure does acknowledge the level of the courses the system has for
all Alaska. .... it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that
Anchorage is the communications, transportation, financial
(indisc.), administrative center for the majority of everything
that occurs here in Alaska and the entire state should have a
vested interest in ensuring that UAA can provide for the
development of an educated work force for those areas. So, some
change is necessary in the funding of UAA and if this legislation
can at least eliminate that glaring fact, I'm all for it."
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Benavides for his testimony and asked
Pearl Strub to present her comments at this time.
Number 1160
PEARL STRUB, Representative, Bristol Bay Campus Advisory Council,
testified via teleconference from Dillingham. She said during this
past year, the Bristol Bay campus has served 650 students per
semester in 32 different communities. The university system has
sustained reduced budgets for many years and each of the reductions
has had an effect throughout the system, reaching as far as the
campus in Bristol Bay. She said the rural campuses have lost
faculty and staff which has drastically reduced the effectiveness
and services to students. She feels the budget reallocations
between campuses if necessary are best worked out by the campuses
rather than using a per student formula. Other factors need to be
considered such as the number of sites a campus serves, the size of
available classrooms, or the amount the campus has matched toward
federal and private grants for increased outside funding coming
into the campus program. Currently, the Bristol Bay campus runs on
kind of a bare bones budget, but through educational partnerships
the campus brings in an additional 50 percent over and above its
operating budget from other sources in Bristol Bay, including
shared funding with other agencies in order to serve the 32
villages serving the 650 students. Educational partnerships with
nearly every social, business, educational and health organization
operating in the Bay help to extend the campus services; however,
if HB 302 is enacted, the campus, because of a relatively small
enrollment, may be reduced beyond the point where it can continue
to provide services to a needy and deserving student body. Most
Bristol Bay students would not be able to move to a larger campus
to obtain an education; such a move would be a financial and social
hardship from which rural families, especially those relying on
subsistence, would not be able to recover. Without available
education, individuals would be locked into a total reliance on the
fishing economy.
MS. STRUB continued that this year more than ever, due to the
disastrous fishing season and the prediction of an equally
disastrous fishing season this year, Bristol Bay residents need
access to training that would prepare them for other work. The
campus is the most effective way to deliver the necessary training
programs. Therefore, she requested that no allocation of funds be
made by an enrollment formula, but rather the university be allowed
to make the judgment call of where the funds should go based on
current training needs.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Ms. Strub for testifying and asked Kevin
Tritt to come forward to present his remarks.
Number 1315
KEVIN TRITT, President, Union Students, University of Alaska
Anchorage, expressed his appreciation to the committee for
addressing this issue. He was somewhat concerned with
misinformation that may be circulating regarding the situation at
the university. He also expressed concern that while this bill is
an effort to rectify what is viewed by many people as an unfair
situation, it would also be circumventing a process which the Board
of Regents has put in place to do just that - address this issue.
The allocation committee is looking at the distribution formula -
the allocation model - to determine how the resources provided by
the state may be better allocated between the campuses. He
believed it would be premature to legislate a process that really
should be the purview of the regents, before the board has had a
full opportunity to examine the facts and come forward with a
recommendation. He is very confident with the committee's ability
to examine this issue and to come up with a resolution that's
equitable for everyone. He said one of the things that's come up in
the committee's investigation thus far is that the disparity most
people are talking about generally refers to the 60/30 split
between Fairbanks and Anchorage; i.e., 60 percent of the students
go to Anchorage, but UAA only gets 30 percent of the funding, and
30 percent of the students go to Fairbanks, and UAF gets 60 percent
of the funding. He said that is really deceiving and when the
committee started looking into it, they realized it wasn't true.
MR. TRITT explained the public arguments being made are based on
unresearched and inaccurate facts and it's driving a wedge between
the Fairbanks and Anchorage campuses. He stated, "That's why when
our assembly put forward a resolution recently in support of this
legislation, I encouraged them very strongly to reword it and to
account for certain factors that I didn't feel were in the
resolution. That was not done and I chose not to sign it because
I didn't feel it was going to be a productive effort and I knew
what kind of feedback we would be getting from the Fairbanks
students which has happened." In conclusion, he respects this
effort on the part of the legislature and believes the issue needs
to be addressed, but the regents are undertaking the process. He
urged the committee to hold off on this until the regents have had
an opportunity to finish what they've started.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Tritt for his comments.
Number 1480
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON asked Mr. Tritt how much more time would be
fair in his mind for the regents to go through the process.
MR. TRITT responded the committee was appointed last fall and he
believes the committee is expected to have its work completed on
this issue by the end of the summer. He added that he's been
advised there's a lot more detail that needs to be looked into
because not everything meshes real well.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE noted that not everyone shares the same level of
confidence as Mr. Tritt.
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON observed, "It seems to me what we're after is
not fairness but rationality and statistics - students and the
money doesn't necessarily indicate that it's fair or unfair, but
what needs to be is a rational system which is what I think the
bill sponsor is after."
Number 1560
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER commented the perception of unfairness in the
distribution of university funds between campuses was present in
the 1960s when he attended UAA and he questioned why the university
was just now putting a committee together to look at this issue.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE said the ultimate goal, at least in his mind, is to
have more money for the university, but if there isn't a rational
perception of fairness where the largest group of voters reside,
there won't be any additional money.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE asked Andrew Hund to present his testimony at this
time.
Number 1600
ANDREW HUND testified via teleconference from Anchorage and
expressed his gratitude to Chairman Bunde for sponsoring HB 302, an
issue that should have been addressed many years ago. The Union
Students, University of Alaska Anchorage, recently passed a
resolution in support of HB 302 and believes the bill will
accomplish two things. First, HB 302 brings to light the unfair
distribution of funding between UAF and UAA campuses. The unequal
distribution of funds has been the result of the Board of Regents
lack of decisions and as a result the UAA campus has suffered. One
way in which the difference in funding can be seen is the adjunct
faculty rate between campuses. For example, UAA has an adjunct
faculty rate of 65 percent, whereas UAF has an adjunct faculty rate
of 35 percent. He stressed the union students are not advocating
that UAF faculty rate be lessened, but rather advocating that UAA
have the same rate as UAF. The second area is that HB 302 will
indirectly address the excessive administration costs of the
university system. Currently, the UAF administration is 250
percent more than comparable universities, even with a 28 percent
cost of living increase added on. This is a major problem for
getting any more funding because currently $49.8 million is spent
in administration costs. He urged the committee to pass HB 302.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Hund for his testimony and asked Judith
Nelson to present her comments at this time.
Number 1709
JUDITH NELSON, Executive Director, Bristol Bay Economic Development
Corporation, testified via teleconference from Dillingham. She
said the Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation is the CDQ
group for Bristol Bay and one of the focuses of their program is
training in employment and education of residents of Bristol Bay to
provide skills for gainful employment. They work closely with the
Bristol Bay campus in this endeavor. She pointed out that much of
the delivery of services is done via telephone which is a hard way
to learn, but people are doing it successfully. She noted Bristol
Bay has a very small campus, has always been very poorly funded and
has continually fought for equity in funding. She said the current
budget of $600,000 barely funds the necessities and the Bristol Bay
campus also needs quality in education delivery, but the formula
proposed in HB 302 will further harm the Bush campuses.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Ms. Nelson for her testimony and asked
Patrick Casey to come forward to present his comments.
Number 1800
PATRICK CASEY, Student, University of Alaska Fairbanks, testified
that as a former member of the military, he knows that micro
managing doesn't work and in his opinion HB 302 is micro
management. The mentality of "robbing Peter to pay Paul" doesn't
help the university campuses, but rather hurts the entire
university system. He suggested the level of funding should be
increased to the high level instead of taking from one campus and
giving to another.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Casey for his comments and asked Terry
Hoefferle to testify at this time.
Number 1860
TERRY HOEFFERLE, Chief of Operations, Bristol Bay Native
Association, testified via teleconference from Dillingham,
expressing his outrage at HB 302. He said a funding formula that
looks at degrees and the number of graduates that a university
seems tied to, does not accurately reflect what postsecondary
education is really all about in rural Alaska. He stated in rural
Alaska, postsecondary education is more than a means of getting a
degree, it's a means of getting a job and one of the ways rural
areas work toward local hire and higher employment is by hiring
people who may not have quite the necessary skills or education for
a position, but to train that person while on the job. The Bristol
Bay campus is a dynamic and invaluable part of the local economy.
Currently, the Bristol Bay Native Association has got a number of
partnerships going on with the Bristol Bay campus, providing a
variety of training and education programs. He further discussed
the Bristol Bay campus programs and achievements. He concluded
this legislation would cripple the Bristol Bay campus and the local
economy's ability to respond to living in the twentieth century.
Number 2036
CHAIRMAN BUNDE recalled the Bristol Bay campus had a $600,000
budget and approximately 600 students which makes that campus one
of the more economical campuses. He recollected the cost per
student at UAA is approximately $15,000, $20,000 at UAF and
$22,000-$23,000 at UAS.
MR. HOEFFERLE pointed out the accomplishments at the Bristol Bay
campus are done with considerable partnering throughout the
community. The accomplishments he had spoken to were those which
the Bristol Bay Native Association has with the Bristol Bay campus
and there are similar partnerships with other agencies and
institutions.
CHAIRMAN BUNDE thanked Mr. Hoefferle and asked Jean Richardson to
present her comments at this time.
Number 2095
JEAN RICHARDSON, Student, University of Alaska Fairbanks, said
parts of HB 302 would be great if the university budget actually
increased with inflation. However, the reallocation between
campuses would be terrible. She said the university budget is
complex; there's research, community services, the community
colleges and universities have been combined so some schools are
commuter colleges, others are residential campuses and UAA is
making a transition to a stronger on-campus life, all of which take
different amounts of funding. It's a very complex system and the
Board of Regents exist to balance those needs and in her opinion
has done so fairly well. She said reallocating from rural campuses
at this point where overhead is a big part of their budget would be
extremely detrimental.
Number 2163
CHAIRMAN BUNDE asked if there was additional public testimony.
Hearing none, he announced HB 302 would be held in committee and
heard at a later date.
ADJOURNMENT
Number 2180
CHAIRMAN BUNDE adjourned the House Health, Education and Social
Services Standing committee at 4:45 p.m.
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