Legislature(2003 - 2004)
02/20/2004 03:20 PM House L&C
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= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE LABOR AND COMMERCE STANDING COMMITTEE
February 20, 2004
3:20 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Tom Anderson, Chair
Representative Carl Gatto, Vice Chair
Representative Nancy Dahlstrom
Representative Bob Lynn
Representative Norman Rokeberg
Representative Harry Crawford
Representative David Guttenberg
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
Alcoholic Beverage Control Board
Billy (William) G. Andrews - Anchorage
Gail M. Niemi - Juneau
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Chiropractic Examiners
R. Clark Davis, D.C. - Ketchikan
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Dental Examiners
Mary Ann Cerney - Fairbanks
Arne R. Pihl, D.M.D. - Ketchikan
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Alaska Labor Relations Agency
Randall C. Frank - Fairbanks
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Marine Pilots
Anthony (Tony) J. Joslyn - Anchor Point
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Robert (Tiny) Schasteen - Unalaska/Dutch Harbor
- CONFIRMATION HELD TO 3/03/04
State Medical Board
Robert A. Breffeilh, M.D. - Juneau
John T. Duddy, M.D. - Anchorage
G. Bert Flaming, M.D. - Glennallen
David M. Head, M.D. - Nome
Michael J. Tauriainen - Soldotna
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Certified Direct-Entry Midwives
Mark E. Richey, M.D., P.C. - Anchorage
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Nursing
Patricia M. Swenson - Anchorage
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Personnel Board
Debra E. English - Anchorage
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Pharmacy
Cindy Bueler - Anchorage
Gary M. Givens - Anchorage
Michael Pauley - Eagle River
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers
Nelida Irvine - Anchorage
Gene H Shafer - Fairbanks
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Real Estate Commission
Lawrence (Larry) J. Bauer - Juneau
Glenn Clary - Anchorage
Rita C. Stuckart - Anchorage
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Veterinary Examiners
David J. Hunt, D.V.M. - Sitka
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
HOUSE BILL NO. 275
"An Act relating to veterinarians and animals."
- BILL HEARING POSTPONED
HOUSE BILL NO. 323
"An Act relating to the care of and cruelty to animals, and to
reports of suspected child abuse or neglect by persons who have
a duty to investigate animal cruelty, abuse, or neglect."
- BILL HEARING POSTPONED
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
PATRICIA M. SWENSON, Appointee
to the Board of Nursing
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Board of
Nursing.
ROBERT (TINY) SCHASTEEN, Appointee
to the Board of Marine Pilots
Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Board of
Marine Pilots.
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 04-15, SIDE A
Number 0001
CHAIR TOM ANDERSON called the House Labor and Commerce Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:20 p.m. Representatives
Anderson, Dahlstrom, Lynn, Rokeberg, Crawford, and Guttenberg
were present at the call to order. Representative Gatto arrived
as the meeting was in progress.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
Number 0096
CHAIR ANDERSON announced that the only order of business would
be confirmation hearings for 25 of the governor's appointments
to various boards as listed in the committee calendar. He noted
that members had been provided the names and resumes for each
appointee. Additionally, Chair Anderson noted that advancing
the name out of committee of any of the confirmations did not
reflect intent to vote for or against any of the individuals in
further sessions for the purpose of confirmation.
CHAIR ANDERSON read the names of the boards and noted that two
appointees, Patricia M. Swenson and Robert Schasteen, had been
asked to be available for committee questions.
Number 0155
PATRICIA M. SWENSON, Appointee to the Board of Nursing,
introduced herself to the committee.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG opined that she'd be an excellent
appointee.
MS. SWENSON testified:
For 13 years I was legislative staff. Before that I
was a nurse. I have not been licensed as a nurse for
the past 10 years. I am applying for the public
member seat on the board, which does not require a
license. Nor does it require any medical background.
I am currently employed by the Alaska Workforce
Investment Board, Alaska Department of Labor and
Workforce Development. Before I applied for this
position, I talked to the state ethics attorney to ask
if this would, in any way, be in conflict. I was told
that my job, and the scope of it, would not be.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG opined that Ms. Swenson was uniquely
experienced because of her nursing background.
Number 0366
REPRESENTATIVE GUTTENBERG asked if the Alaska Workforce
Investment Board does any training of nurses.
MS. SWENSON replied that it works with the university in
training nurses. However, her position has no connection to
grant monies, and she doesn't review or approve grants. She has
worked with Providence Hospital, Native organizations, the
University of Alaska Anchorage, and others.
Number 0496
ROBERT (TINY) SCHASTEEN, Appointee to the Board of Marine
Pilots, introduced himself.
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM said she'd reviewed Mr. Schasteen's
resume, noting that he was with Offshore Systems, Inc. (OSI).
She asked him to clarify the types of services this company
provides.
MR. SCHASTEEN replied that his company's biggest customers were
various fishing vessels. He added, "We provide them with
berthing, cold storage, warehouse space. Anything that they
need, we try to perform for them. It's like a one-stop shop."
In further response, he said, "Aleutian Fuel Services is a
separate company, but primarily the same owners. We provide
Aleutian Fuel Services, which I also supervise, to provide fuel
and lube and filter supplies to the vessels. We don't have any
other subsidiary companies."
Number 0636
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM asked Mr. Schasteen if he had any
ownership interests in OSI or Aleutian Fuel Services.
MR. SCHASTEEN said no.
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM asked if he'd applied for the position
on the Board of Marine Pilots independently or was asked to
apply for the position by someone else.
MR. SCHASTEEN answered that he was called and notified by Paul
Axelson (ph) that the position was open, and decided to apply.
He said he'd applied to be on this board one other time.
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM referred to some photos she had of the
OSI dock showing some large ships, trawlers, and cargo ships
tied up there. She asked if Mr. Schasteen was aware that the
Board of Marine Pilots sometimes has to make decisions that
would have a financial impact on ship owners.
MR. SCHASTEEN replied yes.
Number 0725
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM continued, "So, your customers at OSI
are large ships and, potentially, you could be asked to vote on
questions that would have a financial impact on your customers.
How do you feel about that?"
MR. SCHASTEEN replied that his customers were the fishing
vessels. He said:
The large ships that you see there, they're at my
berth at the request of either the fishing vessel --
which is not normally the case. More likely, it's the
person who buys the fish from the fishing vessel.
Normally, the fish is sold as soon as it hits whatever
transportation mode it's using, whether it's vans,
ships, or barges; usually, the product is sold upon
arrival on that vessel. So the buyer of the product
determines how it's shipped.
Number 0799
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM asked if he saw any conflict [of
interest] or felt comfortable being put in that position.
MR. SCHASTEEN replied, "Absolutely, no problem at all."
CHAIR ANDERSON said the Board of Marine Pilots has two seats for
pilots, two for shipping industry representatives, and two
public members that aren't supposed to have connections to
either piloting or shipping. He said the final seat on the
board is for the commissioner of commerce or his/her
representative. He said:
As the public policymakers, as the legislature, we
expect the pilots to serve from a pilot's perspective,
and we expect the agents to serve from the shipper's
perspective. Obviously, you see where I'm going. But
the public members, we expect them to be looking out
for the public, kind of a more neutral, nonaffiliated
role. ...
With your paycheck, your income tied to ships docking
at OSI, I want you to convince me that you would
ignore what is essentially your boss, the big
shippers, and look out for the public. That's why you
were called today. There was just a concern - nothing
personal, but we have to analyze all the aspects of a
person's qualifications and make sure there's no
conflict of interest. There seems to be some concern
from the industry that there could be, with yours. So
that's why we wanted you to talk to us today.
Number 0903
MR. SCHASTEEN referred members to AS 08.01.025, which states:
Sec. 08.01.025. Public members. A public member of a
board may not
(1) be engaged in the occupation that the board
regulates;
(2) be associated by legal contract with a member
of the occupation that the board regulates except as a
consumer of the services provided by a practitioner of
the occupation; or
(3) have a direct financial interest in the
occupation that the board regulates.
MR. SCHASTEEN said he was not engaged in the occupation that the
board regulates, wasn't associated with any members through
legal contracts, and had no direct financial interest in the
occupation that the board regulates. He referred to
AS 08.62.010, which states in part:
Sec. 08.62.010. Creation and membership of board.
There is created the Board of Marine Pilots. It
consists of two pilots licensed under this chapter who
have been actively engaged in piloting on vessels
subject to this chapter, two registered agents or
managers of vessels subject to this chapter who are
actively engaged in the procurement of pilotage
services, two public members in accordance with AS
08.01.025, and the commissioner or the commissioner's
designee.
MR. SCHASTEEN said he is not a pilot and has never hired a
pilot. He elaborated:
To put it in layman's terms, I don't have a say what
cargo goes where. I'm not involved in that process,
even if I wish to be. There's no way they can assert
power over me. My concern is the fishing vessels.
I'll do whatever it takes to take care of my customers
as far as operating offshore systems, but the ships
really have no effect on that. If we passed a
regulation that prevented a ship from coming in, they
would just find some other way to ship. I wouldn't do
that; my customers would. It just wouldn't affect me.
And, of course, having berthing and docking
facilities, my concern for offshore systems is in line
with the pilots: safety is the number-one issue.
Number 1111
CHAIR ANDERSON noted that OSI operates a fuel dock and is a
service provider for the fishing fleet in Dutch Harbor, and that
pilots do dock.
MR. SCHASTEEN said designated cargo goes from the fishing vessel
to the freighter, generally by way of a foreign buyer.
CHAIR ANDERSON commented that this confirmation wasn't easy,
since there was a concern from the marine pilots and others who
wanted the seat filled by someone with a neutral viewpoint. He
said:
When I asked you a question about "can you ignore,"
... you make money from the industry, and this
position is supposed to be the public-member position.
Can you ignore that? That's my concern. It's not
directed at you personally, but it's directed at the
circumstance upon which, and the cases from which, you
have to rule and decide. Sometimes it's impossible to
be neutral due to past experience and pressures, to be
in circumstances, including employment, and, like we
said, monetary or fiduciary roles. That's my concern.
I don't want to speak for Representative Dahlstrom,
but it sounds like that could be hers as well, and
that's why the original board was made up and has
remained consistent with two pilots and two shipping
industry representatives and then the two public
members, with the seventh being the commerce
commissioner or the representative. That really
distinguishes a difference.
Number 1196
MR. SCHASTEEN told members he is looking forward to bringing his
experience to help make good judgments for the people of Alaska.
REPRESENTATIVE GUTTENBERG asked what seat Mr. Schasteen had
applied for previously, and if he knew why he didn't get it.
MR. SCHASTEEN replied that it had to be the public seat, since
he doesn't qualify for any other seat. He said he didn't know
why he didn't get that seat on the board.
Number 1248
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said it seemed to him that, according to
the definition in the law, a public member may not be associated
by legal contract with a member of the occupation that the board
regulates, except as a consumer. He said the concerns raised by
the Alaska State Pilots' Alliance seem to imply that there's a
potential conflict of interest because Mr. Schasteen has a
docking facility. He said, "I don't know if docks need marine
pilots to run them. Is there any truth to that rumor,
Mr. Schasteen?"
MR. SCHASTEEN replied that he'd never hired or contracted with
the marine pilots; they contract with some of the ships that
come into his dock.
CHAIR ANDERSON said he thinks AS 08.01.025(3) states that having
a direct financial interest can cause a problem.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said:
If you go to your dentist and have him drill on your
teeth, you can be a consumer of this practitioner's
profession. It seems to me, if there's a contractual
obligation it arises between a public member and the
occupation regulated, then you have the appearance of
a potential conflict of interest. I think that's the
intention. There is an exception, right in the
statute. I'm just wondering how the statute applies
since that seems to be the point of contention here.
Number 1463
CHAIR ANDERSON announced that Mr. Schasteen's name would be held
until the committee received additional legal information. He
began to read the names on the appointees, again stating that
this doesn't reflect an intent by any member to vote for or
against these individuals during the joint floor session.
Number 1508
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG objected for purposes of discussion,
asking if Chair Anderson intended to read the names into the
record on an individual basis.
CHAIR ANDERSON replied that he did.
The committee took an at-ease from 3:42 p.m. to 3:43 p.m.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG removed his objection.
CHAIR ANDERSON read the names from the list of appointees [also
provided in the committee calendar for these minutes]. He said
Mr. Schasteen's name would be held [until 3/03/04] awaiting
further information. He requested that members sign the
committee report. [No formal motion was made, but the
confirmations of all the appointees except Mr. Schasteen were
advanced.]
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Labor and Commerce Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at
3:50 p.m.
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