Legislature(2017 - 2018)HOUSE FINANCE 519

02/15/2017 07:00 AM House LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

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Audio Topic
07:03:49 AM Start
07:12:13 AM Adjourn
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ FY18 Proposed Budget TELECONFERENCED
Subcommittee Assignments
               ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE                                                                                       
                  LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL                                                                                         
                   FEBRUARY 15, 2017                                                                                          
                       7:04 AM                                                                                                
                                                                                                                              
MEMBERS PRESENT                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Representative Sam Kito, Chair                                                                                                  
Senator Bert Stedman, Vice Chair                                                                                                
Representative Matt Claman                                                                                                      
Representative Bryce Edgmon                                                                                                     
Representative Charisse Millett                                                                                                 
Representative Dan Ortiz                                                                                                        
Representative Louise Stutes                                                                                                    
Representative Harriet Drummond, Majority Alternate                                                                             
Representative David Eastman, Minority Alternate                                                                                
Senator Lyman Hoffman                                                                                                           
Senator Pete Kelly                                                                                                              
Senator Anna MacKinnon                                                                                                          
Senator Kevin Meyer                                                                                                             
Senator Peter Micciche                                                                                                          
Senator Gary Stevens                                                                                                            
Senator Cathy Giessel, Alternate                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS ABSENT                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Representative David Guttenberg                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                              
AGENDA                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
APPROVAL OF AGENDA                                                                                                              
OTHER COMMITTEE BUSINESS                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
      7:03:49 AM                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
  I. CHAIR SAM KITO called the Legislative Council meeting to                                                                 
      order at 7:04 a.m. in Room 519 (House Finance) of the State                                                               
      Capitol. Present at the call were Representatives Claman,                                                                 
      Edgmon,  Millett,  Ortiz, Stutes,  Drummond  (alternate),                                                                 
      Eastman (alternate), and  Kito; Senators Hoffman, Kelly,                                                                  
      MacKinnon, Meyer, Micciche, Stevens, Giessel (alternate),                                                                 
      and Stedman. Representative Guttenberg was absent.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
 II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
      7:05:31 AM                                                                                                              
      VICE CHAIR STEDMAN moved that Legislative Council approve                                                                 
      the agenda as presented.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
      The motion was approved without objection.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
III. RATIFICATION OF CHARITABLE EVENTS                                                                                        
      a. FY 18 Legislative Council Proposed Budget                                                                            
      b. Subcommittee Assignments                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
      a. FY 18 Legislative Council Proposed Budget                                                                            
                                                                                                                              
      7:06:07 AM                                                                                                              
      VICE CHAIR STEDMAN moved that Legislative Council per AS                                                                  
      24.20.130 approve the FY 18  Legislative Council Proposed                                                                 
      Budget and  transmit it to the  House and Senate Finance                                                                  
      Committees for their review and action.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
      CHAIR KITO  objected for purposes of discussion. For the                                                                  
      record, he read his memo dated February 15, 2017, regarding                                                               
      FY  18 Legislative Council Detailed  Budget and Overview                                                                  
      (below):                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
      The Legislative Council budget has 14 budget components and                                                               
      4 RDU's                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
      This  FY 18  Legislative Council  Request is  an overall                                                                  
      reduction of ($321.6) from  the FY 18  Governor's Figures                                                                 
      (preliminary numbers).                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
              $51,508.4 FY 18 Governor's Figure                                                                                 
             -$51,186.8 FY 18 Legislative Council Request                                                                     
             $   321.6                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
      Per  statute this FY  18  Request constitutes the detail                                                                  
      request, which Legislative Council submits to the Finance                                                                 
      Committees for their review and action.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
The following pages provide a Recap of Changes by Component                                                                     
for this detail budget book.  It  explains the component,                                                                       
and the associated change from the FY 18 Governor's Figures                                                                     
to the Council's FY 18 Request.                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
In recognition of current fiscal circumstances, and in an                                                                       
effort to make sure that the Legislature is doing all it                                                                        
can  to adjust  to  the current  fiscal reality, Council                                                                        
requests that the Finance Committees review the Legislative                                                                     
Council's budget and  identify efficiencies in order  to                                                                        
achieve an additional savings to  the state of  at least                                                                        
3.5%.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
The Legislative Operating Budget and the Session Expenses                                                                       
components provide the best opportunity to achieve those                                                                        
savings.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
DISCUSSION FOLLOWED regarding  the Legislative Operating                                                                        
Budget.   Representative  Claman   suggested  that   the                                                                        
Legislature look for savings in the budget that might allow                                                                     
the Department of Law  to hire additional prosecutors to                                                                        
serve an essential public safety function. He said it would                                                                     
be appropriate in the subcommittee process to look perhaps                                                                      
at the Office of Victims' Rights to realize those savings.                                                                      
Representative Eastman commented that  the  Legislature's                                                                       
Legal Services Division is down seven positions, and was                                                                        
a fairly critical area of the Legislature; and that perhaps                                                                     
the Finance Committee looks at reducing membership dues to                                                                      
realize savings  that  might be  used  to  support Legal                                                                        
Services. Chair Kito noted that  the amount budgeted for                                                                        
membership fees is not the full amount requested by those                                                                       
organizations and Legislative Council is not recommending                                                                       
that the full membership fees be paid in this budget.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
Chair Kito removed his objection and the motion passed                                                                          
without objection.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
b.  Subcommittee Assignments                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  KITO  noted  the   following  Legislative Council                                                                        
subcommittee assignments:                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
IT Subcommittee: Chair -  Tim Banaszak (IT  Manager) and                                                                        
members Representatives Kito, Guttenberg, and LeDoux, and                                                                       
Senator Giessel.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
      Security: Chair -  Steve Daigle (Chief  of Security) and                                                                  
      members Representatives Kito, Edgmon, Millett, and Stutes,                                                                
      and Senators Stevens and MacKinnon.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
      Moving and Travel: Chair Jessica Geary  (Finance Manager)                                                                 
      and members Representatives Kito and Drummond, and Senators                                                               
      Stevens, Giessel, and Stedman.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
      Per  Diem:  Chair  -   Representative Kito  and  members                                                                  
      Representatives Ortiz and  Stutes, and Senators Stevens,                                                                  
      Hoffman, MacKinnon, and Stedman.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
      Benson Legislative Office Building: Chair - Representative                                                                
      Kito and members Representatives Drummond and Millett, and                                                                
      Senators Stevens, MacKinnon, and Giessel.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
      Chair Kito  also welcomed any Legislator or  Legislator's                                                                 
      staff to sit on any of the subcommittees even if they were                                                                
      not a member of Legislative Council.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
      There  being no  further business  before the  committee,                                                                 
      Legislative Council adjourned at 7:14 a.m.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
      7:12:13 AM                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                

Document Name Date/Time Subjects
FY 2018 LAA brief overview.pdf JLEC 2/15/2017 7:00:00 AM
170215 FY18 Proposed Budget Memo.pdf JLEC 2/15/2017 7:00:00 AM