Legislature(2009 - 2010)CAPITOL 106
02/17/2009 08:00 AM House STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s)|| Commissioner, Department of Public Safety | |
| State Commission for Human Rights | |
| Board of Parole | |
| Alaska Public Offices Commission | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
February 17, 2009
8:10 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Bob Lynn, Chair
Representative Paul Seaton, Vice Chair
Representative Carl Gatto
Representative Peggy Wilson
Representative Max Gruenberg
Representative Pete Petersen
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Craig Johnson
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
Commissioner, Department of Public Safety
Joseph A. Masters - Anchorage, Alaska
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
State Commission for Human Rights
Faith Marie Peters - Tanana, Alaska
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Board of Parole
Lonzo Henderson - Anchorage, Alaska
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC)
Kathleen "Kate" Ballenger - Kodiak, Alaska
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
JOSEPH MASTERS, Commissioner
Department of Public Safety
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointed commissioner of the
Department of Public Safety.
FAITH MARIE PETERS, Appointee
to the State Commission for Human Rights
Tanana, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the State
Commission for Human Rights.
LONZO HENDERSON, Appointee
to the Board of Parole
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Board of
Parole.
KATHLEEN "KATE" BALLENGER, Appointee
to the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC)
Kodiak, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Alaska Public
Offices Commission (APOC).
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:10:22 AM
CHAIR BOB LYNN called the House State Affairs Standing Committee
meeting to order at 8:10 a.m. Representatives Seaton, Gatto,
Wilson, Gruenberg, Petersen, and Lynn were present at the call
to order.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
^Commissioner, Department of Public Safety
8:11:00 AM
CHAIR LYNN announced the first order of business, the
confirmation hearing on the appointment of Joseph A. Masters as
commissioner of the Department of Public Safety.
8:11:34 AM
JOSEPH MASTERS, Commissioner, Department of Public Safety (DPS),
reviewed his work history [as shown on his resume included in
the committee packet] and said his diverse assignments within
the department have given him a broad background and a good view
of law enforcement throughout the state.
8:15:40 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to Chair Lynn, said he thinks
one of the biggest problems faced by DPS is providing quality
service. He indicated that in the past, the department has been
plagued with a number of vacancies, which did not allow it to
fully provide service. Furthermore, the department did not, and
still does not, have the technology necessary to provide the
communications and information records management needed in
order to be fully effective. The short-term, first objective
will be to fill all the department's positions, he said. Other
foci will be on highway safety, Internet crimes, child
pornography, and white collar crime. Crimes occurring in Alaska
would not require the department to interface with other
agencies; however, there are a number of crimes happening
elsewhere, and the department would work with the applicable
federal or state agencies.
8:21:34 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to Representative Seaton, said
that in addition to the Alaska State Troopers - the primary
public safety officers in rural Alaska - there are also Village
Public Safety Officers (VPSOs), Village Police Officers (VPOs),
and Tribal Police Officers (TPOs), and all of those entities
need to be considered when making improvements to the
department. One improvement is to provide further training for
the VPSOs, VPOs, and TPOs. Another method for improvement is to
make use of federal funding through grants and other formula
funding. Regarding filling positions in rural Alaska with those
who want to live there, Commissioner Masters said in law
enforcement, there is certain training that is best done face to
face, but ongoing training and certification programs can be
available on line. Police certified trainers can utilize the
distance learning system already in place to offer courses to
rural law enforcement.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON related that the Kachemak Bay branch of
the University of Alaska has put together an entire curriculum
now going before the board of regents for adoption into a
program, and he suggested that that may be useful information
for the Department of Public Safety.
8:27:14 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to a series of questions from
Representative Gruenberg, said he: has filled out a financial
disclosure form that is on file with the Alaska Public Offices
Commission (APOC) and is in the process of filling out one for
this year; has no financial or personal relationships with any
department employee, cabinet-level officers, the governor, or
vendors; has not failed to disclose anything to the committee;
has no expectation of future employment with anyone; has no
plans to leave service as commissioner during the present
administration's term; has nothing in his personal philosophy
that would affect his performance as commissioner; and knows of
no ethical or philosophical hindrance to his confirmation as
commissioner.
8:32:30 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to Representative Wilson, said
the department needs to consider a long-range plan for the VPSO
program, including what the primary function of the program
should be. The conditions of rural Alaska have changed since
the inception of the program in the late '70s. He stated that
he does not believe VPSOs should be armed as long as the program
is contracted through non-profit organizations; however, if that
changes, the issue "should and could be looked at."
8:33:58 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to Representative Gatto,
clarified the difference between VPOs and VPSOs, and confirmed
that all citizens can make an arrest. He also confirmed that in
a domestic violence situation, a VPSO has full authority. To a
question regarding [President Barack Obama's] stimulus package,
he said the department is currently discussing how the money
could be spent without creating a situation wherein there would
have to be cutbacks once the money is gone, or at least how to
prepare for that possibility. He suggested that the stimulus
money could be used on both state and local levels. He
suggested some uses may include personnel, equipment, training,
and coordination and collaboration with other agencies.
Regarding methamphetamines, Commissioner Masters said much
attention has been given to reacting to the problem, and the
resources the department has tend to keep it that way. He said
there are programs that probably would be more effective than
law enforcement in the area of prevention, treatment, and
education, although he said one area he thinks law enforcement
can get involved with more is in the area of education. He said
there are several existing programs that have been utilized in
schools, the effectiveness of which are debatable; however, he
said he thinks the programs can be effective when introduced to
younger children.
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, asked whether or not the state is "turning
the tide" when it comes to drug use, Commissioner Masters said
it is difficult to measure crimes that are prevented, and he
said it will take continual evaluation to determine whether or
not state money is being spent in the best manner. He
emphasized the importance of continuing to put state resources
toward attempting the end of drug use and the prevention of
crimes that are caused by the use and abuse of drugs and
alcohol.
8:41:23 AM
CHAIR LYNN talked about massive cultural changes that have taken
place over the decades.
8:43:12 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to a question from
Representative Seaton, said he has worked with the "brown
shirts" - the Alaska Wildlife Troopers - and the "blue shirts" -
the Division of State Troopers - both when the entities operated
as one and when they were separated, and he stated his belief
that the current system of operating those systems separately is
the better choice. He offered further details. Regarding the
public's trust that officers are held to a reliable standard, he
said he agrees that there is a level of trepidation in regard to
knowing whether or not a complaint will be made against an
officer and whether that complaint will be swept under rug. He
relayed that he cannot say that he would be comfortable laying
out all complaints publicly, because he has concerns that there
would be abuses of the system. He said there certainly are a
number of complaints that are valid and need to be addressed,
and he said he wants to assure complainants that something is
being done, even though they may not be told what that is
specifically. He said when a member of the public files a
complaint and hears nothing after that, "that's a big gap." In
response to Chair Lynn, he said the department is currently
looking for a balance regarding this issue. Not all cases
involve the union, he noted.
8:52:01 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said he would appreciate Commissioner
Masters' continued address of the issue.
CHAIR LYNN remarked that when one member of an entity gets into
trouble, it "tars and feathers" the entire entity.
8:55:37 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to Representative Gruenberg,
said he does not know of any written policy in place to address
allegations of conflict of interest and potential pressure put
on cabinet officials by the governor and his/her staff, but he
said there has been no pressure on him. In further response, he
said currently there is no legislation being planned by the
department to put before the legislature.
8:58:05 AM
COMMISSIONER MASTERS, in response to Representative Petersen,
said the department has a number of issues to address in order
to ensure response to crime. The most critical issue, he
related, is for the department to fill all its positions. The
next concern is to ensure that the troopers out in the field are
doing work that is law enforcement related, not other duties.
He offered examples. Furthermore, the department is continually
looking to expand its line of first responders, which right now
are the VPSOs.
8:59:46 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved to advance the confirmation of
Joseph A. Masters to the joint session of the House and Senate;
he requested unanimous consent. There being no objection, the
nomination of Joseph A. Masters as commissioner of the
Department of Public Safety was advanced.
^State Commission for Human Rights
9:00:26 AM
CHAIR LYNN announced the next order of business, the
confirmation hearing on the appointment of Faith Marie Peters to
the State Commission for Human Rights.
9:00:33 AM
FAITH MARIE PETERS, Appointee to the State Commission for Human
Rights, shared her background with the committee, [as shown on
her resume included in the committee packet]. She said it would
be an honor to be appointed to the commission.
9:02:19 AM
MS. PETERS, in response to a line of questioning from
Representative Gruenberg, described herself as honest, fair,
open to questions and giving advise, and considerate of "every
aspect of everyone." She said neither she nor any member of her
family has had experience as a litigant, witness, or in any
other capacity, with respect to the State Commission for Human
Rights. She said she choose to volunteer to serve on the
commission after being asked to do so, and following advise from
her supervisor.
9:04:45 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved to advance the confirmation of Faith
Marie Peters to the joint session of the House and Senate; he
requested unanimous consent. There being no objection, the
nomination of Faith Marie Peters to the State Commission for
Human Rights was advanced.
^Board of Parole
9:05:35 AM
CHAIR LYNN announced the next order of business, the
confirmation hearing on the appointment of Lonzo Henderson to
the Board of Parole.
9:05:56 AM
LONZO HENDERSON, Appointee to the Board of Parole, discussed his
background, [as shown on his resume included in the committee
packet].
MR. HENDERSON, in response to Chair Lynn, said as a parole
officer, he made the best, informed decisions possible about
allowing someone parole, but sometimes that person would commit
a crime after being granted parole.
9:11:48 AM
MR. HENDERSON, in response to a question from Representative
Seaton regarding recidivism, said when considering whether to
grant someone parole, the person's background - social and
criminal - is considered, and if the person has a history of
substance abuse, conditions are set to address that. For
example, if the person is taking classes to control his/her
substance abuse, those classes will be part of the condition of
parole. If the classes, for example, are not available in the
community to which the person would be paroled, then he/she
would be released to another area in which the class is
available, and would not be sent home until the class or
treatment was completed.
9:14:04 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved to advance the confirmation of Lonzo
Henderson to the joint session of the House and Senate; he
requested unanimous consent. There being no objection, the
nomination of Lonzo Henderson to the Board of Parole was
advanced.
^Alaska Public Offices Commission
9:15:02 AM
CHAIR LYNN announced that he last order of business was the
confirmation hearing on the appointment of Kathleen "Kate"
Ballenger to the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC).
9:15:18 AM
KATHLEEN "KATE" BALLENGER, Appointee to the Alaska Public
Offices Commission (APOC), offered her background and
experience, [which is listed on her resume included in the
committee packet]. She said she is concerned about the ethics,
honesty, and integrity of Alaska's elected officials. She said
she has enjoyed working with APOC and hopes the committee will
vote to forward her confirmation so that she can continue her
work with the commission.
9:19:01 AM
MS. BALLENGER, in response to a question from Representative
Gatto regarding feedback for those who have filed with APOC,
said she is not familiar with all the documentation that is
handled through the Anchorage and/or Juneau APOC office. She
spoke of a project currently in progress that will allow all
those required to file financial disclosure statements to do so
via the Internet. She offered her understanding that that
system will be in place for lobbyists by April and for everyone
else by the end of the year.
9:20:44 AM
MS. BALLENGER, in response to Representative Gruenberg, said she
has been with APOC since her appointment the end of May 2008.
CHAIR LYNN emphasized the importance of APOC to Alaskans.
9:21:48 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON moved to advance the confirmation of
Kathleen "Kate" Ballenger to the joint session of the House and
Senate; he requested unanimous consent. There being no
objection, the nomination of Kathleen "Kate" Ballenger to the
Alaska Public Offices Commission was advanced.
9:22:16 AM
CHAIR LYNN discussed the upcoming committee calendar.
9:22:55 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
State Affairs Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 9:23
a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| Joseph A. Masters - Commissioner Department of Public Safety.pdf |
HSTA 2/17/2009 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Faith Peters - State Commission Human Rights.pdf |
HSTA 2/17/2009 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Lonzo Henderson - Board of Parole.pdf |
HSTA 2/17/2009 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Kathleen Ballenger - APOC.pdf |
HSTA 2/17/2009 8:00:00 AM |