Legislature(2019 - 2020)BARNES 124
03/12/2020 01:00 PM House TRANSPORTATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB115 | |
| HB273 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 115 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 273 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE TRANSPORTATION STANDING COMMITTEE
March 12, 2020
1:11 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Louise Stutes, Chair
Representative Bryce Edgmon
Representative Matt Claman
Representative Harriet Drummond
Representative Andi Story
Representative Dave Talerico
Representative Mel Gillis
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 115(FIN)(EFD FLD)
"An Act relating to vehicle registration fees; and relating to
the motor fuel tax."
- MOVED HCS CSSB 115(TRA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
HOUSE BILL NO. 273
"An Act relating to vehicles abandoned on private property."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 115
SHORT TITLE: MOTOR FUEL TAX; EV REG FEES
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) BISHOP
04/24/19 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
04/24/19 (S) FIN
02/03/20 (S) FIN AT 9:00 AM SENATE FINANCE 532
02/03/20 (S) Heard & Held
02/03/20 (S) MINUTE(FIN)
02/21/20 (S) FIN RPT CS 3DP 1DNP 3NR NEW TITLE
02/21/20 (S) DP: VON IMHOF, HOFFMAN, BISHOP
02/21/20 (S) NR: STEDMAN, WILSON, OLSON
02/21/20 (S) DNP: WIELECHOWSKI
02/21/20 (S) FIN AT 9:00 AM SENATE FINANCE 532
02/21/20 (S) Moved CSSB 115(FIN) Out of Committee
02/21/20 (S) MINUTE(FIN)
03/02/20 (S) TRANSMITTED TO (H)
03/02/20 (S) VERSION: CSSB 115(FIN)(EFD FLD)
03/03/20 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/03/20 (H) TRA, FIN
03/10/20 (H) TRA AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/10/20 (H) Heard & Held
03/10/20 (H) MINUTE(TRA)
03/12/20 (H) TRA AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
BILL: HB 273
SHORT TITLE: ABANDONED VEHICLES; PRIVATE PROPERTY
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) STUTES
02/24/20 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/24/20 (H) TRA, STA
03/05/20 (H) TRA AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
03/05/20 (H) -- MEETING CANCELED --
03/12/20 (H) TRA AT 1:00 PM BARNES 124
WITNESS REGISTER
WILLIAM HARRINGTON
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 115.
JOE MICHEL
Alaska Trucking Association
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 115.
KATHERINE WOOD
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 115.
SARA PERMAN, Staff
Representative Louise Stutes
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented Amendment 1 to CSSB 115(FIN)(efd
fld).
DARWIN PETERSON, Staff
Senator Click Bishop
Alaska State Legislature
POSITION STATEMENT: On behalf of Senator Bishop, prime sponsor
of CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld), answered a question related to a
proposed amendment.
ROB CARPENTER, Deputy Commissioner
Department of Transportation & Public Facilities
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions during the hearing on
CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld).
JOE GREENOUGH, Staff
Representative Louise Stutes
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented HB 273 on behalf of
Representative Stutes, prime sponsor.
DAVID SCOTT CAMPBELL, Deputy Chief of Police
Juneau Police Department
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of HB 273.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:11:45 PM
CHAIR LOUISE STUTES called the House Transportation Standing
Committee meeting to order at 1:11 p.m. Representatives
Talerico, Story, Gillis, Drummond, and Stutes were present at
the call to order. Representatives Edgmon and Claman arrived as
the meeting was in progress.
SB 115-MOTOR FUEL TAX; EV REG FEES
1:12:41 PM
CHAIR STUTES announced that the first order of business would be
CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 115(FIN)(efd fld), "An Act relating to
vehicle registration fees; and relating to the motor fuel tax."
1:13:21 PM
CHAIR STUTES opened public testimony on CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld).
1:13:46 PM
WILLIAM HARRINGTON testified in opposition to SB 115. He said
money raised by SB 115 would be inconsequential in the big
picture and taking equal amounts from rich and poor was not
equal representation or taxation.
1:16:23 PM
JOE MICHEL, Alaska Trucking Association, informed the committee
Alaska Trucking Association (ATA) has endorsed fuel tax in the
past. He said ATA members support SB 115 in general but want
assurance that the money collected would indeed be used for road
maintenance.
1:17:38 PM
KATHERINE WOOD testified in support of SB 115. She said looking
for additional revenue sources was a better idea than "touching
the corpus" of the Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD). She said
Alaska's infrastructure is far behind the rest of the U.S. and
state funding for transportation was limited. She added that
transportation infrastructure underpins regional and local
economies and is crucial for quality of life for all Alaskans,
and the state capital budget for transportation infrastructure
is "anemic at best." Federal highway infrastructure appears to
be stable, she said, but with the federal highway trust fund
depleted, the future is uncertain. She opined there should be a
tax on electric vehicles (EVs) calculated by miles traveled, as
opposed to a flat fee per year.
1:20:47 PM
CHAIR STUTES closed public testimony on CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld).
1:20:55 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 1:20 p.m. until 1:21 p.m.
1:21:00 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON moved to adopt Amendment 1, labeled 31-
LS0895\K.A.7, Nauman, 3/12/20, which read as follows:
Page 3, lines 22 - 30:
Delete all material and insert:
"* Sec. 5. AS 43.40.030(a) is amended to read:
(a) Except as specified in AS 43.40.010(j), a
person who uses motor fuel to operate
(1) an internal combustion engine is
entitled to a motor fuel tax refund of 12 [SIX] cents
a gallon if
(A) [(1)] the tax on the motor fuel has
been paid;
(B) [(2)] the motor fuel is not aviation
fuel, or motor fuel used in or on watercraft; and
(C) [(3)] the internal combustion engine is
not used in or in conjunction with a motor vehicle
licensed to be operated on public ways; or
(2) a watercraft used for commercial
fishing is entitled to a motor fuel tax refund of five
cents a gallon if the tax on the motor fuel has been
paid."
1:21:54 PM
CHAIR STUTES objected, for the purpose of discussion.
1:22:02 PM
SARA PERMAN, Staff, Representative Louise Stutes, Alaska State
Legislature, presented Amendment 1, which updated Section 5 of
CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld). Amendment 1 would remove the additional
$.05 tax for commercial fishing vessels. All other watercraft
including cruise ships and tour boats would still be required to
pay the additional tax, she added.
1:23:18 PM
CHAIR STUTES moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment
1, to insert the following language between the words
"commercial fishing" and "is entitled" in the proposed language
of paragraph (2): "that has a valid license issued under
16.05.490 or 16.05.530".
1:24:44 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND objected, for the purpose of discussion,
and asked whether the license applied only to Alaska licenses.
1:25:20 PM
CHAIR STUTES answered that the license applied to Commercial
Fisheries Entry Commission (CFEC)-registered vessels and that a
vessel could be from outside Alaska if it had a valid CFEC
permit to fish in Alaska.
1:25:35 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY said she understood the reason for the
amendment, especially due to the Chinese tariffs.
1:25:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND removed her objection to Conceptual
Amendment 1 to Amendment 1. There being no further objection,
it was so ordered.
1:26:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE TALERICO asked to hear the opinion of the bill
sponsor's staff on Amendment 1, as amended.
1:26:45 PM
DARWIN PETERSON, Staff, Senator Click Bishop, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of Senator Bishop, prime sponsor of CSSB
115(FIN)(efd fld), responded that the amendment was not what the
sponsor wanted but that he would respect the will of the
committee.
1:27:13 PM
CHAIR STUTES removed her objection to Amendment 1, as amended.
There being no further objection, it was so ordered.
1:27:39 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 1:27 p.m. to 1:28 p.m.
1:28:13 PM
CHAIR STUTES clarified that Amendment 1, as amended, had been
adopted.
1:28:32 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY, referencing Mr. Michel's testimony, asked
how revenue generated by SB 115 would be certain to go toward
road maintenance.
1:30:43 PM
ROB CARPENTER, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Transportation
& Public Facilities, replied that revenue would be designated by
statute to go toward road maintenance, but it would be up to the
legislature to appropriate the money.
1:31:20 PM
REPRESENTATIVE TALERICO asked whether [revenue generated] fell
under what was considered receipt authority.
MR. CARPENTER replied that it would not, as it was a tax on
users, whereas receipts were established to cover operations of
a division.
REPRESENTATIVE TALERICO said that most of his constituents were
in opposition to CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld).
1:33:39 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON said he thought it took courage to put
CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld) before the public, because no one liked
paying additional taxes. He said he saw the proposed
legislation as bringing Alaska into the modern era, and although
it wasn't necessarily "likeable," the services additional
taxation would provide would benefit Alaskans.
1:35:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN said that his constituents had suggested a
higher increase, especially if it was going to take so long to
implement change. He added that while supporting CSSB
115(FIN)(efd fld) was not exactly easy, because no one wanted to
raise taxes, he saw it not only as a positive step for roads but
a positive step for the future of Alaskan communities.
1:37:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND asked how much the refund to commercial
fishing vessels in Amendment 1, [as amended], would mean to
projected revenue.
1:38:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON replied that $5 million of the projected
$33 million was tied to marine fuel but within that $5 million
it was anyone's guess how many fishermen would complete the
necessary paperwork to receive the refund.
1:38:52 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND commented that the lack of road
maintenance and, therefore, repair costs, were harder on lower
income families who tended to drive older vehicles.
1:40:34 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON moved to report CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld), as
amended, out of committee with individual recommendations and
the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, HCS
CSSB 115(TRA) was reported out of the House Transportation
Standing Committee.
1:41:11 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 1:41 p.m. to 1:44 p.m.
HB 273-ABANDONED VEHICLES; PRIVATE PROPERTY
1:43:55 PM
CHAIR STUTES announced that the final order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 273, "An Act relating to vehicles abandoned on
private property."
1:44:33 PM
JOE GREENOUGH, Staff, Representative Louise Stutes, Alaska State
Legislature, presented HB 273 on behalf of Representative
Stutes, prime sponsor. He related that abandoned vehicles were
a statewide problem, and under current statute it took more than
six months for property owners to be able to remove them. The
time property owners needed to wait to remove abandoned
vehicles, under HB 273, would be reduced from six months to 45
days, Mr. Greenough imparted. The vehicle owner would still
have 30 days to respond, he added. If the property owner chose
to have the vehicle towed, then the towing company would have a
lien against the vehicle for towing fees and storage.
1:47:41 PM
The committee took a brief at-ease at 1:47 p.m.
1:47:55 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY referenced a letter in the committee packet
from the Juneau Economic Development Council in which the
council expressed concerns about public safety, especially
regarding abandoned vehicles.
1:48:50 PM
The committee took an at-ease from 1:49 p.m. to 1:59 p.m.
1:59:38 PM
DAVID SCOTT CAMPBELL, Deputy Chief of Police, Juneau Police
Department, told the committee that Juneau Police Department
(JPD) had almost 900 reports of abandoned vehicles in one year.
When a report is received, the case is assigned to a Community
Service Officer (CSO), he informed the committee, who then works
to have the vehicle removed before impounding it or involving
the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV). If the CSO's efforts were
exhausted and the vehicle is on private property, the property
owner must then go through the process of obtaining ownership of
the vehicle with the DMV so the vehicle can be properly
disposed. In Juneau, vehicles are disposed at the recycling
center at no charge to the owner; however, the owner is
responsible for the cost of towing.
MR. CAMPBELL shared the "broken windows" theory, in which any
visible sign of "anti-social activity" tends to breed more of
this type of activity. This is seen in Juneau when multiple
abandoned cars end up in "big box store" parking lots, he
explained. He addressed the question of why a store wouldn't
deal with an abandoned vehicle found in its parking lot. Since
the store wouldn't be able to take over the vehicle's ownership,
it would have to pay the $12 per day throughout the six-month
process. Finally, he said that private property owners usually
just pushed the vehicle onto the street because the vehicle
would then become the responsibility of the City and Borough of
Juneau (CBJ). Mr. Campbell said that he supported reducing the
time frame so that abandoned vehicles may be dealt with more
expediently.
2:05:23 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN said he supported shortening the time
frame but asked why it was 45 days. He also asked whether a
vehicle [abandoned] in a "prime" parking spot at a box store
would at least be pushed to the side of the parking lot.
MR. CAMPBELL answered that older junk vehicles tend to be left
at the periphery of a parking lot. He pointed out that owners
tend to properly dispose of their vehicles because there is no
cost to do so at the recycling center, while those [abandoning]
vehicles tend to be people with whom the vehicle has transferred
hands several times and perhaps they have taken parts from the
vehicle and then decide to dump it. Another issue, he said, is
if JPD towed a vehicle and it was damaged during the process,
the repairs would then become JPD's responsibility. This would
also apply to stores moving vehicles around lots, he surmised.
He agreed that 45 days seemed too long but may be in place for
people who were out of town. He admitted that this was not
usually the case and by the time the owner was found the vehicle
was worth next to nothing.
2:09:47 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN confirmed property owners who pushed
abandoned vehicles onto the street without having contacted JPD
beforehand would alleviate the property owner of responsibility.
2:11:24 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GILLIS questioned why HB 273 had not been
proposed earlier, because abandoned vehicles were a serious
problem.
2:11:49 PM
CHAIR STUTES asked what percentage of abandoned vehicles' owners
were found.
2:11:58 PM
MR. CAMPBELL replied that in 2017-2018, out of 890 complaints of
abandoned vehicles on public and private property, 190 were
impounded and 700 complaints were resolved without the vehicles
having to be impounded.
2:12:53 PM
CHAIR STUTES announced that HB 273 would be held over.
2:13:39 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Transportation Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 2:14
p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| CSSB 115(FIN)(efd fld) ver. K.A 3.3.20.PDF |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Sponsor Statement 1.15.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM SFIN 2/3/2020 9:00:00 AM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Sectional Analysis v. A 1.15.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM SFIN 2/3/2020 9:00:00 AM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Fiscal Note - DOR 2.24.20.PDF |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Fiscal Note - DOT&PF 2.20.20.PDF |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Fiscal Note - DOA 2.24.20.PDF |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 PowerPoint 2.3.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 - FAQs.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Motor Fuel Tax by State Graph 2.12.2020.pdf |
HFIN 3/20/2020 9:00:00 AM HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Anchorage Daily News editorial 2.8.20.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Letter of Support - Alaska Municipal League 1.30.20.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Letter of Support - JEVA 2.20.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Letter of Support - Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce 2.27.20.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Letter of Support - AFL-CIO 3.8.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Letter of Support - Alaska Miners Association 3.12.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Fall 2019 Revenue Sources Book Chapter 5.pdf |
HFIN 3/20/2020 9:00:00 AM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM SFIN 2/3/2020 9:00:00 AM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Support Document - 2018 Motor Fuel Tax Report, Tax Division, Department of Revenue.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Support Document - Leg. Research MFT revenue 1993-2018.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Support Document - LFD Fund Sources_Motor Fuel Tax_2018.pdf |
HTRA 3/10/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Support Document - Sponsor's Response to 3.10.2020 HTRA Meeting 3.12.20.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Amendment #1 3.12.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| SB 115 Conceptual Amendment to Amendment #1 3.12.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
SB 115 |
| HB 273 vA 3.3.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/5/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB 273 Sponsor Statement 3.4.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/5/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB 273 Sectional Analysis 3.4.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/5/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB 273 Fiscal Note - DOA.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB 273 Letter of Support - Copart 3.04.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/5/2020 1:00:00 PM HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB 273 - Letter of Support - JEDC 3.09.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB 273 Letter of Support - AML 3.11.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |
| HB273 Letter of Support - AELP 3.12.2020.pdf |
HTRA 3/12/2020 1:00:00 PM |
HB 273 |