Legislature(2021 - 2022)DAVIS 106
03/17/2022 08:00 AM House TRIBAL AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: Mmip and the Violence Against Women Act | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON TRIBAL AFFAIRS
March 17, 2022
9:03 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Tiffany Zulkosky, Chair
Representative Dan Ortiz
Representative Zack Fields
Representative Mike Cronk
Representative Geran Tarr
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION: MMIP AND THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
BRENDA STANFILL, Executive Director
Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave a PowerPoint, entitled "ANDVSA
Overview," during the Presentation on MMIP and the Violence
Against Women Act.
DEBRA O'GARA, Senior Policy Specialist
Alaska Native Women's Resource Center
Petersburg, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave a presentation on Missing and Murdered
Indigenous Women during the Presentation on MMIP and the
Violence Against Women Act.
LLOYD MILLER, Partner and Attorney at Law
Sonosky, Chambers, Sachse, Endreson & Perry, LLP
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided invited testimony during the
Presentation on MMIP and the Violence Against Women Act.
SENATOR LISA MURKOWSKI
United States Congress
Washington, D.C.
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided invited testimony during the
Presentation on MMIP and the Violence Against Women Act.
ACTION NARRATIVE
9:03:19 AM
CHAIR TIFFANY ZULKOSKY called the House Special Committee on
Tribal Affairs meeting to order at 9:03 a.m. Representatives
Zulkosky and Ortiz were present at the call to order.
Representatives Cronk, Tar, and Fields arrived as the meeting
was in progress.
^PRESENTATION: MMIP and the Violence Against Women Act
PRESENTATION: MMIP and the Violence Against Women Act
9:04:02 AM
CHAIR ZULKOSKY announced that the only order of business would
be a presentation on Missing and Murdered Indigenous People
(MMIP) and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
9:04:37 AM
BRENDA STANFILL, Executive Director, Alaska Network on Domestic
Violence and Sexual Assault (ANDVSA), gave a PowerPoint
presentation, entitled "ANDVSA Overview" [hard copy included in
the committee packet]. She provided an overview of the ANDVSA,
a federally recognized state domestic violence and sexual
assault coalition, and its 23 member programs and the services
they provide. Several upcoming initiatives included the Tundra
Women's Coalition in Bethel; revising regulations on the
Batterer Intervention Programs (BIP); and creating core
leadership series for new executive directors.
9:17:05 AM
DEBRA O'GARA, Senior Policy Specialist, Alaska Native Women's
Resource Center, gave a presentation on Missing and Murdered
Indigenous Women. She stated that high rates of MMIP began
escalating in the early 1800s when explorers, Russians, traders,
and the U.S. began settling in Alaska. She shared her belief
that the state of Alaska was failing in its responsibility to
provide public safety to citizens, particularly Alaska Natives
in rural communities. The 2013 Indian Law and Order Commission
Report found that Alaska Native women had the highest rates of
victimization out of any population of women by 250 percent.
Out of the 743 missing persons on the National Missing and
Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), 292 were from Alaska.
Alaska was considered one of the most violent states, with
Anchorage one of the most violent cities in the country.
Domestic violence and sexual assault survivors in Native
villages were often left without any means to seek justice for
crimes against them because the communities lack advocacy
services and law enforcement. In addition, Tribal victims often
seek safety in urban areas where rates of trafficking are high.
The jurisdictional "maze" that exists in Alaska offers further
barriers. Alaska Tribal communities are dependent upon the
state's justice services; however, state services are centered
in urban areas making access more theoretical than real. She
expressed hope that the reauthorization of The Violence Against
Women Act (VAWA) and in it, the inclusion of the Alaska Tribal
Public Safety Empowerment Title, would help close some
jurisdictional gaps.
9:32:41 AM
LLOYD MILLER, Partner and Attorney at Law, Sonosky, Chambers,
Sachse, Endreson & Perry, LLP, provided invited testimony during
the Presentation on MMIP and the Violence Against Women Act. He
explained that prior to the enactment of the Alaska Native
Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) in 1971, the jurisdiction of
Alaska Native villages extended into areas identified as "Indian
country," a nonpejorative term defined in 18 U.S.C, within which
any tribe could exercise civil and criminal jurisdiction. After
ANCSA was enacted, there was little Indian country left outside
of the Metlakatla reservation. He addressed the multi-year
effort to transfer Tribal lands into a protected status, called
"trust status," thereby returning them to Indian country and
entering into concurrent jurisdiction with the state; however,
the campaign was riddled with impractical barriers and
controversy. Mr. Miller noted that Tribes in Alaska were
federally recognized, and as such, had jurisdiction over their
members, which was referred to as "member-based jurisdiction.
He reiterated that they did not possess territorial jurisdiction
in areas not recognized as Indian country. This culminated in a
15-year-old initiative to craft federal legislation that would
offer an alternative to the Indian country rubric" and its
legal and political baggage. A practical solution would provide
territorial jurisdiction for Alaska Native villages to allow the
communities to provide for civil society without questions of
authority. Ultimately, the initiative emerged in the context of
the Alaska Tribal Public Safety Empowerment Act in the VAWA
reauthorization, which in part, accomplishes the goal of
cementing Tribal jurisdiction in Alaska Native Villages. He
provided a sectional summary of the federal legislation, as it
pertains to Alaska.
9:52:15 AM
SENATOR LISA MURKOWSKI, United States Congress, provided invited
testimony during the Presentation on MMIP and the Violence
Against Women Act. She discussed the VAWA reauthorization and
the inclusion of Title 8, the Alaska Tribal Empowerment
subsection, a pilot program that recognizes Alaska Tribes as
partners in providing public safety and justice. The act also
provides the federal support needed to supplement state efforts.
She acknowledged the complexity of Alaska's jurisdictional
issues; however, that should never deny safety or justice, she
said. The pilot program supplements the state's work in regard
to public safety; further, it empowers up to 30 Tribes to
exercise special criminal jurisdiction over defendants who have
committed certain crimes. Tribes must apply through the U.S.
Department of Justice (USDOJ) and must meet certain criteria to
be selected, such as a Tribal justice system that can adequately
safeguard its defendants. In closing, she provided a summary of
the financial resources and omnibus spending that accompanied
the federal legislation. [The full version of U.S. Senator
Murkowski's prepared statement was included in the committee
packet.]
10:05:29 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Special Committee on Tribal Affairs meeting was adjourned at
10:05 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| Revised VAWA - Alaska.pdf |
HTRB 3/17/2022 8:00:00 AM |
|
| 02.18.22 VAWA Title VIII Alaska Pilot one-pager (final) .pdf |
HTRB 3/17/2022 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Sec-by-Sec Bipar VAWA 2022 Reauth Tribal Title.pdf |
HTRB 3/17/2022 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Reforming Justice for Alaska Natives: The Time is Now.pdf |
HTRB 3/17/2022 8:00:00 AM |
|
| ANDVSA Legislative Overview.pdf |
HTRB 3/17/2022 8:00:00 AM |
|
| 03.17.2022 Murkowski Statement for the Record (Final) .pdf |
HTRB 3/17/2022 8:00:00 AM |