Legislature(2017 - 2018)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
04/11/2017 03:30 PM Senate COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB106 | |
| SB61 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 106 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 61 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
April 11, 2017
3:44 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Click Bishop, Chair
Senator Lyman Hoffman
Senator Bert Stedman
Senator Berta Gardner
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Anna MacKinnon
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 106
"An Act relating to a municipal tax exemption or deferral for
economic development property; and relating to a municipal tax
exemption for a fire protection system."
- MOVED CSSB 106(CRA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 61
"An Act relating to the Izembek State Game Refuge, Cape Newenham
State Game Refuge, Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge, Port
Moller Critical Habitat Area, Egegik Critical Habitat Area,
Pilot Point Critical Habitat Area, Fox River Flats Critical
Habitat Area, Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Area, and Dude Creek
Critical Habitat Area; and providing for an effective date."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 106
SHORT TITLE: MUNI TAX EXEMPTION: ECON DEVEL PROPERTY
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) COGHILL
04/05/17 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
04/05/17 (S) CRA, STA
04/11/17 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
BILL: SB 61
SHORT TITLE: GAME REFUGE/CRIT HABITAT AREA BOUNDARIES
SPONSOR(s): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
02/15/17 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/15/17 (S) CRA, RES
04/06/17 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
04/06/17 (S) -- MEETING CANCELED --
04/11/17 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
WITNESS REGISTER
RYNNIEVA MOSS, staff
Senator John Coghill
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided an overview of SB 106 for the
sponsor.
MORGAN FOSS, Legislative Liaison
Alaska Department of Fish and Game
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided an overview of SB 61 on behalf of
the administration.
TAMMY MASSIE, Habitat Biologist
Division of Habitat, Southcentral
Department of Fish and Game
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Commented on SB 61.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:44:06 PM
CHAIR CLICK BISHOP called the Senate Community and Regional
Affairs Standing Committee meeting to order at 3:44 p.m. Present
at the call to order were Senators Gardner, Stedman, Hoffman,
and Chair Bishop.
SB 106-MUNI TAX EXEMPTION: ECON DEVEL PROPERTY
3:44:52 PM
CHAIR BISHOP announced the consideration of SB 106, sponsored by
Senator John Coghill.
3:45:15 PM
RYNNIEVA MOSS, staff to Senator John Coghill, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, provided an overview of SB 106 for
the sponsor. It allows municipalities to provide partial or a
total exemption for a time period to determine property tax
exemptions or deferrals for economic development projects. She
said this bill has a committee substitute (CS) [CSSB 106 ( ),
version 30-LS0797\D] that corrects the earlier bill's format.
3:46:19 PM
MS. MOSS provided a sectional analysis.
Sec 1. Removes the five year limitation on economic development
property exemptions and deferrals. Removes renewals provision
and the limit on property tax exemptions for renewals.
(m)(1) Eligibility for economic development property exemption
is based on one qualifier instead of multiple qualifiers.
Adds a qualifier for property development that "enables a
significant capital investment in physical infrastructure that:
1. Expands the tax base of the municipality; and
2. Will generate property tax revenue after the exemption
expires.
For example, the MatSu assessor has provided information on the
sports center that was built. The land had an assessed value
prior to construction of $294,000. Today that land with the
building is assessed at $6,998,300. The approximate tax bill on
the land prior to the exemption was $4,900. The average tax bill
on the land and building today is $102,500. The total taxes
generated on this land since the exemption is $615,100. Had the
improvements not been made, that would have been about $5,200
and a total of $31,500. So, it's a significant advantage and a
tool for municipalities to use to generate revenues in times
when they are losing state funds.
3:48:20 PM
Sec. 3. Makes optional what is now a mandated 2 percent tax
exemption for a fire protection systems, and sec. 4 repeals the
language that mandates that exemption.
3:49:37 PM
SENATOR GARDNER said she is familiar with the context of the
bill and it is a priority for her community.
3:50:04 PM
At ease.
3:50:59 PM
CHAIR BISHOP called the committee back to order.
SENATOR STEDMAN moved to adopt the CSSB 106, version 30-
LS0797\D, as the working document.
3:51:08 PM
CHAIR BISHOP objected for discussion purposes. He asked Ms. Moss
if the repealer in sec. 3 talks about a percentage decrease for
sprinklers.
MS. MOSS answered that is correct.
3:51:51 PM
SENATOR GARDNER asked if the repealer of the mandated 2 percent
is still in the bill.
MS. MOSS answered yes, and Sec. 2 makes it optional.
3:52:17 PM
CHAIR BISHOP said the next committee of referral is State
Affairs.
MS. MOSS said that was correct.
3:52:27 PM
CHAIR BISHOP removed his objection and version D was adopted.
3:52:33 PM
SENATOR STEDMAN moved to report the [CS for] SB 106 from
committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal
note(s).
CHAIR BISHOP announced that without objection, CSSB 106(CRA)
moved from the Senate Community and Regional Affairs Standing
Committee.
3:52:50 PM
At ease
SB 61-GAME REFUGE/CRIT HABITAT AREA BOUNDARIES
3:54:15 PM
CHAIR BISHOP announced the consideration of SB 61.
3:55:04 PM
MORGAN FOSS, Legislative Liaison, Alaska Department of Fish and
Game, Juneau, Alaska, provided an overview of SB 61 on behalf of
the administration. This legislation deals with two types of
special areas: the first is critical habitat areas (CHA) of
which Alaska has 17. They are created by the legislature to
protect land that is especially crucial to the perpetuation of
fish and wildlife. These lands are co-managed by ADF&G and the
land owner, which is typically the Department of Natural
Resources (DNR).
MS. FOSS said this goes for state game refuges, as well. State
Game Refuges are designated to protect and preserve natural
habitat and game populations and are less restrictive than CHAs.
Alaska has 12. They are also managed by ADF&G and DNR; harvest
is managed by the Board of Game and the Board of Fisheries.
3:56:10 PM
MS. FOSS said the first area in the map packet is the Izembek
State Game Refuge. The Izembek and Cape Newenham State Game
Refuges both are adjusted in this bill for the same reason. They
were created by the legislature in 1972 and include tideland and
submerged lands. The intent of the statute is to incorporate the
waterbodies within the National Wildlife Refuge watershed. So,
adding the entire water bodies including the previously excluded
areas would keep with the original intent.
She explained that the errors in the maps that they are
attempting to correct resulted from imperfect mapping of the
mean high water in the 1960s and 1970s. Most of the special
areas have very simple boundary corrections.
MS. FOSS said the bill seeks to create consistency for both
users and managers. The exception that will be discussed at the
end is the Dude Creek Critical Habitat Area in Gustavus, which
is an addition.
3:57:26 PM
MS. FOSS said the Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge was
designated in 1975 and is around the Matanuska River, which is
owned by the public and the state. The plat was originally
surveyed in 1913 with a fixed river channel description, but
since then the river channel has changed and is no longer
navigable. It runs in and out of the CHA and is impractical for
both users and management. So, the whole area will be
incorporated.
3:58:06 PM
MS. FOSS said the Port Moller CHA was established in 1972 and
the legal description referenced USGS topographical maps from
the 1960s in which labels were printed incorrectly across a
range shift at the northern portion of the area. This resulted
in the northern most portion description being shifted six miles
to the west of where it was intended to be and thus it moved the
community of Nelson Lagoon into the CHA. This correction would
move the description to where the original intent was and remove
the community of Nelson Lagoon from the CHA. This has received
a lot of support.
3:59:04 PM
MS. FOSS said Egegik and Pilot Point Critical Habitat Areas have
boundaries where typos occurred in the original legislation in
1972. In both instances, one character was replaced in the
description: 1 instead of 2 and north instead of south. So,
there is a non-contiguous block that was originally intended to
be contiguous with the CHA and this corrects that. Only state
lands are affected, and the locations are not near any other
infrastructures or villages.
3:59:47 PM
MS. FOSS said the Fox River Flats Critical Habitat Area was
established in 1972 and is in Kachemak Bay; it partially
overlaps the Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Area. The purple line
on the map demonstrates the mean high water which divides the
uplands from the tidelands and the submerged lands. Along the
northern and eastern boundaries, four of the seven sections have
tide and submerged lands excluded. This is not in keeping with
the intent of the rest of the CHA and was not applied
consistently. As the mean high water shifts, it moves in and out
of those areas; the bay was sinking for some time and now is
rebounding. So, this description would allow for more consistent
management. On the bottom right of the map the Bradley River is
the only area that will be affected at this time.
4:01:08 PM
MS. FOSS said the Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Area is another
simple mistake. It was created in 1974 as a list of townships
and ranges. The list includes the entirety of Kachemak Bay with
the exception of one small corner on the north side near the
head of the bay. This was an inadvertent omission caused by
missing one township out of the list of 22. The excluded area
lies seaward of the switchback trail, which is well above mean
high water and will not be impacted.
4:01:51 PM
CHAIR BISHOP asked if the affected area is "dry ground" or
"ocean."
MS. FOSS replied it's only the tide and submerged land and
waters.
4:02:14 PM
MS. FOSS said the Dude Creek Critical Habitat Area (CHA) is in
Gustavus, which is in Glacier Bay, and under this legislation
would receive an addition. The land was purchased and proposed
for an addition by the Nature Conservancy in 2004 and was
transferred to the state. It is a stopover for migratory Sand
Hill Cranes and other migratory birds. It is the area between
the existing CHA and mean high water. The City of Gustavus
passed a resolution in November 2016 supporting this addition.
4:03:07 PM
SENATOR STEDMAN asked if the uplands were owned by the Nature
Conservatory and deeded over to the state.
MS. FOSS answered that is correct.
4:03:32 PM
MS. FOSS said that concluded her presentation.
4:03:41 PM
CHAIR BISHOP opened public testimony.
4:04:08 PM
CHAIR BISHOP said that one area, the Palmer Hay Flats, had not
been surveyed since 1913 and asked if a new survey had been
done.
4:05:43 PM
TAMMY MASSIE, Habitat Biologist, Division of Habitat,
Southcentral, Department of Fish and Game, Anchorage, Alaska,
replied when the survey was done they were considering
subdividing parcels into private land. All that land has been
transferred back to the state. The river channels on private
parcels aren't relevant anymore since the entire lot is now
owned by the state. No more recent survey has been done; there
really isn't a need for one.
4:06:22 PM
CHAIR BISHOP closed public testimony and held SB 61 in
committee.
4:06:49 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Bishop adjourned the Senate Community and Regional Affairs
Committee meeting at 4:06 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 106 - Comparison with Existing Statute.pdf |
SCRA 4/11/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 106 |
| SB 106 - CRA CS Version D.pdf |
SCRA 4/11/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 106 |
| SB 106 - Sectional.pdf |
SCRA 4/11/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 106 |
| SB 106 - Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SCRA 4/11/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 106 |
| SB 106 - Version A.pdf |
SCRA 4/11/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 106 |