02/17/2004 03:37 PM Senate STA
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
February 17, 2004
3:37 p.m.
TAPE (S) 04-7
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Gary Stevens, Chair
Senator Gretchen Guess
Senator Lyman Hoffman
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator John Cowdery, Vice Chair
Senator Bert Stedman
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
HOUSE BILL NO. 304
"An Act naming the Jack Coghill Bridge to the Interior."
MOVED HB 304 OUT OF COMMITTEE
SENATE BILL NO. 284
"An Act relating to an optional election to prevent the name and
address of a permanent fund dividend applicant from being
disclosed, except to a state or federal agency."
MOVED CSSB 284(STA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 304
SHORT TITLE: JACK COGHILL BRIDGE TO THE INTERIOR
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) COGHILL
05/07/03 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
05/07/03 (H) TRA, STA
05/12/03 (H) TRA AT 5:30 PM CAPITOL 102
05/12/03 (H) Moved Out of Committee
05/12/03 (H) MINUTE(TRA)
05/13/03 (H) TRA RPT 5DP
05/13/03 (H) DP: FATE, OGG, KOHRING, MASEK, HOLM
01/13/04 (H) STA AT 8:00 AM CAPITOL 102
01/13/04 (H) Moved Out of Committee
01/13/04 (H) MINUTE(STA)
01/16/04 (H) STA RPT 7DP
01/16/04 (H) DP: GRUENBERG, SEATON, HOLM,
01/16/04 (H) LYNN, COGHILL, BERKOWITZ, WEYHRAUCH
01/20/04 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
01/20/04 (H) VERSION: HB 304
01/21/04 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/21/04 (S) TRA, STA
02/10/04 (S) TRA AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
02/10/04 (S) Moved HB 304 Out of Committee
02/10/04 (S) MINUTE(TRA)
02/11/04 (S) TRA RPT 3DP
02/11/04 (S) DP: WAGONER, COWDERY, THERRIAULT
02/17/04 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
BILL: SB 284
SHORT TITLE: PF DIVIDEND APPLICATION RECORDS PRIVATE
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) GUESS
01/28/04 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/28/04 (S) STA, FIN
02/17/04 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 211
WITNESS REGISTER
Willow Seay
Staff to Representative John Coghill
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Introduced HB 304 for the sponsor
Sharon Barton
Director, Permanent Fund Dividend Division
Department of Revenue
PO Box 110400
Juneau, AK 99811-0400
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions of SB 284
Melissa Wyatt
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: Commented on SB 284
Jennifer Rudinger
Executive Director, ACLU
P.O. Box 201844
Anchorage, AK 99520
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 284
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 04-7, SIDE A
CHAIR GARY STEVENS called the Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:37 p.m. Present were Senators
Guess, Hoffman and Chair Gary Stevens.
HB 304-JACK COGHILL BRIDGE TO THE INTERIOR
CHAIR GARY STEVENS announced HB 304 to be up for consideration.
He asked Representative Coghill's staff member to come forward
and introduce the bill.
WILLOW SEAY, staff to Representative John Coghill, said this
bill would allow bridge 216 to be named the Jack Coghill Bridge
to the Interior.
SENATOR LYMAN HOFFMAN jestingly asked if this was Representative
Coghill's major piece of legislation for the year.
MS. SEAY smiled broadly and said, "Certainly, it's very
important."
CHAIR GARY STEVENS added that Jack Coghill served in an early
Legislature and he is alive today.
SENATOR GRETCHEN GUESS made a motion to move HB 304 out of
committee with individual recommendations and the attached
fiscal note. There being no objection, it was so ordered.
SB 284-PF DIVIDEND APPLICATION RECORDS PRIVATE
CHAIR GARY STEVENS announced SB 284 to be up for consideration.
He asked Senator Guess to introduce her bill.
SENATOR GRETCHEN GUESS, sponsor of SB 284, explained that the
bill requires the Permanent Fund Corporation to provide a check
box on the permanent fund application so the applicant can
choose to have their name and address kept private.
She proposed the legislation for reasons of safety and basic
privacy and pointed out that for victims of domestic violence it
is often necessary to shield their name and address to ensure
their safety from a batterer. She used police officers as an
example of other Alaskans who may not want their names to be
public for safety reasons. Another reason for introducing the
bill is the issue of basic privacy because some individuals
simply don't want their name and address to be public
information. SB 284 helps to provide safety to those who need it
and privacy to those who want it.
SENATOR GUESS noted the Department of Revenue suggested that
people who have safety or privacy needs could use a post office,
but that costs money and it's unreasonable to assume that
someone should pay for his or her own privacy. The other
drawback to that solution is that postal zip codes in small
communities in particular identify specific locations so the
perception of anonymity may be false.
In response to comments from the Department of Revenue, she
offered an amendment to include local agencies to those that can
access records. She explained that page 1, line 12 would read,
"(1) to a local, state or federal agency;" and line 14 would be
deleted as a corrective measure because she never intended that
an individual could change their mind about confidentiality
between application periods.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS remarked that her point on post office boxes
in small communities is well taken. He then asked her to comment
on why any of this information should be made available and why
anyone should have a right to access information taken from the
permanent fund application.
SENATOR GUESS explained that the lists are used for a number of
purposes and noted that she has accessed the records for private
and professional reasons. She continued to say that her
philosophic attitude is to provide options whenever possible and
SB 284 gives people the option of keeping their name and address
private or making it public. However, she agreed to consider
making the list fully confidential if that was the will of the
committee.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS said the department might be able to speak to
the issue, but he questions why the state should be in the
business of providing any personal information whatsoever. His
second question was how many people access this information.
SENATOR GUESS advised the entire database is available on the
Internet and the site might not mark hits.
SENATOR HOFFMAN observed the list is used for jury pool.
SENATOR GUESS added that the information is used for jury pool,
child support enforcement and other matches.
SENATOR HOFFMAN made the point that he would like the database
to be unavailable for the jury pool and questioned whether that
should be clear in the bill.
SENATOR GUESS replied she would consider that if he is committed
to the idea, but "It seems a small price to pay for jury duty."
SENATOR HOFFMAN rejoined, "Not in Bethel." Because Bethel is the
service area for 56 villages, it's not uncommon for someone to
remain on the jury pool for three months once their name comes
up and then they are called again the next year. This has
stopped some people from signing up for the permanent fund
dividend, he said.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked if this is the primary way jury pools
are formed.
SENATOR GUESS clarified it is the only way. The State of Alaska
doesn't use voter registration information as all other states
do; it draws from the permanent fund application database only.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS called Sharon Barton forward.
SHARON BARTON, director, Permanent Fund Dividend Division,
Department of Revenue, stated that they have not taken a
position on the legislation because it is not their business to
do so. Nonetheless, to the extent that they are able, they
acknowledge that the sponsor's goal of protecting the vulnerable
is worthy.
The division posts just names and mailing addresses and she
acknowledged that frequently that is the person's physical
address. Given the option, the division believes that most
applicants would opt to keep their information private.
Because the information has been available on the Internet for
several years, they don't have a complete list of the users.
They do know that government agencies, Native organizations,
process servers, private business, and high school and
university students comprise a partial list.
Logistically, adding a check box to the application isn't
problematic and because the division is in the midst of a
rewrite of their programs and upgrade of their old computer
system, a request for an adjustment is timely. However, the
caveat is that implementation of the rewrite is contingent on a
pending CIP [Capital Improvement Project] request. If the
request is not funded in FY05, accommodation would be more
difficult, but they would work with the Legislature to achieve
the end.
To explain the fiscal note, she said about half is associated
with the computer change and most of the rest relates to
processing garnishments if the list isn't available to
government agencies. Finally, about $3,500 reflects the cost of
making changes for applicants throughout the year. She noted
that implementing the proposed amendment would decrease the
fiscal note by half.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked if, in her view, the check box is the
best solution to protect the privacy of violent crime victims in
particular.
MS. BARTON replied this isn't her area of expertise, but the
consensus in the department is that this would "be one hole in
the dike that is plugged." Because there are a number of sources
for addresses, this wouldn't solve the problem.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked for an accounting of the other sources.
MR. BARTON named the election database and those that are
available for purchase around the state.
SENATOR HOFFMAN asked whether it wouldn't be preferable to use
"and" rather than the conjunction "or" when referring to the
different agencies.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked Senator Guess if she objected to the
suggestion.
SENATOR GUESS replied the amendment hadn't been moved and she
had no objection.
SENATOR HOFFMAN asked whether the database could be sorted
according to zip code, community or any other criteria.
MS. BARTON replied the information is on the Internet so
individuals that want to sort the list would have to download
the information and use an Excel program or something similar to
accomplish their goal.
MELISSA WYATT testified via teleconference to read a letter
relating her personal domestic violence story. After taking
numerous steps to ensure their safety, she and her son were
finally forced to change names and location to free themselves
from "the man who will kill us if he finds us." [Her letter is
available in the bill file.]
She asked the committee members whether she and her son might
some day be able to collect the permanent fund dividend without
endangering their lives. She said she no longer hides, but she
must still be prudent. She closed saying, "I doubt that I'm the
only woman in this situation."
CHAIR GARY STEVENS thanked her for her moving testimony then
asked whether she would attempt to suppress her name from other
databases.
MS. WYATT replied she guards her personal information carefully
and isn't aware that she is on any other database.
JENNIFER RUDINGER, executive director of the ACLU, testified via
teleconference to express strong support for SB 284. She
recounted what she learned from a privacy summit she attended
several years ago. She suggested that it is astounding how many
ways personal data is available on line. She urged members to
pass SB 284 because it allows people a choice, which is a step
in the right direction.
The ACLU doesn't favor use of a post office box because you
shouldn't have to pay a fee for your privacy, they aren't
necessarily convenient, and the box number indicates the post
office where you receive your mail so it's not as private as you
might want it to be. She emphasized there are safety and privacy
reasons for the bill and they would prefer that the check box be
an opt-in rather than an opt-out. Unless you check the box, it
would be assumed that you don't want your information public.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked for questions or comments and there
were none. He asked Senator Guess to make her amendment number
1.
SENATOR GUESS made a motion to amend on page 1, line 12 to read,
"(1) to a local, state and federal agency;" and delete line 14
on page 1.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS asked if there was any objection and there
was none. He then asked if there was any objection to moving the
CSSB 284(STA) forward. There was no objection and it was so
ordered.
CHAIR GARY STEVENS adjourned the meeting at 4:04 pm.
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