03/14/2017 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing: Alaska Public Offices Commission|| Confirmation Hearing: Alaska Police Standards Council | |
| SB31 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | SB 31 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
March 14, 2017
3:31 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Mike Dunleavy, Chair
Senator David Wilson
Senator Cathy Giessel
Senator John Coghill
Senator Dennis Egan
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Adam Schwemley
Robert Clift
- CONFIRMATIONS ADVANCED
Alaska Police Standards Council
Bryce Johnson
- CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
SENATE BILL NO. 31
"An Act relating to compensation, merit increases, and pay
increments for certain public officials, officers, and employees
not covered by collective bargaining agreements; and providing
for an effective date."
- MOVED SB 31 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 31
SHORT TITLE: NO STATE EMPLOYEE PAY INCREASE FOR TWO YEARS
SPONSOR(s): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
01/20/17 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/20/17 (S) STA, FIN
03/14/17 (S) STA AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
ADAM SCHWEMLEY, Appointee
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Alaska Department of Administration
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Alaska Public
Offices Commission.
ROBERT CLIFT, Appointee
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Alaska Department of Administration
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Alaska Public
Offices Commission.
BRYCE JOHNSON, Appointee
Alaska Police Standards Council
Alaska Department of Public Safety
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Alaska Police
Standards Council.
LESLIE RIDLE, Deputy Commissioner
Alaska Department of Administration
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided an overview for SB 31.
JAKE METCALFE, representing self
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 31.
KATE SHEEHAN, Director
Division of Personnel and Labor Relations
Alaska Department of Administration
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding SB 31.
WILLIAM MILKS, Senior Assistant Attorney General
Civil Division
Labor and State Affairs Section
Alaska Department of Law
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding SB 31.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:31:34 PM
CHAIR MIKE DUNLEAVY called the Senate State Affairs Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:31 p.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Giessel, Coghill, Egan, and Chair Dunleavy.
^Confirmation Hearing: Alaska Public Offices Commission
^Confirmation Hearing: Alaska Police Standards Council
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS
Alaska Public Offices Commission
Alaska Police Standards Council
3:31:51 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY announced that the committee will review the
governor's appointees for the Alaska Public Offices Commission
(APOC) and the Alaska Police Standards Council.
3:33:02 PM
ADAM SCHWEMLEY, Appointee, Alaska Public Offices Commission,
Alaska Department of Administration, Anchorage, Alaska, revealed
that his background is in fire and emergency medical services.
He disclosed that he was appointed to the commission's
Libertarian seat and explained that he has been trying to get
more involved with politics to address financial transparency
for lobbyists.
3:33:46 PM
At ease.
3:34:17 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY called the committee back to order. He requested
Mr. Schwemley provide the committee with a better understanding
as to how many seats there are for APOC. He asked Mr. Schwemley
to provide background as to how he decided to apply for the APOC
position and why he thinks his qualifications lends itself to
the appointment.
MR. SCHWEMLEY answered that there are two seats for the
Libertarian Party and two seats for the Republican Party. He
explained that the appointment is based on how many votes the
gubernatorial candidates received from the previous election.
He said he considered the Libertarian Party to be more of a
belief system rather than an actual party and disclosed that the
party fits closest to his belief system. He expressed that he
looks at everything based off an individual candidate's policies
rather than what party they are with. He said he did not have
any direct experience for the APOC seat, but noted that he has
investigative experience when working for an oil company.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked what his interest was in being appointed
for the APOC seat.
MR. SCHWEMLEY explained that he wanted to get experience in the
process. He added that he also wanted to revive the trust in the
whole process for the everyday citizen regarding financial
transparency from lobbyists and candidates.
3:36:22 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked that Mr. Schwemley expound on issues that
other Alaskans have confided with him regarding issues that need
to be reviewed or discussed regarding APOC.
MR. SCHWEMLEY answered that he will be focus on conflicts of
interest and where the money comes from that is spent on
campaigns.
SENATOR GIESSEL referenced a description of APOC as follows:
The commission exists of five members appointed by the
governor, two from each of the two political parties
whose candidate for governor received the highest
number of votes in the most recent proceeding general
election.
She surmised that the party designation was determined because
the governor ran as an independent and the other candidate was a
Republican. She added that the fifth member is nominated by
majority vote from the commission's members itself as well as
electing the chair.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY recalled that since Governor Walker ran as an
independent and not on the Independent Party, the next party
that garnered the most votes for governor was the Libertarian
Party and therefore two APOC seats were reserved for the party.
3:38:28 PM
SENATOR COGHILL concurred that many people feel the same way
regarding accountability. He conceded that accountability
measures have been hotly debated at the capitol as well as
during the campaign season. He asked how many APOC meetings Mr.
Schwemley has attended.
MR. SCHWEMLEY answered that he has not been to an APOC meeting.
SENATOR COGHILL noted that APOC has staff that assists council
members with requirements, laws and regulations. He asked Mr.
Schwemley if he will take the time to understand the laws and
regulations. He opined that some of APOC's laws and regulations
are somewhat arcane, but are still important for public
accountability.
MR. SCHWEMLEY answered that he was going to volunteer some time
at the local APOC office to get a better grasp before the first
meeting in June.
SENATOR COGHILL thanked Mr. Schwemley and said he appreciated
his willingness to step up with "fresh eyes" and the idea of
accountability. He reiterated that the APOC laws that Mr.
Schwemley referenced have been hotly debated by the Legislature
and the political process.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY noted that Mr. Schwemley was appointed to his
seat on March 1, 2017 and expires on March 1, 2022. He detailed
the committee does not confirm an appointee during the meeting,
but his or her name moves on to a joint-legislative-floor
session for a vote in April.
He announced that the committee would address the appointment of
Mr. Robert Clift, appointee for APOC. He detailed that Mr. Clift
was appointed on March 23, 2017 and his term expired on March 1,
2020.
3:41:44 PM
ROBERT CLIFT, Appointee, Alaska Public Offices Commission,
Alaska Department of Administration, Anchorage, Alaska,
disclosed that he is an appointee for the Libertarian seat and
will be replacing Mark Fish who resigned. He divulged that he
came to Alaska in 1979 and worked as a school administrator in
the "bush." He noted that he has some political experience from
serving as a city council member and as mayor.
He set forth that he wanted to serve on APOC because the
experience will allow him to participate in a process where he
will be able to deal fairly with some of the people that run
afoul with APOC. He stated that APOC's mission is to have
transparency for the lobbyists and elected officials, and to
make sure their financial concerns are in keeping with the
statutes that have been written.
MR. CLIFT concurred with Senator Coghill that some statutes are
ambiguous with multiple interpretations, but that is where APOC
comes in. He explained that APOC usually makes their decisions
based on an array of statutes as well as how much harm was done.
He added that the commission is a hearing for appeals with the
ability to issue advisory opinions to the Legislature to correct
some ambiguities.
3:45:22 PM
SENATOR GIESSEL pointed out that an advisory opinion has the
force of law. She referenced Mr. Clift's APOC application and
noted that he had run for office at least four times, possibly
more. She asked if he had reviewed APOC's membership prohibition
that states, "May not hold or campaign for elected office or
make contributions."
MR. CLIFT confirmed that he ran unsuccessfully three times for
office. He admitted that he has become somewhat disillusioned
with party politics and serving on APOC would suit him better.
SENATOR GIESSEL asked if he was retired. She noted that on
APOC's board description that the commission had met for 24 days
in 2011 and asked if the time commitment would interfere with
any work commitments.
MR. CLIFT replied that he has been retired since 1997 and
serving on APOC would not be onerous for him.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY corrected his opening remarks regarding Mr.
Clift, and asked if he was appointed on January 23.
MR. CLIFT answered correct. He added that he did attend one
meeting and was impressed with the professionalism of the people
at the meeting. He said serving on the commission is an
important job and one that he could perform well.
3:48:10 PM
SENATOR COGHILL pointed out that APOC has struggled with both
holding people accountable with penalties as well as preemptive
work to keep people out of trouble.
MR. CLIFT replied that one of his greatest fears while running
for public office was running afoul of APOC. He noted that he
appreciated APOC making itself available to assist him to keep
him out of trouble.
3:49:14 PM
SENATOR WILSON joined the committee meeting.
SENATOR COGHILL responded that he appreciated Mr. Clift's
perspective because setting up a campaign is an enterprise to
itself with some being huge in detail.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY noted that Mr. Clift mentioned that he became
disillusioned in party politics. He pointed out that Mr. Clift
is going to be immersed to some extent in party politics in the
sense that he will be looking at contributions and expenditures.
He asked Mr. Clift how his disillusionment might carry over in
some form of bias.
MR. CLIFT concurred that "disillusionment" is too strong a word.
He asserted that the point of APOC is to make sure all parties
are on an even playing field without penalties that are so
egregious that people are discouraged to enter politics;
however, at the same time the statutes cannot be taken lightly.
He set forth that the process is improved knowing that APOC is
watching out for Alaskans with public records where people can
make determinations for themselves about whether candidates or
lobbyists are being wise stewards of the monies they have been
entrusted with.
3:53:16 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY noted that Mr. Clift had mentioned that he was
glad to see the Libertarian Party advance and asked what he
meant by that statement.
MR. CLIFT answered that the obvious reason for having a party is
to get people elected. He admitted that he would love to see
some Libertarian candidates be elected. He added that he would
like to see options on the ballot where every office has a
Libertarian candidate. He disclosed that he has become burnt-out
from working on Libertarians running for office and would not
have a problem to take a vacation from the process.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked that as a non-libertarian if Mr. Clift
could assure the committee and the public that he will have no
bias carried over in his decisions.
MR. CLIFT replied that he is quite sure that he can be
impartial. He set forth that his greatest interest is that
individuals get a fair hearing.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY announced that the committee would next address
the governor's appointee for the Alaska Police Standards Council
and provided an overview as follows:
The mission of the Alaska Police Standards Council is
to produce and maintain a highly trained and
positively motivated, professionally capable of
meeting contemporary law enforcement standards of
performance.
He detailed that Bryce Johnson, appointee, was first appointed
to the council on December 11, 2015 and reappointed on March 1,
2017 with a term expiration of March 1, 2021.
3:56:45 PM
BRYCE JOHNSON, Appointee, Alaska Police Standards Council,
Alaska Department of Public Safety, Juneau, Alaska, disclosed
that he has been the chief of the Juneau Police Department for
the past four years and has been in law enforcement for 25
years. He added that he has enjoyed his time on the Police
Standards Council. He said he cares deeply about his profession
and cares deeply about the men and women of law enforcement. He
admitted that law enforcement has had a rough several years
where some things were their fault and other things were done
right but were painted wrong. He stated that he cared deeply if
someone in law enforcement is going to be a part of his
profession and does something they should not be doing that they
be held accountable as well as people that do it right should be
supported.
SENATOR COGHILL noted that Mr. Johnson gets to look at law
enforcement both as a boss as well as a council member. He asked
how the council deals with situations where confidential
information is released by the press.
MR. JOHNSON replied that an officer's department will deal with
a situation first and the council gets involved afterwards. He
noted that the council's decisions are public.
3:59:29 PM
SENATOR COGHILL asked that Mr. Johnson address some of the
things that the public needs to know to better inform police
officers.
MR. JOHNSON answered that the council looked at implementing
industry best practices for hiring with the use of polygraph
tests and psychological evaluations. He disclosed that the
council sought out public comment. He pointed out that the
council has a civilian member and continuously seeks out public
input before making decisions.
SENATOR COGHILL asked Mr. Johnson to address the council's
involvement with the Village Public Safety Officers (VPSO)
Program.
4:02:08 PM
MR. JOHNSON answered that there is a difference between VPSOs
and village police officers. He specified that the council has
jurisdictions over the police officers but not the VPSOs.
SENATOR EGAN thanked Mr. Johnson for serving as chief for the
City and Borough of Juneau as well as serving on the council.
SENATOR GIESSEL asked Mr. Johnson to address a bill that was
going through the Legislature relating to a loophole that allows
police officers to have sexual contact with individuals that are
being investigated.
MR. JOHNSON answered that sexual contact is not allowed and an
officer would be fired and decertified. He noted that he has
seen cases where an officer investigates a crime and a year
later they meet someone at a social engagement, in those cases
he has declined to take any action because there was no nexus
back to their official duty. He said the way he understands the
bill that Senator Giessel referenced would criminalize the
situation that he previously described. He opined that the
legislation would bring a whole host of new problems to law
enforcement and urged committee members to look at the
legislation carefully to avoid unintended consequences from how
the bill is written.
4:06:01 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked if the council sets standards for local
police, state police, law enforcement, municipal law enforcement
agencies, and if part of the standards is a profile of a
potential candidate for what they should be looking for or
minimal qualifications.
MR. JOHNSON answered minimal qualifications.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY disclosed that he received a call from a
constituent regarding a modified standard that a home-school
student that did not graduate from a neighborhood school did not
qualify for law enforcement consideration.
MR. JOHNSON replied that the intent was to address high school
education equivalency. He specified that someone home schooled
would have to show equivalency. He noted that his children were
home schooled.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY pointed out that there are no state agencies that
determine equivalency for home-school programs and asked how
minimum standards are determined for police officer applicants
that have been home schooled.
MR. JOHNSON answered that a determination is made by the
information received during a personal interview.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY remarked that the equivalency determination would
be subjective.
MR. JOHNSON answered yes. He pointed out that an equivalency is
sought out so there is an objective standard for determining
graduation.
4:09:16 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked if there was an appeal process if a
determination was made in a first screening that a person did
not meet minimum qualifications.
MR. JOHNSON answered that there is an appeal process. He
emphasized that folks do their best to make a fair decision on
what they are looking at. He said the intent is to make sure the
standard was fair for everyone.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY replied that he appreciated Mr. Johnson's
explanation. He said he wanted to make sure that one group was
not earmarked as not being potential applicants for being a
police officer.
SENATOR COGHILL asked if the council works with other councils
across the U.S. and what is gleaned that is helpful.
4:12:30 PM
MR. JOHNSON answered that the council's executive director is
more involved with other councils in the U.S. He disclosed that
there are national databases for decertification as well as
communication between states on training requirements as
officers move from state to state. He opined that the
decertification database is important to make sure officers who
get into trouble do not get back into law enforcement.
SENATOR COGHILL asked Mr. Johnson to address recruitment in
Alaska. He inquired if the state's standards and unique
circumstances make it difficult to recruit. He asked what the
council is doing to enlist "homegrown" recruits.
MR. JOHNSON replied that recruitment is left up to the
departments. He disclosed that it is difficult to recruit
everywhere around the country. He noted that he always cautions
against lowering standards to recruit more people because a hire
may be regretted for years. He opined that the standards in
Juneau are at the right level and admitted that recruiting is
difficult; however, his intent is to recruit people that can
meet the standard, not lower the standard.
SENATOR COGHILL stated that Mr. Johnson's comments on
recruitment standards is important for people to hear. He opined
that Alaska's standards are pretty good, but agreed that the
state has a real recruitment problem due to: distance, cost of
living, and professional opportunities. He asserted that
Alaska's advantages boil down to good communities and lifestyle.
He noted that he has worked with Mr. Johnson in the past and has
found him to be formidable when he has a point, does his
homework very well, and is professional.
4:16:19 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY opened public testimony.
4:16:32 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY closed public testimony.
He read the following statement regarding committee appointment
recommendations:
In accordance with AS 39.05.080, the Senate State
Affairs Committee reviewed the following and
recommends the appointments be forwarded to a joint
session for consideration: Adam Schwemley for APOC,
Robert Clift for APOC, and Bryce Johnson for the
Police Standards Council. This does not reflect an
intent by any of the members to vote for or against
the confirmation of the individual during any further
sessions.
4:17:10 PM
At ease.
SB 31-NO STATE EMPLOYEE PAY INCREASE FOR 2 YEARS
4:19:38 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY called the committee back to order. He announced
the consideration of SB 31.
4:20:04 PM
LESLIE RIDLE, Deputy Commissioner, Alaska Department of
Administration, Juneau, Alaska, provided an overview of SB 31 as
follows:
· Pay increases could occur in non-covered employees in the
form of:
o Cost of Living Allowance (COLA),
o Merit increases (3.5 percent every year for 5 years),
o Pay increments (3.25 percent every other year),
o Bonuses.
· Allows the governor to reduce his salary.
· Effective for 2 years: July 1, 2017 - June 30, 2019.
SENATOR COGHILL asked that Ms. Ridle explain "non-exempt" and
the difference between "merit" and "pay increases."
MS. RIDLE explained that "non-classified" is everybody in state
government who is not in a union and "classified" are in a
union. She specified that SB 31 would only affect the non-
classified employees whereas bargaining would have to occur with
classified employees and that is why through statute the state
could only work with the non-classified employees.
She explained that merit increases are the first-five years for
every year and pay increments are every-other year. She said
merit increases occur when going from one step to the next one
every year for five years at 3.5 percent and pay increments
occur every other year at 3.25 percent.
SENATOR COGHILL commented that term "merit" should mean
increased value and not automatic. He stated that he is probably
going to agree with the bill, but noted that he does not always
agree with the definitions.
4:23:27 PM
MS. RIDLE addressed the two types of non-classified employees:
exempt and partially exempt:
· Exempt:
o Can only be exempt through statute, (AS 39.25.110);
o Exempt from Personnel Act and statutory pay plan;
o Examples: Governor's Office, Legislative staff.
· Partially Exempt:
o Through statute or Personnel Board;
o Subject to Personnel Act and statutory pay plan;
o Examples: Deputy commissioners, directors.
MS. RIDLE addressed who the bill includes as follows:
· Employees not covered under a collective bargaining
agreement in the executive branch, including: employees of
boards, commissions, authorities, and executive officers;
· Employees in the legislative branch;
· Employees not covered under a collective bargaining
agreement of the University of Alaska;
· The governor, lieutenant governor, department heads, and
legislators.
· Does not include the court system.
SENATOR COGHILL asked if corporations are included in the bill
and noted that some corporations are very independent.
MS. RIDLE answered that the corporations are included in the
bill.
She set forth that SB 31 was introduced as part of the
administration's ongoing effort to lead by example to:
· Reduce state expenditures,
· Address serious budget shortfalls.
4:25:59 PM
She detailed the estimated savings from SB 31 as follows:
· Employees affected:
o 5,000 state employees are in the executive and
legislative branches.
o 23 percent of state employees are in the executive and
legislative branches.
· Savings:
o FY2018: $2.3 million ($1 million UGF),
o FY2019: $1.9 million ($0.8 billion UGF),
o Total: $4.2 million ($1.8 million UGF).
SENATOR GIESSEL asked if the governor was imposing a pay freeze
on the next administration through mid-2019 to capture every-
other-year people.
MS. RIDLE answered yes.
SENATOR GIESSEL inquired if pay increases occur throughout the
year on date-of-hire anniversaries.
MS. RIDLE answered yes. She explained that everyday someone has
a merit anniversary date. She said going from a fiscal year to
the next fiscal year seemed to be the cleanest to the
administration.
SENATOR COGHILL remarked that his biggest criticism is the
bill's intent language. He said the governor is saying the
"legislature intends" rather than the "governor finds." He said
he would not stop the bill, but noted that he would flag the
intent language for the Senate Finance Committee to review and
encouraged the administration to think of a different way of
formulating the bill's intent language.
4:29:32 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY opened public testimony on SB 31.
4:29:53 PM
JAKE METCALFE, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, testified
in opposition to SB 31. He noted that he is the executive
director of the Public Safety Employees Association, but
emphasized that he was speaking on his own behalf. He opined
that the legislation is a governor's bill which is setting
legislative pay and that seemed to him to be a separation of
powers issue. He added that the bill does not apply to the court
system as well. He opined that the legislation will have
unintended consequences such as running good people off.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY closed public testimony on SB 31. He noted that
constituents have asked him to address salary overrides. He
asked that the concept of salary overrides be explained.
4:35:01 PM
KATE SHEEHAN, Director, Division of Personnel and Labor
Relations, Alaska Department of Administration, Juneau, Alaska,
explained that there are misperceptions on salary overrides. She
noted that an individual hired at a higher step gets confused as
a salary override, but the practice is in the personnel rules
and is bargained into collective bargaining agreements. She
detailed various scenarios for salary overrides as follows:
· People hired above the entry-level step because they have
exceptional qualifications;
· Recruitment difficulties;
· Geographical differential rate changes, but an employee's
higher salary is held harmless and frozen;
· Position is reclassified to a lower range, but an
employee's higher salary is held harmless and frozen.
MS. SHEEHAN disclosed that in 2013, Senate Bill 95 allowed the
governor's office to certify hiring at a step higher than the
entry level step due to a policy reason. She noted that the hire
is usually for a high-level position where a director-level
salary would not be high enough to attract somebody due to the
type of work that needs to be performed.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked that Ms. Sheehan supply the committee with
information on all the salary overrides that have occurred over
the last two years. He asked if the number of overrides is
expansive or just a handful.
MS. SHEEHAN replied that she would investigate and get back to
the committee. She noted that there were a lot of salary
overrides, primarily due to geographical-differential rate
changes.
4:37:48 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked that override information be delineated
over the past two years by department, division, and the
governor's office that includes details on: override salaries,
what the salaries would have been without overrides, and an
explanation. He noted that some of his constituents are laid off
and are asking him why the government is hiring with a salary
override and is potentially on the verge of reaching into their
pockets via an income tax.
SENATOR WILSON asked why the court system was left out of the
bill.
MS. RIDLE answered that the exclusion was due to a separation of
powers and detailed as follows:
Because the governor has a chance to make a decision
on this bill, if it does pass in some form, the
Legislature has a chance to weigh in on the bill
through the committee process and the floor process,
but the courts would not have any way to have a say
other than public testimony and, so we left them out
because of the separations of power because they
weren't able to participate in the bill.
SENATOR EGAN commented that he appreciated what the governor was
trying to do, but did not agree how he was going about it. He
opined that targeting employees not covered under collective
bargaining will drive them to get into collective bargaining.
CHAIR DUNLEAVY asked for an explanation why the governor is
putting his salary in the bill for a limited time. He inquired
why the governor did not consider donating part of his salary
back to the treasury.
MS. RIDLE answered that the cleanest way was to reduce his
salary rather than having to pay for benefits and taxes prior to
denoting back to the treasury.
4:41:36 PM
At ease.
4:43:38 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY called the committee back to order.
SENATOR COGHILL addressed page 2, line 2 in SB 31, "The
legislature is 'eliminating' general pay increases." He remarked
that "eliminating" seemed like a strong word to him because it
is eliminating for 2 years, fiscal years 2018 and 2019. He
opined that the use of the word "suspending" be considered. He
asked that legal counsel provide some insight.
4:44:47 PM
WILLIAM MILKS, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Civil
Division, Labor and State Affairs Section, Alaska Department of
Law, Juneau, Alaska, replied that perhaps the word "suspending"
is a better word, but the intent was not to introduce any
ambiguity that a retroactive situation creates. He said the use
of the word "suspend" or another term would be taken under
advisement as better than "eliminating."
SENATOR COGHILL commented that the plain language in the bill is
clear regarding a salary suspension for two years, but voiced
that he did not like the governor speaking for the Legislature
just yet.
4:46:17 PM
SENATOR GIESSEL moved to report SB 31, version 30-GS1018\A, from
committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal
note.
4:46:28 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY announced that hearing no objection, SB 31 moved
from the Senate State Affairs Standing Committee.
4:46:42 PM
At ease.
4:47:05 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY called the committee back to order. He reiterated
that SB 31, version A, has moved out of committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal note.
4:47:18 PM
At ease.
4:47:56 PM
CHAIR DUNLEAVY called the committee back to order.
4:48:35 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Dunleavy adjourned the Senate State Affairs Committee at
4:48 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 31 Fiscal Note.pdf |
SSTA 3/14/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 31 |
| SB 31 Sectional Analysis.pdf |
SSTA 3/14/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 31 |
| SB 31 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SSTA 3/14/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 31 |
| SB 31, Version A.pdf |
SSTA 3/14/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 31 |
| SB 31_DOA Presentation_STA_3.14.17.pdf |
SSTA 3/14/2017 3:30:00 PM |
SB 31 |