HB 126-REINSTATEMENT OF NATIVE CORPS  CHAIR DIBERT announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 126, "An Act relating to the reinstatement of Native corporations; and providing for an effective date." 8:21:24 AM The committee took an at-ease from 8:21 a.m. to 8:22 a.m. 8:22:08 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY moved to adopt the committee substitute (CS) for HB 126, Version 34-LS0099/I, Gunther, 3/25/25, ("Version I") as a working document. CHAIR DIBERT objected for the purpose of discussion. 8:22:36 AM PAUL LABOLLE, Staff, Representative Neal Foster, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of the prime sponsor, Representative Foster, presented CSHB 126. He explained that the proposed legislation would allow Native corporations to reincorporate after they have been involuntarily dissolved. He stated that the original version of the proposed legislation would give a corporation a two-year window to reincorporate as the same entity that had been listed under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), with the same rights and assets as established under the federal law. He explained that when a corporation in Alaska is involuntarily dissolved, it currently cannot reincorporate as the same entity; rather, the assets must be redistributed to the shareholders and a new corporation would have to be created. He added that the corporation could retain the same name, but it would not be considered the same entity. He stated that the proposed legislation would help maintain consistency with ANCSA. He discussed previous attempts at passing similar legislation. 8:25:22 AM REPRESENTATIVE CARRICK expressed the understanding that the proposed CS would make the reinstatement permanent. She requested clarification on any other changes made. MR. LABOLLE replied that a slight technical change would be made in the language on page 1, line 5 through line 7, and line 8 through 11. Per Legislative Legal Services, he expressed the understanding that this had been done so the language would be more specific. He stated that the "main meat" of the proposed legislation has not been changed. 8:27:05 AM REPRESENTATIVE UNDERWOOD questioned the meaning of "involuntary dissolution." MR. LABOLLE explained that an involuntary dissolution of a corporation in Alaska could happen for many different reasons. He described some Native corporations as "very small organizations" with a board, but no employees; therefore, in some situations, such as people passing away or moving out of town, paperwork filings could be overlooked. 8:27:44 AM REPRESENTATIVE MOORE questioned the process of verifying that a dissolved Native corporation had resolved its issue. MR. LABOLLE referred to the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development (DCED). 8:28:12 AM ROBERT SCHMIDT Director, Division of Banking and Securities, Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, explained that the Division of Banking and Securities would have a limited role in overseeing this, and he deferred the question to the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing. 8:29:15 AM SYLVAN ROBB, Director, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, explained that the verification process to be reincorporated would be the same for all corporations in the state, and any dissolved Native corporation would need to submit the necessary paperwork to the division, along with the required fees. He said that at this point the corporation could be reinstated. 8:30:06 AM REPRESENTATIVE CARRICK asked how many corporations have been involuntarily dissolved. MR. LABOLLE expressed uncertainty on the current number, but in 2018, there were 19 corporations between 2010 and 2018. 8:30:51 AM REPRESENTATIVE MOORE questioned the process of corporations being dissolved on an involuntary basis. MR. LABOLLE responded that if paperwork for the corporation has not been filed on time, there would be a two-year waiting period. If the error has not been corrected after this, DCED would dissolve the corporation. He reiterated that this is the same for all corporations. 8:32:01 AM CHAIR DIBERT removed her objection. There being no further objection, Version I was before the committee. 8:32:38 AM The committee took a brief at-ease. 8:32:55 AM CHAIR DIBERT opened public testimony on HB 126. After ascertaining that there was no one who wished to testify, she closed public testimony. 8:33:36 AM The committee took an at-ease from 8:33 a.m. to 8:36 a.m. 8:36:04 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY moved to report CSHB 126 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 126(TRB) was reported out of the House Special Committee on Tribal Affairs.