HB 138-BEH. HEALTH CRISIS SURCHARGE & FUND  3:24:05 PM CHAIR MINA announced that the first order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 138, "An Act establishing a behavioral health crisis services surcharge; establishing the behavioral health crisis services fund; and providing for an effective date." 3:24:55 PM SUSANNA MARCHUK, Executive Director, Careline Alaska, testified in support of HB 138. She described Careline Alaska and the resources they provide to individuals contemplating suicide. She said that Careline Alaska employs only Alaska residents, emphasizing their ability to understand the unique mental health challenges of living in Alaska. She also described the training that Careline Alaska responders receive. She said that Careline Alaska collaborates with other agencies, including 911 responders and local tribal authorities. She said that HB 138 is a lifeline that would ensure that no Alaskan experiences a crisis alone. She emphasized that HB 138 would keep Careline Alaska alive and expanding. 3:28:43 PM MS. MARCHUK, in response to questions from Representative Fields, said that in urban areas, mental health resources are more readily available, but Careline Alaska will provide follow- up services to any caller for as long as their crisis lasts. She said that her team is very creative and has supported high- risk callers until the proper level of care is available for them. She emphasized that her team will incorporate an individual's support network in their own community when necessary. She said that Careline Alaska has been grant-funded in the past and is now funded through a contract with the Department of Health (DOH) and the Division of Behavioral Health (DBH). 3:31:50 PM MS. MARCHUK, in response to a series of questions from Representative Prax, said that Careline Alaska does not require formalized education to work for the call center. She emphasized the value of peer-support in her line of work. She said that Careline Alaska partners with Alaska 211 so that they can connect callers to all information in the Alaska 211 database. She emphasized that all the information in the Alaska 211 database is available to Careline Alaska employees, which can be forwarded to callers. She said that 911 call centers can directly transfer calls to Careline Alaska call centers. She said that most calls Careline Alaska receives are connected through 988, rather than 911. 3:36:37 PM MS. MARCHUK, in response to a question from Representative Schwanke, said that she has some statistics on the location of where calls to Careline Alaska come from, but the majority are from private or blocked phone numbers. She said she can follow up with the data she does have. 3:37:43 PM CHAIR MINA opened public testimony on HB 138. After ascertaining there was no one who wished to testify, she closed public testimony. 3:38:25 PM REPRESENTATIVE PRAX asked what the next committee of referral would be for HB 138. KATY GIORGIO, Staff, Representative Genevieve Mina, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of Representative Mina, prime sponsor, responded that the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee would be the next committee of referral for HB 138. REPRESENTATIVE PRAX responded that the committee should clarify some details regarding the funds associated with HB 138 with legislative legal services first. 3:39:15 PM MS. GIORGIO responded that she did request a legal memo from legislative legal services, but she does not believe HB 138 would create a dedicated fund. She directed the committee to subsections (h) also (g) to clarify this point. 3:40:26 PM REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE said that he has a lingering question, which would be better addressed by the next committee. He asked if HB 138 would best be administered under the Tax Division or the Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA). 3:40:56 PM CHAIR MINA deferred to Mr. Spanos. 3:41:21 PM BRANDON SPANOS, Deputy Director, Tax Division, Department of Revenue, responded that RCA does not administer the 911 surcharge, which he was previously unaware of. He said that they would not be more efficient at administering the 988 surcharge than the Tax Division, so the Tax Division would administer it. He said that the 911 surcharge is administered by individual municipalities across the state. 3:43:15 PM MR. SPANOS, in response to questions from Representative Schwanke, said that he does not know who administers the 911 surcharge in areas of Alaska without a municipality. 3:43:54 PM MS. GIORGIO responded that she also does not have that information available. 3:44:09 PM The committee took an at-ease from 3:44 p.m. to 3:45p.m. 3:45:16 PM CHAIR MINA expressed interest in changing the effective date of HB 138 currently stated on page 4, line 14 to 2026. She said that she would work on having that date changed under the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee. 3:46:15 PM REPRESENTATIVE MEARS moved to report HB 138 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, HB 138 was reported out of the House Health and Social Services Standing Committee.