SB 167-CRIM. CONV. OVERTURNED: RECEIVE PAST PFD  [CSSB 167(STA) was before the committee.] 2:56:43 PM CHAIR CLAMAN announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 167 "An Act relating to a permanent fund dividend for an individual whose conviction has been vacated, reversed, or dismissed; and relating to the calculation of the value of the permanent fund dividend by including payment to individuals eligible for a permanent fund dividend because of a conviction that has been vacated, reversed, or dismissed." CHAIR CLAMAN said this is the first hearing of SB 167 in Senate Judiciary Committee. The intention is to hear a brief presentation on the bill from the sponsor's staff. 2:57:08 PM SALLY RAFSON, staff, Senator Scott Kawasaki, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, introduced SB 167 on behalf of the sponsor. She explained that SB 167 relates to payment of permanent fund dividends (PFDs) to individuals whose criminal convictions have been vacated, reversed, and dismissed, or overturned on retrial. She stated that, under Alaska law, incarcerated individuals forfeit their permanent fund dividends to the state. SB 167 seeks to restore PFDs to Alaskans whose convictions were vacated, reversed, or dismissed, provided that the dismissal was not the result of a Rule 11 plea agreement in another criminal case. She said that eligible individuals would be required to apply within one year following the new judgment or within one year of the bill's effective date. MS. RAFSON stated that Alaska is one of the few states that does not provide compensation for exonerees. She noted that a similar bill passed the House in 2017 with strong bipartisan support, with a vote of 38-1. MS. RAFSON asked the committee for its support of SB 167, which would help victims of injustice transition back into society as the state seeks to ensure justice and fairness for all Alaskans. 2:59:10 PM CHAIR CLAMAN opened public and invited testimony on SB 167. 2:59:37 PM JORY KNOTT, Executive Director, Alaska Innocence Project, Anchorage, Alaska, testified by invitation in support of SB 167. He stated that the Alaska Innocence Project is the only nonprofit organization in the state that works to free wrongfully convicted Alaskans. The organization helps educate the public about the causes of wrongful convictions and recommends policy reforms to prevent future mistakes in the justice system. MR. KNOTT emphasized that SB 167 is not a compensation bill and does not ask for compensation. He said Alaska is one of 12 states that do not provide compensation to individuals who are wrongfully convicted and later exonerated. He said SB 167 addresses what he describes as a "clerical error fix" in the permanent fund dividend (PFD) statute by giving back the PFD to exonerated individuals upon release. He stated that individuals who are exonerated are released without a bus pass, a meal ticket, or compensation. MR. KNOTT referenced the exoneration of the Fairbanks Four, noting that it has been 10 years since their exoneration. 2025 marks 10 years since the Fairbanks Four were released and had to start from scratch. They are the reason he started the Alaska Innocence Project; he said meeting them shook him to the core. He said one of them went in at just 19 years old, valedictorian of his high school, with a future eye for education and giving back to his community. He served as a wildfire volunteer. 3:02:12 PM JON ELDAN, Founder and Executive Director, After Innocence, Oakland, California, testified in support of SB 167. He stated that his organization provides free reentry help to hundreds of individuals nationwide, including in Alaska, who have been released from prison after their convictions were overturned and the charges were subsequently dismissed or in rare instances were acquitted on retrial. MR. ELDON stated that the PFD is an entitlement for eligible Alaskans and that forfeiture of the dividend is tied to a valid criminal conviction. He explained that SB 167 addresses situations in which the basis for that forfeiture no longer exists because the conviction has been invalidated. He stated that, in such cases, individuals should be able to receive the dividends they were previously denied. He said SB 167 aims to restore the PFD to these individuals. MR. ELDON emphasized that individuals who have been wrongfully incarcerated face significant challenges rebuilding their lives upon release. He stated that although the bill does not provide full compensation, access to the dividend would offer meaningful support during reentry. MR. ELDON stated that SB 167 would have no fiscal impact because the funds are already retained by the state in reserve. 3:04:36 PM CHAIR CLAMAN closed public testimony on SB 167. 3:04:45 PM CHAIR CLAMAN held SB 167 in committee.