CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 27(FIN) "An Act relating to school records and driver license records of certain children." MIKE PAULEY, STAFF, SENATOR LEMAN testified in support of SB 27. SB 27 ensures parents will have access to important records about their minor children, and also requires school districts to share information with other districts about potentially dangerous transfer students. The motivation behind this legislation stems from a call Senator Leman received last year from a constituent in Anchorage. This woman had contacted the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to check on her teen daughter's driving record - because she suspected her child was driving with a suspended license. She was astonished when the DMV told her that her daughter's driving record was private and confidential - and even a parent did not have a right to know this information! Most people are aware of the responsibilities parents take upon their shoulders once their child receives a license. A parent must give consent before the license is issued, and then the law holds the parent responsible for any damage caused by negligence or willful misconduct while the child is operating a vehicle. Yet the same law denies parents any right to check and see if their son or daughter is driving safely! We believe this provision of the law was probably unintentional. There is a provision in our statutes that requires all drivers' records to be kept "confidential and private." This is obviously a needed protection for adults, but it makes no sense in the context of the parent-child relationship. The current law provides an exception that allows law enforcement personnel to have access to the information. But there is no such exception for parents. Senate Bill 27 corrects this problem. It will allow parental access to a driving record that includes accident reports and also any convictions for vehicle, driver or traffic offenses. We understand from DMV that the number of times they have to turn down parents who request this information is relatively rare - apparently it happens fewer than ten times a year. However, on those few occasions we understand it can be highly unpleasant for the DMV employee involved, and obviously frustrating for the parent. Mr. Chairman, in addition to access to driving records, SB 27 includes a provision guaranteeing parental access to school records. When we set out to write this bill, we also considered whether there were any other records to which a parent should have access. Of course, school records immediately came to mind. Therefore, we asked the drafting attorney to review state statutes and determine whether there was any provision that guaranteed parents the right to access their children's school records. We were surprised to learn there is no such law. We did find a statute (AS 25.20.130), that guarantees a non-custodial parent the same access to school records that is allowed for custodial parents. But nowhere does the law define what access rights a custodial parent has, or what rights parents in general have! Therefore, we have added in Section 1 of this bill a provision that also guarantees parental access to school records of a child under 18. We believe this adds clarity to our statutes. It will also help ensure that no school in Alaska becomes ineligible to receive federal funding, because there is a federal law (20 USC 1232g) that denies funding to any educational agency or institution that does not allow parental access to children's school records. In light of this, we believe it is only prudent to state clearly in our statutes that parents have a right to this information. Finally, there is a third provision of this legislation that deals with the transfer of student record information. This provision, which is found in Section 2 of the legislation before you, requires school districts to transfer certain information about a child who moves from one school district to another. If the student has committed an offense that is punishable as a felony, or if the student has committed any offense involving the use of a deadly weapon, this information must be included in the student record information that follows the child from one district to another. We believe this is a very useful amendment that will help school districts protect their students from potentially dangerous young offenders. Vice-Chair Bunde referred to page 2, line 19. "The department may refuse to release the driver's address to the parent or guardian if the department determines that the release of the driver's address poses a threat to the health or safety of the driver." He questioned how the department would know and if the department would be reliable for the release. Mr. Pauley noted that the addition was at the request of the Council on Domestic Violence and the Department of Public Safety. The intent was to address the concern that a non-custodial parent with a history of domestic violence could request the information. He noted that their concerns were satisfied by the absence of the address. He observed that the language is permissive. The department has the discretion to deny the information. Co-Chair Therriault observed that the department would set up a process through regulation that would allow the custodial parent to request that the information be withheld. Representative Grussendorf asked where the burden of proof rests. Mr. Pauley stated that the burden of proof issue was not addressed. He anticipated that the Division of Motor Vehicles and school districts would make individual policy. He stressed that the intent is to create the right in statute. He observed that there is discretion in how the information is provided. Representative J. Davies noted that flagging records seems to be limited to missing children. Mr. Pauley agreed and added that the flag would trigger an alert and the Department of Public Safety would be notified. ROBERT BUTTCANE, YOUTH CORRECTIONS, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES testified in support of SB 27. He referred to section 2 on page 2, line 9. He observed that the department attempts to cooperate with schools districts. The department notifies schools of issues of delinquencies that raise concerns for the safety of students and staff. He maintained that the system is working fairly well and that schools are being notified. However, records are not always transferred with students that relocate. He observed that the legislation corrects this by requiring schools to make sure that safety alert information (specifically as it relates to felony or weapons offenses) is transferred from one school to the next. Vice-Chair Bunde asked if there were comments from the Division of Motor Vehicles regarding their ability to release or not release information under section 3. Mr. Pauley stated that the Division has not commented on section 3. He clarified that they have shown support for the ability to disclose information to the parents. The Department of Public Safety supports the language. Representative Foster MOVED to report CSSB 27 (FIN) out of Committee with the accompanying fiscal notes. There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered. CSSB 27 (FIN) was REPORTED out of Committee with a "do pass" recommendation and with a zero fiscal note by the Department of Administration dated 2/25/99; and a fiscal impact note by the Department of Education dated 2/25/99.