HOUSE BILL NO. 313 "An Act providing for and relating to the issuance of general obligation bonds for the purpose of paying the cost of a scientific crime detection laboratory; and providing for an effective date." JOHN GLASS, DEPUTY COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, described the inadequacies of the current crime lab and the proposed new crime lab for which they are seeking funds in the amount of $100 million. The current lab was built in 1986 to house 14 people. Currently 41 people are working in the same space, utilizing approximately ten different sciences. The crime lab did not start processing DNA until 1994 and is now receiving 1,000 samples of DNA per month. In 2006 the Legislature appropriated $4.8 million to research and design a new lab, and to find a location. After looking at 34 locations, the Department chose Anchorage as the best location for the lab. Anchorage is in proximity with the most work being done by the lab and has an international airport. The site consists of 15.3 acres on Tudor Road between the current crime lab and the Anchorage Police Department. The Department is in negotiations with the municipality of Anchorage for the property. 1:44:25 PM Mr. Glass strongly emphasized the need for a new crime lab. The current lab cannot be added onto. The Department hired a firm to determine what size laboratory was needed currently and in the future. The new building is designed for forty years of use. The planned building is 83,000 square feet and has room to expand as new technologies and analysts are needed. 1:45:31 PM Co-Chair Meyer asked about plans for the old building. Mr. Glass answered that the building cannot be made into another kind of lab. He hopes to move the Sexual Offenders Registration, the Alcohol Beverage Control Board and an investigation unit to the old building. Vice-Chair Stoltze wanted to know how critical the situation was in the old lab in relation to preserving evidence. 1:47:25 PM Representative Hawker asked for real numbers. MATT TANAKA, ENGINEER, CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATIONS, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC FACILITIES (TESTIFIED VIA TELECONFERENCE), reviewed the process of designing the new lab and establishing the dollar amount needed. An architectural firm with a nationally recognized crime lab expert was hired to determine the necessary size. The budget figure was arrived at from the bottom up based on need. An executive decision was made near the end of the study phase to limit the scope of the project to a $100 million upper limit. Representative Hawker asked what the optimal number would be. Mr. Tanaka replied that initially they foresaw a need for up to 97,000 square feet, but the timeline for this square footage was too far in the future. They thought they could use up to $120 million for the project. This was scaled back to $106 million, which provides for a $100 million face value plus up to $6 million of interest earnings from the bonds. 1:50:38 PM Representative Kelly observed the 400% increase in square footage over the old lab and asked for justification for the additional space. Mr. Glass described the cramped conditions for the 41 people doing both lab and paperwork on the same workbenches, which causes serious concerns of cross-contamination of evidence. In addition, five new DNA analysts were added through the Legislature in FY 08 and space must be made for them. The lab is trying to expand into other sciences such as toxicology, which is currently sent out-of-state. Representative Kelly thought a 400% increase still seemed excessive. He was also concerned about additional expenses for the proposed operations in the old building. He wondered if sending some work out-of-state wasn't appropriate. 1:53:31 PM Co-Chair Meyer voiced similar concerns about costs. He recognized that the need for the crime lab was increasing. He wondered about using General Fund money instead of the bond and appropriating funds in phases, such as $40 million each year for three years. Mr. Glass thought that could be a possibility. He said the planning and review money will run out in late July and General Funds could carry the project through to the planned ground-breaking in February 2009. Co-Chair Meyer wondered how Alaskans might react to a $100 million project for Anchorage on the ballot and asked about the Department's marketing strategy. Other municipalities might want the lab. Mr. Glass concurred that they were asking for a lot of money and reiterated the need for the laboratory. DAN SPENCER, DIRECTOR, DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, commented on Co-Chair Meyer's thought about appropriating $40 million over three years. He said the State cannot let a contract for more than the appropriation. 1:56:30 PM Representative Hawker noticed that HB 313 authorizes bonds for design and construction and asked if the $106 million included equipment and land. Mr. Glass said equipment, land and moving costs were included. Representative Hawker wondered if this should be in the language of the bill. Representative Gara calculated that the cost for the lab would be $2.5 million per employee for 41 employees and thought that sounded high. Mr. Glass had had some of the same concerns; however, the numbers came from crime lab experts. Representative Gara asked for help understanding the enormity of the amount. 1:59:11 PM Mr. Glass reiterated that the experts had said the amount was needed for the type of laboratory and services needed. Representative Gara pointed out that Alaska had many needs. He questioned whether the consultants had both needs and efficiency in mind. Mr. Tanaka assured the Committee that Representative Gara's questions were common. He said he had managed two other successful lab projects for the State: the environmental health lab for the Department of Environmental Conservation in Anchorage, and the virology lab for the Department of Health and Social Services in Fairbanks. He pointed out that laboratory space is sized based on the analyses that will be performed in the space, not on how many people are in the building. One analyst may need to work in several different laboratory modules. There may be very few people and many technologies. If the module is not built, the lab cannot perform the function. Mr. Tanaka said the consultants hired for the project are nationally recognized crime lab experts, McClaren, Wilson and Lawrie, Inc. This firm has designed and built crime labs all over the country. The State can draw on the expertise of the consultants as well as the experience of the two labs already built in the state. 2:03:34 PM Representative Gara asked about the process used to determine the size of the lab. Mr. Tanaka explained the process. First, the national crime lab experts met with Public Safety staff, including Orin Dim, the Crime Lab Supervisor, and the architects to determine what the needs were for the new lab. The space was then designed for optimal use, factoring in both current and future program needs. The design is designed based on real need and not speculation. Mr. Tanaka said that at this point floor plans are developed and there is a program and needs analysis. The budget presented is based on thorough study. Representative Crawford questioned a proposed bullet-proof wall to the road. He asked for a breakdown of costs of machinery and equipment separate from the costs of the actual building. He agreed with other Committee members that the amount requested seemed high. 2:06:22 PM Mr. Glass said that part of the cost-cutting did include the removal of the bullet proof wall. He said Orin Dim has conducted a study of the dollar values of the equipment. Representative Nelson wondered if part of the high expense was due to storage space needs for DNA and crime scene material. Mr. Glass emphasized the critical importance of storage space. He provided the Committee with photographs documenting crowded evidence storage and work space (On File). The garage space needed for examination of cars is also used for evidence storage. Each time the garage is needed to examine a car, the stored evidence must be moved out and back in, wasting a great deal of time. He went on to say that although storage space is important, work space for the DNA analysts and other scientists is more of an issue. Representative Meyer asked for a breakdown of costs for the building, land, equipment and so on. Mr. Glass said they would get that information to the Committee. Co-Chair Meyer added he would also like to know the future operating costs of the building. 2:09:32 PM Vice-Chair Stoltze clarified the sterile, secure and non- public nature of the building. He wondered if the building could obtain an exemption from One Percent for Art, which could save $1 million. 2:12:38 PM Representative Gara stated for the record his respect and appreciation for members of the arts community. Representative Gara asked if the proposed land for the crime lab is private. Mr. Glass responded that the land is not private but belongs to the Municipality of Anchorage Heritage Land Bank. The Department is still in negotiations for the land and close to a contract agreement for long-term lease. Representative Gara wondered what the lease price was and if it was included in the $106 million figure. Mr. Glass clarified that in exchange for the use of the land, the lab would do free work for the municipality. 2:14:36 PM Representative Gara asked if the $100 million covered more than construction costs. Mr. Glass replied that the money was also for site preparation, design and engineering costs, in addition to construction costs. Representative Gara wondered if there a per square foot cost. Mr. Glass described some of the complexities that made finding a square foot cost difficult. 2:16:11 PM Mr. Tanaka said a square-foot figure could be calculated by comparing the project with other similar projects. After taking out project specifics and escalating the figures to the present, the cost for the DEC environmental health lab was $950 per square foot. The Fairbanks virology lab, in comparison, cost $1,136 per square foot. The proposed crime lab comes to approximately $1,050 per square foot. He concluded that the cost is on par with other laboratories of similar complexity in Alaska. Mr. Tanaka delineated site preparation costs: $7 million for site preparation, $3 million for laboratory-specific features in the building, and $2.3 million for laboratory equipment. Representative Gara questioned whether the costs for the other state buildings were scrutinized. 2:19:19 PM Co-Chair Chenault wondered how much work the lab would do for Anchorage in exchange for the land use. Mr. Glass said approximately 70% of the crime lab's work is currently for the Anchorage Police Department. Vice-Chair Stoltze compared the building to a hospital. He pointed out that hospitals out-source their records and wondered if every function in the crime lab was essential. Mr. Glass answered in the affirmative. He explained that part of the challenge is that a piece of evidence might have to be put through many processes. Once the piece is brought on-site, shipping it out can cause cross-contamination. 2:22:33 PM Representative Nelson acknowledged progress made on specific cold case files because of the application of forensic science. She didn't want the State to contract out vital pieces of evidence. She thought the price well worth the money for victims' rights. Vice-Chair Stoltze agreed but wondered if there could be less expensive buildings for storage. Co-Chair Meyer asked Mr. Glass for a breakdown of the costs. He referred to the case of a fish hatchery in which costs were double what the Legislature approved. Mr. Glass said he would bring the numbers the following week. 2:24:59 PM Representative Kelly wondered if other states sub-contracted to the private sector. ORIN DYM, FORENSIC LAB MANAGER, CRIME LAB SUPERVISOR, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY (TESTIFIED VIA TELECONFERENCE), answered that some evidence cannot be farmed out. Some is sent to the FBI. There are no facilities to perform controlled substance analyses. Currently, major outsourcing is non-evidentiary, such as convicted offender DNA samples. 2:27:24 PM Representative Gara wanted to know the annual financing cost for the $100 million bond. DEVEN MITCHELL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ALASKA MUNICIPAL BOND BANK AUTHORITY, DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, thought the cost would correlate to the interest on the bonds; Alaska's current rate would be close to 4%. This would make the annual payment approximately $7.5 million. Co-Chair Meyer asked for a fiscal note from Revenue showing the repayment schedule and the ultimate cost of the bond. Mr. Deven said he would get the fiscal note to him. 2:29:28 PM Co-Chair Meyer closed public testimony on HB 313. Representative Kelly stated his skepticism regarding space studies. He wondered what would happen if the square footage of the crime lab was cut it in half. Co-Chair Meyer reiterated the need for a break-down of costs. HB 313 was HEARD and HELD in Committee for further consideration. 2:32:10 PM AT EASE 2:43:42 PM RECONVENE