SB 272-RENTAL CAR CHARGES  2:10:24 PM CHAIR OLSON announced that the final order of business would be SENATE BILL NO. 272, "An Act relating to charges for rented motor vehicles, including cost recovery fees, and making a violation of the rented motor vehicle charge provisions an unfair trade practice." 2:10:32 PM EDRA MORLEDGE, Staff, Senator Charlie Huggins, Alaska State Legislature, paraphrased from the sponsor statement, as follows [original punctuation provided]: SB 272 is a technical bill that would allow rental car companies to do in Alaska what they already do in thirty other states. Alaska law is currently silent on the issue of separately-listed charges on rental car statements for the recovery of fees. This bill would require those fees to be listed separately and clearly identified on the rental car agreement. The industry standard is to turn over the rental car fleet every twelve months and to associate the costs of licensing the vehicles, concessions, and airport or facility-related costs with the vehicles themselves. In addition to government taxes and surcharges, rental car companies assess additional "cost recovery fees" to offset those costs. Consumers should be made aware, and be able to see the fees they are charged, on both the rental bill and in an online quote. This bill would provide full disclosure and transparency of "cost recovery fees" included in rental car agreements. In addition, this legislation would make violating the provision an unfair trade practice. MS. MORLEDGE stated that this bill is a consumer protection bill modeled on car rental legislation that has passed in 30 other states, 10 of which have passed similar legislation in past three years. The bill previously passed the Alaska Senate unanimously and has industry support and is supported by the Department of Law. She encouraged the committee to support SB 272. 2:12:19 PM REPRESENTATIVE BUCH recalled a disclosure bill that applied to documentation fees by car dealers on sales of vehicle documentation fee. It seemed to him that car dealers were able to charge a fee for basically "not doing anything." CHAIR OLSON pointed out the referenced bill applied to car dealers and not car rental agencies. REPRESENTATIVE BUCH suggested this bill requires similar disclosure which would only apply to car rental agencies. MS. MORLEDGE referred to page 2, line 19 to the definition of car which read, "(1) "car" means motor vehicle." She related that the bill drafter indicated this would apply to all motor vehicle rentals. 2:13:46 PM SHANE SKINNER, Controller/Business Manager, Enterprise Rental Cars, clarified the car rental charges. He stated that currently there is "nothing on the books" in Alaska on car rental charges. This bill would clarify the allowable charges plus it would limit the charges to those remitted to the state for car rental taxes, airport taxes and fees, which are remitted to airports to run the facilities, and vehicle registration fees. This bill would cap the amount that is allowable to be collected to the state or airport authority. 2:14:33 PM CHAIR OLSON, after first determining no one else wished to testify, closed public testimony on SB 272. 2:14:50 PM REPRESENTATIVE T. WILSON moved to report SB 272 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, SB 272 was reported from the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.