HB 97 - STATE VETERANS CEMETERY & FUND 1:15:23 PM CHAIR GATTO announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 97, "An Act authorizing the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs to establish and maintain Alaska veterans' cemeteries, establishing the Alaska veterans' cemetery fund in the general fund, and authorizing appropriation of income from fees for special request plates commemorating Alaska veterans to that cemetery fund." 1:15:46 PM REPRESENTATIVE DAVID GUTTENBERG, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor, indicated that research engendered by [a constituent's request] led him to discover that although Alaska is ineligible for another national cemetery, the State Cemetery Grants Program was established by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with the goal of having a veterans' cemetery within 75 miles of 90 percent of the country's veterans. Legislation similar to HB 97 has passed the House twice, and although Fairbanks is currently the only community that would be eligible under the federal program, HB 97 is not specific with regard to location. He relayed that his office has written a grant to the VA, and the governor has put $200,000 into the budget for "this," adding his hope that this legislation will pass both the House and Senate this time. All criteria regarding who can be buried in a state veterans' cemetery would be established by the VA, which would pay 100 percent of the costs of establishing the cemetery, and the state would then be responsible for maintenance of the cemetery. REPRESENTATIVE GUTTENBERG, in response to questions, explained that the VA provides an allotment of $300 for internment; that the VA considers 20 acres to be the optimum size for such a cemetery; that in part, HB 97 authorizes the use of fees generated by the Alaska's veterans' commemorative license plate program for the purposes of a state veterans' cemetery; that he does not know why previous versions of the legislation did not pass the Senate; and that he doesn't know whether there is sufficient room for such a cemetery at Fort Richardson, Alaska. REPRESENTATIVE HARRIS indicated that he is amenable to having such a cemetery in a different location. CHAIR GATTO opined that such cemeteries should be located in different locations around the state since Alaska's veterans come from different locations. REPRESENTATIVE HARRIS said he supports HB 97. 1:24:41 PM STACY OATES, Administrative Manager, Director's Office, Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), Department of Administration (DOA), in response to a question, explained that under [current statute], the DMV reports the amount of the fees it receives for veterans' commemorative license plates to the Division of Finance, and keeps a record of how much money is collected for those specific license plates; that money, which goes into the general fund (GF), is then available for appropriation for veterans' issues and veterans' programs, and, under the bill, that money would then also be available for appropriation for a veterans cemetery fund. REPRESENTATIVE HARRIS pointed out that all funds in the GF are available for appropriation; that under the Alaska State Constitution, there shall be no dedicated funds; and that HB 97 merely establishes a guideline for what fees from veterans' commemorative license plates might be appropriated for. 1:27:14 PM TIM WHEELER, President, Alaska Veterans Business Alliance (AVBA), after indicating that members' packets should include a letter from Ric Davidge, relayed that he supports HB 97, characterizing it as the right thing to do and as a way of thanking veterans for their service to the country. He added that it would be fair for Fairbanks to be the location of a state veterans' cemetery so that family members won't have to drive all the way to Anchorage to visit their buried loved ones. He expressed his hope that members will support HB 97 and move it from committee. 1:28:08 PM PAT LUBY, Advocacy Director, AARP Alaska, explained that the AARP has a large number of veterans among its membership, and that one of the greatest honors that can be afforded a veteran and his/her family is a final resting place in a veterans' cemetery. However, such families would prefer to have a cemetery that is close to them, and HB 97 will offer many Alaska veterans and their families that opportunity via the future development of one or more new cemeteries - hopefully in the Interior, he added. In conclusion, he said that the AARP strongly supports HB 97, and, as a veteran himself, that he is requesting passage of HB 97 for the benefit of all veterans. In response to a question, he relayed that compared to any other state, Alaska has the highest per capita number of veterans. CHAIR GATTO, after ascertaining that no one else wished to testify, closed public testimony on HB 97. 1:30:28 PM REPRESENTATIVE HARRIS moved to report HB 97 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, HB 97 was reported from the House Special Committee on Military and Veterans' Affairs.