Number 529 LAURA GLAISER, STAFF PERSON, DIVISION OF ELECTIONS, offered suggestions to SSHB 346. She said the policies stated by Mr. Chenoweth are all in compliance with SB 303, drafted by her office. Representatives from the Federal Election Commission and the Department of Justice (DOJ) worked with her to draft a bill which arrived at the Department of Law in September or October, and was submitted as SB 303. She said, in drafting the bill, waivers and exemptions were not seen. When the permanent fund dividend application process was illustrated to representatives from the DOJ, they could only reply "we won't tell you what you can do to be in compliance, we'll just sue you when you aren't." Ms. Glaiser stated the DOJ will not review a state's bills first to see if they are even near compliance. The DOJ is going to wait until Alaska is challenged and then force the state to make the changes. SB 303 is an attempt to make the most minimum changes to Alaska's laws. She asked if (they) cared if SB 303 affected voter turnout, believing registering additional people will not help, if they do not go to the polls to vote. The Federal Election Commission told Ms. Glaiser they were not concerned with voter turnout. She noted she had been working with Representative Ulmer on HB 346 and pointed out there had been changes to suit their concerns in SSHB 346. MS. GLAISER was concerned about Section 5 of SSHB 346, requiring witnessing of a by-mail voter registration application, because Section 93 of the Federal Act states that no requirement can be made for notarization or other formally authentication may be included. SB 303 has removed witnessing from all of the forms. She relayed that other states are similarly blending these changes into their state laws, even though the federal act primarily relates to federal elections. To set up a separate program for only federal elections would be nearly impossible to do. (REPRESENTATIVE SANDERS returned to the meeting at 8:38 a.m.) Number 569 CHAIR VEZEY asked if SB 303 passed, the state would no longer allow two persons to witness a voter registration, and make it harder to register to vote. Number 572 REPRESENTATIVE OLBERG clarified SB 303 requires no witnesses to register to vote, the "Chicago provision." Number 574 CHAIR VEZEY responded any person could fill out a form, sign it, and they are registered. Number 575 MS. GLAISER explained the provision related to by-mail voter registration and by-mail voting. She saw a conflict between requiring those who apply in person to be witnessed and not requiring witnessing from those who apply by mail. Number 581 CHAIR VEZEY believed the current mail-in form requires the signature of two citizens of the state of Alaska. Number 582 MS. GLAISER replied yes. Number 584 REPRESENTATIVE ULMER clarified signatures are required at present, and also in SSHB 346. She pointed out SSHB 346 has eliminated the requirement of a notary. She felt the requirement to notarize was the provision in conflict with federal law, and asked Ms. Glaiser if it was her understanding that the interpretation is that the federal law requires no witnessing requirements for registration by mail. Number 590 CHAIR VEZEY was not aware of anywhere in voter registration or voting where a notary signature is required. Number 592 MS. GLAISER stated a notary is required by existing law. Number 596 REPRESENTATIVE ULMER referenced page 3, Section 5, of the existing law AS 15.07.070(b), regarding the notary public. SSHB 346 would remove this. Page 3, line 17-22, of the existing law can be read with regard to what notarization is required. Number 600 MS. GLAISER noted the exact language of the law had been, and is suggested to be removed in SSHB 346 as well as SB 303. "The form shall be executed before notary public, a commissioned officer of the armed forces including the national guard, a district judge or magistrate, a United States Postal Official, or other person qualified to administer oath. If none of the officials listed in this subsection is reasonably accessible, the person shall have the form witnessed by two persons over the age of 18 years." CHAIR VEZEY clarified a notary is a public official who can register an individual to vote. MS. GLAISER said yes. Number 607 CHAIR VEZEY asked why the notary requirement should be taken out; thereby, narrowing the number of public officials who can register individuals to vote Number 609 MS. GLAISER responded with the federal mandate, it is believed the removal of all the stipulations will make it easier for a person to vote. When the Federal Elections Commission was asked whether witnessing was formal authentication, they replied yes. Number 613 CHAIR VEZEY commented the federal government seemed to be advocating the election process be opened up to election fraud. The current form at least gives some independent verification that the information is true. He gave an example of fraud, which used to take place years ago in Chicago, where names from the cemetery were used to register voters. He felt the results of SSHB 346 would be ludicrous. Number 618 MS. GLAISER shared Chair Vezey's concerns. She stated when she met with the federal government, it was very frustrating to her because their legislators who worked on this Act were not present at any of the meetings. She could not find any other response for Alaska to get into compliance. Number 627 CHAIR VEZEY felt opening up the elections and inviting voter fraud would not be a "feather in the cap of democracy." Voter fraud has been a serious problem in the United States. He stated the legality of John F. Kennedy's presidential election as an example. MS. GLAISER replied she has read extensively on voter fraud; however, Alaska must work within the federal mandate. The federal government argued is "it is just as easy to have two fraudulent witnesses as it is to commit fraud on your own." Individuals do still have to sign a disclaimer that the information given is true, and it is a misdemeanor if it is falsified. Number 639 CHAIR VEZEY commented an individual could, in the meantime, vote ten times under false names. Number 640 MS. GLAISER replied only once. Number 642 CHAIR VEZEY stated people can be very clever and there are records of dead people voting in the United States. Number 644 MS. GLAISER believed Chair Vezey's concerns had been voiced in Congress and "this is what's resulted." Number 646 REPRESENTATIVE OLBERG stated at the Oil Spill Trustees meeting, there is never a written legal opinion when they discuss a proposal. Something is proposed, passed on to the Justice Department, and the Justice Department says they do not like it. When the Oil Spill Trustees ask the DOJ if they want to put their disagreement in writing, they reply, "no we would not." If the DOJ did submit a written disagreement, Representative Olberg stated, the court would probably find the statement illegal. He felt Ms. Glaiser may have had a similar type of conversation with the DOJ. Number 655 CHAIR VEZEY said if this scenario troubled Representative Olberg, he should note there has been about a 25 percent increase in the number of federal attorneys within the last year or two. Number 658 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT felt the objective of the federal mandate is to get people registered, even if they do not want to respond and vote. He could not understand why the federal mandate was introduced as it is. Representative Kott expressed concern over the purging of records, and wondered if the records would swell tremendously. What would the Division of Elections do to minimize the overload and keep track of those moving around and out of the state. MS. GLAISER replied she had similar concerns. Alaska is fortunate to have a computerized voting system, other states are in a much worse position in trying to adapt. The Division of Elections has a computerized registration list, which will be the master copy to suit the federal mandate. The district printouts will be in order because Alaska has questioned and absentee ballots, a form of "fail safe voting" in federal terms. The concern of the federal mandate is federal elections. No one in Alaska will have their rights abridged by the current process of purging individuals from the voting system. The lack of voting cannot be the only reason a person is purged, a notice must be sent. TAPE 94-18, SIDE B Number 000 MS. GLAISER said the voters will have the opportunity to vote honestly and fairly with the questioned ballot system. If a person votes on a questioned ballot, he/she will automatically be put back on the master list. Signing a petition, after not voting for two-four years, will automatically move a person back on to the precinct and district lists. The federal mandate has helped the Division of Elections open up the voting system and make it better and more accessible to Alaskans. Number 015 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT clarified the lists will be clear and expressed his current lists have three or four families assigned to the same household. Because the current problem may compound by two-fold, Representative Kott felt the lists would not be very clear. Number 033 MS. GLAISER responded the Division of Elections is doing the best they can to work with the voter registration cards. It is the person's responsibility to keep the cards clear and the Division makes the changes as soon as they are available. The simultaneous registration through motor vehicles, provided by the motor voter law, will enhance the records. Number 049 REPRESENTATIVE OLBERG asked if every seasonal employee who comes to Alaska and accesses any of these services is going to be or may be registered to vote. Number 058 MS. GLAISER answered as long they meet the requirements for voter registration, they will be registered. Individuals who are trying to receive permanent fund dividends are already registering to vote and will probably continue to do so. SSHB 346 and SB 303 do not include provisions to block this kind of registration. The Division of Elections is open to suggestions. Number 073 REPRESENTATIVE ULMER asked for the other two suggestions Ms. Glasier had mentioned, as the committee had only heard one. Number 077 LAURA GLAISER stated Section 10 of SSHB 346, considers those people working within state agencies, which have been declared voter registration agencies, to be considered registrars. Therefore, requiring training and possible testing and evaluation by the Division of Elections. She stated, in the research she has done with the Division of Elections, in SB 303 the affected state agencies would be considered voter registration agencies, but not registrars. This is to give the agencies the freedom to perform their registration tasks, without requiring the testing, evaluation, and the record keeping by the Division of Elections. As registrars, she said, they would just add to the bureaucracy, and the testing and evaluation by the Division of Elections will require a full-time employee to manage it. MS. GLAISER mentioned her concern with state agencies assisting people in the voter registration application. She suggested the use of a sheet that state agencies could hand out which gives a written description of the different parties. Each party could write a 50-word or less description in their own words. This would avoid putting the state employee in an awkward position when a person asks a compromising question. MS. GLAISER noted SSHB 346 fails to designate a chief election official and Section 10 of the National Voter Registration Act requires each state to designate a state officer to be responsible for the coordination of this Act. SB 303 names the director of the Division of Elections to do this. Number 139 REPRESENTATIVE ULMER returned to the registrars issue in Section 10 of Federal Motor Voter Act. If the employee assisting registration is not considered a registrar, but should have some training, how important is it to designate that employee as somebody else. She wanted to clarify if Ms. Glaiser meant only one employee in the agency or more, and if they would be properly trained. Number 154 MS. GLAISER replied there would be a training seminar for those employees within the agencies that would be providing the voter assistance. If a trained employee left his/her position, the responsibility would exist to train the incumbent employee or have a yearly refresher training seminar. The training for registrars currently takes about 15-20 minutes. Not naming the separate agencies as registrars will prevent them from having to be tested and evaluated. Number 173 REPRESENTATIVE ULMER asked if the agency employees should be specially designated as voting assistants, so they do get the training and are different from other employees without the training. The additional step up to registrar would not be required. Number 176 MS. GLAISER answered SB 303 did not name the employees specifically. Through regulation, policy and procedure between the agencies, they were going to be accepted as those people who will be assisting filling out the forms. She did not have a problem with naming them voting assistants and then define it in SSHB 346. Her objective was to avoid the added bureaucracy, cost, and record keeping to the state. Number 189 REPRESENTATIVE ULMER asked if registrars had to keep track of how many people they register and send it in. Number 191 MS. GLAISER responded the registrars system is kept separately in a computer file. They are tested, can be evaluated, are responsible to the director, and they are appointed at the director's will. She noted this provision is an agreement between the agency and the Division of Elections to come into compliance with the federal act. The agencies do not serve at the pleasure of the director, so as not to come into conflict with certain agency rules. Number 217 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT clarified that this is an unfunded mandate from the federal government and there are no grant monies available. MS. GLAISER answered Representative Kott was correct. Number 227 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT wondered what the percentage of unregistered individuals in Alaska might be. Number 231 MS. GLAISER replied she was not sure, but she guessed 67 percent were not registered. At the last general election, 82.9 percent of voters turned out to vote. She noted this percentage of voting individuals was relayed to the Federal Election Commission. The participation and voter registration drives in Alaska are phenomenal, she thought. Number 242 CHAIR VEZEY believed there are approximately 340,000 registered voters and a significantly high percentage of voter registration in Alaska. Number 252 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT asked Ms. Glaiser if 82.9 percent applied to registered voters. MS. GLAISER said Representative Kott was correct. The Division of Elections is researching how much it would cost to increase voter registration and at what percentage it would increase. They do not know now. She explained that if 85 percent are reached through motor vehicle registration, every household is reached with permanent fund dividend applications, and others reached through H&SS, the registration process will overlap. The Division of Elections would like to do the most at the least expense. REPRESENTATIVE KOTT commented the cliental which will now be registered generally do not vote. He noticed the conflict in the objective to get people registered, but not to ensure they actually vote. He felt the objective should be the latter. Representative Kott asked what the status of SB 303 was. MS. GLAISER answered SB 303 was in Senate State Affairs Committee and will be heard next week. Number 283 REPRESENTATIVE OLBERG inquired if there were any statistics as to how many people actually registered with the application included with the permanent fund dividend (PFD) application. MS. GLAISER replied the first year, there were a great deal of errors with individuals filling out the form incomplete. The form serves as a notification of a change of address, more so than increasing voter registration. There is a low percentage which affect increasing voter registration. Number 297 REPRESENTATIVE OLBERG commented the state pays people a dividend to register to vote and asked what more incentive must there be. An individual acquires an address, driver's license, and a voter registration when they first come to Alaska to establish a residency date to get a dividend. He noted Alaska is the only state which pays $900 a year to register to vote and asked Ms. Glasier if that had been suggested as a possible exemption. MS. GLAISER affirmed Representative Olberg, and replied the attorney she has dealt with has worked with Alaska on reapportionment issues and he was very familiar with the unique features Alaska has to offer. She said the attorneys, with their knowledge, still could not answer or confirm Alaska would be exempt with the PFD application. She has been in several meetings to discuss challenging solely on the basis of the PFD application, and no one felt secure the state would win in court. Having the court decide something much worse for the state was more of a concern. REPRESENTATIVE GARY DAVIS reiterated other states were given waivers and wanted to know why they were. Number 324 MS. GLAISER responded North Dakota was exempted because they have no voter registration at all, and the other possibility was if an individual could register simultaneously at the poll when going to cast a vote. Congress' intent was to make in as simple as possible. REPRESENTATIVE G. DAVIS asked if both of those exemptions were used in North Dakota. CHAIR VEZEY clarified there were two states. REPRESENTATIVE G. DAVIS understood. REPRESENTATIVE OLBERG suggested the committee should consider the options that Ms. Glaiser mentioned as exemptions. At least an individual would have to physically be there to vote. Number 348 MS. GLAISER responded Alaska cannot go back and change our current laws, it would have had to be in place when the president signed the Federal Motor Voter Law. Number 355 Hearing no more testimony, CHAIR VEZEY held SSHB 346 in committee for further review. He called for a recess at 9:06 a.m. and noted HB 483 would be postponed by sponsor request.