HB 275-ELECTRONIC DISTRIB. OF REPORTS/NOTICES  9:11:51 AM CHAIR LYNN announced that the next order of business was HOUSE BILL NO. 275, "An Act relating to electronic publication of certain municipal notices and to publication and electronic distribution of reports by state agencies." [Before the committee was CSHB 275(CRA).] 9:12:06 AM The committee took an at-ease from 9:12 a.m. to 9:14 a.m. 9:14:22 AM REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER, Alaska State Legislature, as sponsor, presented HB 275. He indicated that the two main purposes of the proposed legislation pertain to the state's ability to promote efficiency and effectiveness of government and to reduce unnecessary government spending, which he said could also be called government waste. He said the first three sections of the proposed bill would affect municipalities and the last two sections would affect state agencies. The first three sections would permit a municipality to adopt an ordinance to post the following three things on its web site rather than printing them: mill rates, foreclosure listings, and [expiration of] redemption of foreclosures. He said similar legislation was proposed in the past, but did not pass. He indicated that the provisions in Section 1-3 of HB 275 were added after listening to the concerns of the municipalities. 9:16:54 AM REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER stated that the core of bill is in Sections 4 and 5, which would reduce paper waste. He questioned how many legislators actually read all the agency reports that are required by law. He said under the proposed legislation, it would be mandatory for those reports to be delivered electronically. He said there would be exceptions, found in language of Section 5, [beginning on page 4, line 30, through page 5, line 4], which read as follows: An agency may not produce print copies of reports except as (1) required (A) under AS 14.56.120; (B) by agreement; or (C) by federal law; or (2) requested under AS 44.99.260 or specifically approved by the head of a state agency or the head's designee. 9:20:16 AM REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER said the bill would not compromise the public's right to know or the legislature's ability to access information. He directed attention to Section 4, and said the state already utilizes the Alaska Online Public Notice System, and language on page 4, line 24, would require reports of state agencies to go onto that system. Representative Hawker said HB 275 is not all-encompassing, but is a step in making government activities more efficient. He said he thinks if this works out, it will merit discussion in future years for expansion. 9:23:22 AM CHAIR LYNN asked how much money might be saved under HB 275. 9:23:32 AM REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER indicated that in 2011, $1.6 million was spent on publications. He said that "as we have narrowed the scope of this legislation," the Office of Management & Budget (OMB) believes it is spending $530,000 for this type of reporting. He said, "The savings is going to be somewhere within that." He said he thinks it is realistic to believe that there will be material savings across all agencies under HB 275, and that future legislation could "go after the second million dollars that's out there" and "be more efficient and effective without compromising the public's need to know." 9:24:51 AM REPRESENTATIVE HUGHES thanked the bill sponsor for what she called "common sense legislation." She said as a new legislator last year, she soon realized the difficulty in reading every hard copy report and finding space to keep them all. She said she had made a suggestion that the reports be provided electronically, with a list of all the reports for legislators to see. Representative Hughes questioned the reasoning behind the language regarding graphic design reports, on page 5, [lines 13-17]. REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER indicated that some reports seem to have more emphasis on technical beauty than content. Under the proposed legislation, an agency would not be allowed to hire a contractor to provide photographs or graphics unless there is no one in the agency qualified to do the work or hiring a contractor would cost the state less. In response to a follow- up question, he said he has no idea if an agency has ever [hired a contractor for a job that would have cost less done in house], but he has noted the "large volume of what would appear to be very costly photographs" in the reports to legislators that are delivered and "going by the wayside so very quickly." He said the concept of the bill is to allow agency heads to retain as much decision-making latitude as possible, while being mindful that the directive from the legislature is to use the state's resources more efficiently. 9:30:02 AM REPRESENTATIVE KELLER remarked he is sure the sponsor agrees that the intent is not to quell information. He said he would not mind if agencies spent funds doing work on getting information available, such as a specialized application where a legislator could find information on an iPad. He said he does not want to propose an amendment, but would like the sponsor's response. REPRESENTATIVE HAWKER acknowledged the importance of testimony in terms of conveying the intent of legislation, and he confirmed that the "need in the state" suggested by Representative Keller would not be compromised under HB 275. 9:32:29 AM REPRESENTATIVE KREISS-TOMKINS opined that the proposed legislation is fantastic. He echoed Representative Hughes' remark about being a new legislator and noticing the money being spent on reports. Regarding graphics, he said he thinks there is an incentive for state agencies to out-do each other in design, in an attempt to garner the most attention from the legislature to secure funds for their causes. He surmised that the cost of design has got to be extraordinary. He stated, "When we're hearing numbers like half a million to over a million, it's not ... just a symbolic gesture, but it's real savings." He said he suspects the aforementioned language on page 5, regarding graphics, would result in even greater savings. 9:34:04 AM KATHIE WASSERMAN, Executive Director, Alaska Municipal League (AML), testified that AML supports HB 275. She remarked that this is the first time in her many years involved in local government that she has witnessed the state relax a mandate on municipalities, and she said that is reason for celebration. She stated that most communities know best how to relay information to their people. She pointed out that, unlike legislators who must leave their constituents to take part in the 90-day legislative session, municipal officials are in the vicinity of the people they serve every day; therefore, municipal officials know early on whether information has been delivered or not. She said as a former mayor in many small communities, she was required many years ago to post everything in the closest newspaper, which, with any luck, was delivered to her community six days later. She said that was a waste, but she knew how to get the information to the people, and other municipalities do, as well. She thanked the bill sponsor for bring HB 275 forward. 9:35:52 AM CHAIR LYNN suggested that perhaps [legislators] should not be so isolated. 9:36:08 AM REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON said he echoes the testimony of Ms. Wasserman and thinks the proposed legislation is "extremely helpful." He said the elective aspect of posting requirements is good. He asked Ms. Wasserman what kind of feedback she may have received regarding HB 275. 9:37:13 AM MS. WASSERMAN said she has heard from a few communities, but AML's winter meeting is not until another week, at which point the issue will be discussed at length. She said she thinks she has been in her job long enough to know that for the most part, if a legislative bill "falls under local control," AML would never oppose it. 9:38:05 AM DEBORAH L. REICH, Foreclosure Specialist, Real Estate Services Division, Department of Real Estate, Municipality of Anchorage, testified in support of HB 275. She said the Municipality of Anchorage appreciates the provision in the proposed legislation that would give municipalities across the state the option to publish foreclosure notices on line or in local news publications. She said that change would save the municipality a minimum of $20,000 annually, a significant savings in times when budgets are so tight. She expressed appreciation to the bill sponsor and offered to answer questions from the committee. 9:39:37 AM CHAIR LYNN, after ascertaining that there was no one else who wished to testify, closed public testimony. 9:39:46 AM REPRESENTATIVE KELLER moved to report CSHB 275(CRA) out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 275(CRA) was reported out of the House State Affairs Standing Committee.