HB 63-ALASKA MARINE HIGHWAY OPERATIONS BOARD  3:40:05 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS announced that the next order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 63, "An Act relating to the duties of the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities; renaming the Alaska Marine Transportation Advisory Board the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board; relating to the membership and duties of the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board; and providing for an effective date." [Before the committee was CSHB 63(TRA).] 3:40:33 PM REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN moved to adopt the proposed committee substitute (CS) for HB 63, labeled 32-LS0286\O, Fisher, 4/20/21, as the working document. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS objected for the purpose of discussion. 3:41:19 PM JEFF STEPP, Staff, Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, Alaska State Legislature, reviewed the changes proposed in the CS, ("Version O"), which replaced CSHB 63(TRA). The changes corresponded to amendments adopted by the committee in the previous hearing for HB 63 [on 4/15/21]. 3:47:17 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS removed his objection. Without further objection, Version O was adopted as the working document. He noted that there were four outstanding amendments for the committee's consideration today, all of which had been introduced and withdrawn during the hearing on 4/15/21. 3:48:32 PM REPRESENTATIVE STORY moved to adopt Amendment 1, labeled 32- LS0286\O.4, Fisher, 4/21/21, which read: Page 1, line 4, following "Board;": Insert "and" Page 1, line 5: Delete "; and providing for an effective date" Page 6, line 25: Delete all material. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS objected for the purpose of discussion. REPRESENTATIVE STORY explained that Amendment 1 would remove the effective date of January 1, 2022, to allow the bill to take effect 90 days after being signed into law. 3:49:16 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS removed his objection. Without further objection, Amendment 1 was adopted. 3:49:32 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS moved to adopt Amendment 2, labeled 32- LS0286\O.2, Fisher, 4/21/21, which read: Page 2, line 23, following "system" Insert "and a proposed strategic maintenance and  vessel replacement plan" REPRESENTATIVE STORY objected for the purpose of discussion. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS relayed that Amendment 2 would include strategic maintenance and vessel replacement as part of the comprehensive plan, as discussed in the previous hearing. 3:50:01 PM REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN questioned whether a strategic maintenance and vessel replacement plan already existed within DOT&PF's management of assets. 3:50:56 PM ROB CARPENTER, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Commissioner, DOT&PF, understood that the Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) had planned annual vessel overhauls and long-term maintenance requirements; however, he was unsure whether those plans existed in statute. REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN clarified that had asked whether such a management plan already existed. MR. CARPENTER confirmed that the process existed. 3:52:18 PM REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked who in the department was responsible for overseeing strategic maintenance and vessel replacement. MR. CARPENTER answered Captain John Falvey, the general manager for AMHS. He noted that a vessel construction manager assisted the captain in that endeavor. REPRESENTATIVE VANCE questioned how a strategic maintenance and vessel replacement plan would be communicated through the deputy commissioner to the new board if the bill were to pass. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS clarified that Amendment 2 would make the strategic maintenance and vessel replacement plan a component of the comprehensive long-range plan. REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked how it would be a joint effort between AMHS, the department, and the new board. MR. CARPENTER understood that the deputy commissioner of DOT&PF would be working with the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board ("the board") on these strategic planning efforts. He added that the general manager for AMHS reported to the deputy commissioner, so communication would be ongoing. Furthermore, he envisioned that the deputy commissioner would be a liaison between the board and AMHS to ensure that communication was clear in all strategic planning efforts. 3:54:52 PM REPRESENTATIVE STORY removed her objection. Without further objection, Amendment 2 was adopted. 3:55:09 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS moved to adopt Amendment 3, labeled 32- LS0286\O.7, Fisher, 4/22/21, which read: Page 3, line 26: Delete "three-year" Insert "six-year [THREE-YEAR]" Page 6, line 11: Delete "one-year" Insert "two-year" Page 6, line 14: Delete "one-year" Insert "two-year" Page 6, line 16: Delete "two-year" Insert "four-year" Page 6, line 18: Delete "three-year" Insert "six-year" REPRESENTATIVE STORY objected for the purpose of discussion. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS explained that the constitutional ability to inhibit the governor's appointees from serving at the pleasure of the governor was nonexistent for advisory boards; therefore, Amendment 3 would implement a six-year term for the board members [appointed by the governor]. REPRESENTATIVE VANCE sought to clarify whether the board members appointed by the governor and presiding officers would require confirmation by the legislature. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS deferred the question to Mr. Crocker. 3:58:07 PM KERRY CROCKER, Staff, Representative Louise Stutes, explained that the proposed legislation utilized existing statutory language for the Marine Transportation Advisory Board (MTAB), which did not require its members to be confirmed by the legislature. REPRESENTATIVE TARR understood that legislative confirmation would require inserting the language "subject to confirmation by the legislature." 3:58:56 PM REPRESENTATIVE STORY removed her objection. Without further objection, Amendment 3 was adopted. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS explained that the following amendment, Amendment 4, provided that AMHS's performance measures should be communicated to the public and the media in an easily available manner. 4:00:11 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS moved to adopt Amendment 4, labeled 32- LS0286\O.6, Fisher, 4/22/21, which read: Page 2, line 8, following "AS 19.65.110": Insert ";  (9) report, in a manner that is easily  available to the public and the media, including on  the department's Internet website, on the progress of  the Alaska marine highway system in meeting the  performance goals established by the Alaska Marine  Highway Operations Board under AS 19.65.180(i);" Page 5, following line 15: Insert a new subsection to read: "(i) The board shall identify performance measures and set corresponding annual performance goals for the Alaska marine highway system. These goals may include fare box recovery, on-time performance, and percentage of administrative overhead. In this subsection, "fare box recovery" means the fraction of the Alaska marine highway system's operating expenses that are met by the fares paid by passengers." REPRESENTATIVE TARR objected for the purpose of discussion. 4:00:28 PM REPRESENTATIVE TARR sought to confirm that the board would identify performance measures, which would be prepared and reported on an annual basis. 4:01:24 PM The committee took an at-ease from 4:01 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. 4:05:40 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS explained that during the at-ease, he had taken the opportunity to assess the intersection of Amendment 4 and Version O and consider Representative Tarr's question. 4:06:12 PM REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN suggested utilizing the intent section of the CS. CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS conveyed that per Amendment 4, AMHS would report to the public on its execution of the performance measures that were identified in the short-term and long-term plans. He indicated that the goal was to establish accountability to the public and the media in terms of how AMHS was functioning. He further noted that the performance measures would be identified by the board. 4:07:29 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS moved to adopt a conceptual amendment to Amendment 4, which would delete lines 8-15 and change the statutory citation on line 6 from AS 19.65.180(i) to AS 19.65.011. Without objection, the conceptual amendment to Amendment 4 was adopted. REPRESENTATIVE TARR removed her objection. Without further objection, Amendment 4, as amended, was adopted. 4:09:16 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS invited additional comments from committee members on HB 63. REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN thanked the chair for his extensive work with the bill sponsor and members of the committee. REPRESENTATIVE STORY thanked the committee for its work on the current version of HB 63. She believed the legislation would help with oversight and awareness and ensure that AMHS was well- functioning. 4:10:19 PM CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS expressed his appreciation for all the conversations, work, and contributions from the committee on this piece of legislation. Additionally, he stated his appreciation for the leadership at DOT&PF. He opined that the bill spoke to coastal Alaska's desire for more involvement, oversight, direction, and a sense of equity for the future of AMHS. He said he was excited that the bill was moving forward and expressed his hope that it would be a steppingstone towards further exploration of a public corporation model. 4:11:15 PM REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN moved to report CSHB 63, Version 32- LS0286\O, Fisher, 4/20/21, as amended, out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. Without objection, CSHB 63(STA) was moved from the House State Affairs Standing Committee. 4:11:51 PM MR. CROCKER thanked the committee members on behalf of the bill sponsor, Representative Stutes, for all their time and effort.