SB 101-STUDENT QUESTIONNAIRES AND SURVEYS                                                                        
                                                                                                                              
1:44:34 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR DAVIS announced consideration of SB 101.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
TOM OBERMEYER,  staff to Senator Davis,  said SB 101 is  the "Act                                                               
relating  to  questionnaires  and  surveys  administered  in  the                                                               
public schools." This bill addresses  specifically the Youth Risk                                                               
Behavior   Survey  (YRBS)   that  is   administered  in   schools                                                               
throughout the  state and the nation.  Alaska is one of  three or                                                               
four  states  that  require  active  consent,  which  means  that                                                               
schools have  to send notice  of the  test to parents  and obtain                                                               
signed permission from them to  administer the survey. The change                                                               
in this  bill is  simply from  active to  passive consent  so the                                                               
survey  can be  administered without  [written] parental  consent                                                               
two or more  weeks after the required notification  has been sent                                                               
to  parents. Parents  are  given the  opportunity  to review  the                                                               
survey if they  wish; if they decide not to  allow their children                                                               
to take  the survey,  they must complete  a denial  of permission                                                               
form  in writing  and provide  it  to the  teacher or  principal.                                                               
Another safeguard is  included in this bill  for students sitting                                                               
for the survey who  find that they do not want  to answer some or                                                               
all  of the  questions.  Section  3, page  2  allows students  to                                                               
refuse to answer  specific questions or it  refuse to participate                                                               
in the survey at the time it is given.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
The purpose  of this  is to  ensure that  the state  has adequate                                                               
information for  the Health  and Social  Services and  the school                                                               
districts  about matters  related  to the  significant causes  of                                                               
mortality  and morbidity  during youth  and adulthood  in Alaska.                                                               
The  survey  includes questions  about  such  things as  tobacco,                                                               
alcohol,  drug abuse,  sexual behavior,  diet and  nutrition, and                                                               
exercise.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DAVIS  asked Mr.  Obermeyer to explain  why this  change to                                                               
passive permission is important.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:47:36 PM                                                                                                                    
MR.  OBERMEYER explained  that  the state  must  have 60  percent                                                               
participation  by  students  in  the  YRBS for  the  data  to  be                                                               
validated  by the  Centers for  Disease  Control and  Prevention.                                                               
Alaska has  failed to achieve  that participation level in  3 out                                                               
of the last  four surveys administered in the past  10 years. The                                                               
primary reason  appears to  be fact  that Alaska  requires active                                                               
parental consent.  In the interests  of the health  and education                                                               
of  youth in  this state,  the sponsors  decided this  change was                                                               
necessary  and would  still  provide  sufficient opportunity  for                                                               
parents and/or students to opt out of the survey.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DAVIS  noted that  this bill has  been supported  by almost                                                               
all of  the non-profit organizations  that use this data  as well                                                               
as by  the school districts; it  was heard and passed  out of the                                                               
Education Committee and  Senator Davis said she is  ready to move                                                               
it out of this committee as well.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
1:49:38 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  PASKVAN  moved to  report  SB  101 from  committee  with                                                               
individual  recommendations and  attached  fiscal note(s).  There                                                               
being no objection, it was so moved.