SB 165-ALCO. BEV. CONT. BOARD; MINORS; ALCOHOL  2:52:12 PM VICE CHAIR COGHILL announced the consideration of SB 165. He noted this is the first hearing and public testimony would be taken at the next meeting. [CSSB 165(L&C) was before the committee.] 2:52:45 PM SENATOR PETER MICCICHE, sponsor of SB 165, explained that the bill would provide a good balance of representation to the Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Board and decriminalizes youth for simple alcohol possession and consumption. It also puts in place proper accountability measures. The bill opens a new horizon of opportunity for youth who have made a mistake consuming alcohol in the past. He pointed out that this legislation is part of an on-going, comprehensive, multi-year modernization process for Title 4. There is a lot left to work on. SB 165 contains two simple pieces that were agreed upon by the coalition. Title 4 is largely unchanged since 1980 and is outdated and ineffectual in carrying out the intent of the statute which directly impacts Alaska residents' public safety, public health, and the alcohol beverage industry. He noted that the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee made several changes to the bill in response to feedback from community and industry members, as well as from justice system practitioners. He said he is particularly pleased by the addition of the Community Diversion Panel, which is a recognized treatment alternative for minor consuming alcohol offenses. He concluded that the ABC Board composition changes proposed in the bill mirror the makeup of the Marijuana Board. He felt very strongly about the minor consuming law revisions. CHUCK KOPP, Staff, Senator Peter Micciche, Alaska State Legislature, provided an overview of SB 165. 2:55:54 PM SENATOR COSTELLO moved to adopt CSSB 165(L&C), labeled 29- LS1384\W, as the working document. There being no objection, version W was before the committee. 2:56:44 PM CYNTHIA FRANKLIN, Executive Director, Alcohol Beverage and Control (ABC) Board and Marijuana Control Board, Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development (DCCED), provided information on SB 165. She stated that the ABC Board's mission is to control the manufacture, barter, possession, and sale of alcoholic beverages in the state. She said that most of Title 4 has not been updated since 1980 and the industry has grown and changed since then. Much has been learned about youth access to alcohol and what is, and is not, effective in convincing youth to wait to use alcohol until they are of legal age. She said the Title 4 review process, which began in May of 2012, attempted to bring together stakeholders from all aspects of the alcohol issue. The goals are to promote a fair business climate, protect public health and safety, create rational regulations around all tiers of the alcohol industry while limiting youth access to alcohol and ensuring youth are not criminalized, and to promote responsible alcohol use and reduce the harms of overconsumption. The process is still on-going and the bill is a part of this larger effort. 2:59:26 PM MR. KOPP provided the genesis of the bill. Following a 3-year review and update by stakeholders, SB 99 was introduced in April of 2015. In December 2015 the steering committee recommended a new two-track process for the Title 4 rewrite. Elements of SB 99 that could be implemented now were inserted into SB 165. This will benefit young Alaskans and align the ABC Board and the Marijuana Control Board. He described planned future work that would lead to a full package of recommendations next year. He concluded that SB 165 focuses on minors on licensed premises, minors in possession or consuming, and ABC Board member composition. 3:01:33 PM MS. FRANKLIN reported that SB 165 creates additional designations of a public safety seat and a public health seat, replacing two public seats on the ABC Board. She related that this composition mirrors that of the Marijuana Control Board's two industry seats. She opined that there is little difference between the two boards. She turned to the work on minor consuming penalties, most of which are for first offenses and one-charge situations. The bill decriminalizes minor consuming and makes it a violation. Having heavy penalties creates life-long complications. The bill attempts to get clear, concise enforcement because current court hearing scheme looks very disparate, both racially and socio economically. 3:05:12 PM MR. KOPP said, in addition, the bill would spare minors from appearing on CourtView, which can limit jobs and federal student loans. The bill also gets rid of places in the law where a minor's motor vehicle insurance and driver's license can be cancelled for non-driving offenses. 3:05:59 PM MR. KOPP presented the sectional changes made in Senate Labor & Commerce. In Section 1, the section that related to the executive director's position was removed so as to not influence or politicize any board appointment. It now consists of only the board makeup. In Section 8 a reference to community diversion panels was added to ensure that youth courts and tribal circles are among the options available to youth for alcohol education and treatment Section 9 has a stylistic change from "under the age of 21" to "under 21 years of age." It also adds a reference to community diversion panels. Section 10, deleted from the previous version, was renumbered because it inadvertently limited court discretion in youth enrolling in the Juvenile Alcohol Safety Action Program. Section 11 amended court records of persons under 21 years of age, adding the terms "or a similar ordinance of a municipality" making clear that if state law is changed to keep minor consuming and alcohol possessions off of CourtView, municipal charges would also remain off of CourtView. He concluded that a definitions of "community diversion panel" was also added, and the applicability section was amended to reflect changes. He noted a minor amendment is needed to complete the community diversion panel definition. 3:08:21 PM VICE CHAIR COGHILL noted the importance of public testimony and assured everyone it would be made available at the next meeting. He said there is a proposed amendment to SB 165. He held SB 165 in committee.