SB 115-ADDRESS CONFIDENTIALITY PROGRAM  1:55:51 PM CHAIR HOLLAND reconvened the meeting and announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 115 "An Act relating to confidentiality of information; relating to the duties of the Department of Administration; creating an address confidentiality program; and providing for an effective date." CHAIR HOLLAND noted that this was the first hearing and recognized Senator Kiehl as the sponsor. 1:56:12 PM SENATOR KIEHL, speaking as sponsor of SB 115, explained that the bill was prompted by two stories. A former legislator told a story about helping a domestic violence survivor who moved to Alaska. She went to get her mail from her US Post Office (USPO) box, and her abuser was waiting outside the USPO. He had somehow tracked down her address. Second, a friend who is a law enforcement officer fears for his family's safety. He stated that law enforcement officers must deal with people who behave in horrible ways, sometimes threatening revenge on them. 1:58:01 PM SENATOR KIEHL paraphrased the sponsor statement. SB 115 creates an address confidentiality program to protect survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, as well as for peace officers and correctional officers. Forty-one states have some form of address confidentiality program. They are so widespread because there's real needan address is essential to vote, drive, work, and so much more. But having an address in a public record makes a person vulnerable to an abuser or someone seeking to do harm. Alaskans who have survived relationship or sexual violence deserve a way to participate in society safely. So do Alaskans who work in law enforcement and face threats of retribution. An address confidentiality program minimizes the chances they will be found by someone who wishes them harm. Under SB 115, the state would keep a Post Office Box and confidentially forward mail to public safety professionals and Alaskans under a protective order. These Alaskans deserve a chance to live safely. 1:59:01 PM SENATOR KIEHL explained that in some states the function to forward mail and keep the victim or individual's home address confidential is housed in the lieutenant governor or Secretary of State's office. Often, voter registration addresses are the primary public record that might reveal a person's physical address. Other states house their programs within the Department of Law or District Attorney equivalents as part of victim- witness services. SB 115 proposes to put this program in the Department of Administration because Shared Services of Alaska already operates a central mail system and has the infrastructure in place. 1:59:26 PM SENATOR KIEHL reviewed the mechanics of the bill. In addition to adjusting a few rules for the Alaska Court System to ensure that these addresses do not inadvertently appear in a public court file, it would create the program and give the Department of Administration a significantly different scope of that program by regulation. The regulations indicate that most states only forward first-class, registered, and certified mail, so catalogs and magazines will not be forwarded. He highlighted that a voter requesting a mail ballot would have their ballot forwarded, but campaign mail would not be forwarded since it is third-class mail. He related that he has worked with the Department of Administration, law enforcement, Department of Corrections, and victims' advocates. He indicated that he had heard no opposition to the bill. He urged members to support SB 115 to provide an extra safety measure for survivors, law enforcement, and correctional officers. CHAIR HOLLAND noted that there was a committee substitute (CS for the committee to consider. 2:01:15 PM SENATOR MYERS moved to adopt the committee substitute (CS) for SB 115, work order 32-LS0380\G, as the working document. CHAIR HOLLAND objected for discussion purposes. 2:01:52 PM EDRIC CARRILLO, Staff, Senator Jesse Kiehl, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, on behalf of the sponsor, stated that there were two technical changes from Version I to Version G. Section 6, subsection (h), establishes the penalty for disclosing confidential information of enrollees in the mail forwarding program as a class B misdemeanor. The original bill, Version I, inadvertently omitted a peace officer and a correctional officer from the list of eligible enrollees listed in subsection (c) (4) and (5), and Version G includes them, so the penalty provision would apply if someone disclosed their confidential information. MR. CARRILLO related the last change in Section 9 would update the effective date to February 1, 2023, instead of 2022. 2:02:56 PM SENATOR HUGHES said she liked protecting survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence. She commended the police officers and correctional officers who provide public safety in Alaska. She asked for the impact this bill would have. She wondered how many peace officers and correctional officers would be affected by the bill. 2:03:45 PM CHAIR HOLLAND removed his objection; he found no further objection and Version G was adopted. He asked Senator Kiehl to respond to the question. 2:04:08 PM SENATOR KIEHL responded that the Department of Administration had difficulty estimating the figures. He indicated that he reviewed other states' programs. He noted that Vermont and Arizona did not include peace or correctional officers. He estimated that the registry would probably serve 700 to 900 Alaskans at full implementation. He noted that number is less than the total number of correctional or law enforcement officers in the state, in part, because these registries are not helpful for everyone. For example, law enforcement officers with a significant social media presence, such as a Facebook page or Instagram account showing photographs of their family taken in their front yard would not benefit. New officers who heed the advice of the Alaska State Trooper Training Academy to protect themselves and their families by avoiding using social media or other online locations may find the program helpful. A comparatively small number of those experiencing domestic violence feel so threatened that they must relocate and start their new lives elsewhere. Those survivors are the ones who will use this program and benefit from it. 2:06:31 PM SENATOR HUGHES stated that victims are in situations through no fault of their own, so it makes sense for the state to help them. She offered her view that judges, school principals, teachers, or lawmakers may also want that protection. She wondered if people could keep their physical addresses private by using a USPO box. SENATOR KIEHL agreed that most people would obtain sufficient privacy by getting a USPO box. He offered his view that very few lawmakers would feel the need to go to this level of privacy protection. He was not aware of other states that include law enforcement or correctional officers in this level of privacy. Individuals who seek revenge on law enforcement or correctional officers or perpetrators who engage in stalking go beyond an angry afternoon of heckling. These people pose a danger. While the registry could be expanded, most people would not find it helpful since they are not subject to the threats that those who arrest criminals or keep them imprisoned face. 2:09:12 PM SENATOR HUGHES wondered how mail from online stores, such as Amazon, would be handled for law enforcement officers who had concerns and elected to have their mail forwarded. She related some people with bad intentions could hack their mail. SENATOR HUGHES surmised that the volume of mail the state might be paying to redeliver could be considerable if people solely relied on the state to forward their mail. SENATOR KIEHL responded that most states forward mail pertaining to non-commercial transactions, such as property taxes, voting registration, any court documents, and certified mail. However, the government would not forward mail or packages from online stores or retailers, including Amazon. He emphasized that this relates to public records, so it would be a separate issue if an abuser or criminal were to hack commercial websites or accomplish major data breaches. He explained that the stalkers that this bill addresses are domestic violence abusers, and most of them don't have high-level hacking skills to pose threats. 2:11:46 PM SENATOR HUGHES pointed out that other professions, including prosecutors and tax auditors could suffer from retribution. They may wish to get USPO boxes. 2:12:05 PM CHAIR HOLLAND noted that Senator Shower had joined the meeting via teleconference. SENATOR SHOWER confirmed that he was participating via teleconference. CHAIR HOLLAND asked whether the regulations would identify the type of mail to be forwarded. 2:12:44 PM SENATOR KIEHL answered yes. 2:12:47 PM SENATOR MYERS asked if state employees would deliver the mail. SENATOR KIEHL answered that state employees would bundle the forwarded mail in a single envelope or package and remail it to the participants' address. 2:13:38 PM SENATOR MYERS referred to the public records, noting that under the Real ID Act of 2005, citizens are required to obtain a Real ID and, to do so, must provide proof of address. He asked whether this bill would be Real ID compliant. 2:14:12 PM MR. CARRILLO responded that the state and municipalities would be required to accept the USPO box. SENATOR MYERS asked whether the federal government would accept the USPO box to meet the Real ID requirements. SENATOR KIEHL noted that the division did not raise that issue. However, he offered to research this through the Division of Motor Vehicles and respond to the committee. CHAIR HOLLAND asked him to repeat the question. 2:14:59 PM SENATOR MYERS asked whether the federal government would accept the USPO box as proof of residence. 2:15:34 PM SENATOR MYERS noticed the bill makes it a crime to disclose someone's physical address. AS 44.21.022(h)(2) reads, "is not authorized to access the address confidentiality program database and knowingly discloses the information to the respondent of a protective order." He asked why the bill doesn't make it a crime to access the database when the person is not authorized to access it. SENATOR KIEHL responded that the difference was related to the mental state for the disclosure. He explained that someone at the department giving the information to someone who is not allowed to have it would be guilty of a more serious crime than someone who happens upon the information but knows the person is protected yet still allows the information to be released. The bill treats the release of information in different levels of severity. 2:17:15 PM CHAIR HOLLAND asked Senator Shower if he had any questions. 2:17:26 PM SENATOR SHOWER answered that he had no questions. He related that he previously heard the bill in the Senate State Affairs committee and it made sense to him. SENATOR KIEHL thanked the committee for hearing the bill. CHAIR HOLLAND held SB 115 in committee. 2:18:09 PM CHAIR HOLLAND brought SB 115 back before the committee. 2:18:20 PM CHAIR HOLLAND opened public testimony on SB 115; hearing none, he closed public testimony. 2:18:41 PM CHAIR HOLLAND held SB 115 in committee.