SB 53-COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN    9:03:53 AM CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI announced the first order of business would be SB 53, an act reestablishing the Commission on the Status of Women. CELESTE HODGE, staff to Senator Bettye Davis, provided an overview of SB 53. She said the Alaska Commission on the Status of Women was originally created in 1978, renewed and renamed to the Alaska Women's Commission in 1983, then combined with the Alaska Human Relations Commission in 1993. The Alaska Human Relations Commission has never been funded and was declared inactive in 1996. Staggering statistics for women in Alaska show the need to reestablish the commission, to exclusively focus on major issues facing women. Alaska has the highest rates of sexual assault and domestic violence in the nation. Poverty rates for unmarried female householders with children are particularly high, and have consistently been two or three times as high as overall male and female poverty rates. Survey data shows that of 26,518 families in Alaska with a female head of household, 22.6 percent live below the poverty level. The gender wage gap persists in Alaska; in 2009 Alaskan women on average earned only 66.6 percent of what men earned. Although more women than men in Alaska hold a bachelor's degree or higher, data shows that men's median annual earnings are higher in every education level. Alaskan women also experience health care disparities. Reestablishing the Alaska Commission on the Status of Women will help Alaskans focus on these critical areas. If we sincerely care about the women and children in this state, we must do more to deal with these staggering statistics. Throughout the commission's existence, it conducted many public hearings and trainings, developed manuals, conducted research, and provided opportunities in the areas of education, homemaking, civil and legal rights, and labor and employment. The commission developed a comprehensive statewide plan and made recommendations to enhance the quality of life for women and children. Alaska has an opportunity to once again show we sincerely care about the women in this state. We need innovative, forward thinking in a commission that exclusively concentrates on improving the status of women in Alaska. 9:07:56 AM CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI asked if Ms. Hodge could walk the committee through the bill. MS. HODGE responded the bill creates the Alaska Commission on the Status of Women, consisting of two members of the executive branch and seven public members, all appointed by the governor. The appointments are to be nondiscriminatory and nonpartisan. The bill further sets out terms of office, powers and duties of the commission, and provides for staggered terms of office for the members. CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI asked if the commission would have staff. MS. HODGE replied they hope that staff would be provided, because there is a lot of work involved. For the commission to be successful requires a staff. SENATOR MEYER asked if this would return to the commission as it existed when it was terminated. MS. HODGE affirmed that it would. SENATOR MEYER asked if there was fiscal note. MS. HODGE answered she had a fiscal note from 2009 with travel costs, per diem, and a three person staff. CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI said the committee had not yet received the fiscal note for this bill, but noted that the bill has a Finance referral. 9:11:26 AM SENATOR MEYER asked why the six year limit. MS. HODGE answered she was not sure, but the membership has staggered terms. 9:12:14 AM CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI opened public testimony. Due to time constraints, he asked witnesses to limit their testimony to three minutes each. KATIE HURLEY, former Executive Director of the Alaska Women's Commission, said she served in that position for three years. The seven public members appointed by the governor were all outstanding women. She hired new staff and they worked as a team; their biggest achievement was a statewide conference in Anchorage attended by 1,000 women. ANNABELLE STEVENS, Anchorage, said the commission was established in 1978 to address the status and to achieve equal legal, economic, social, and political status for women. The Human Relations Commission never got funded, so the Women's Commission faded away. More women are in the workplace today but the wage gap has not changed. Women in Alaska still earn 66.6 cents on the dollar compared to men, on average. Significant differences exist between rural and urban Alaska. It is time to step up and reinstate the women's commission. 9:15:54 AM CAREN ROBINSON, Alaska Women's Lobby, said the lobby strongly supports reestablishment of the commission. A recent report by President Obama says that while the population of men and women is aging, women outnumber men at older ages and are more likely to be in poverty. Gains in education for women outpace men. The labor force participation rate for women has held steady in recent years. Those are national statistics; reestablishing the commission would enable us to research those issues in Alaska. 9:19:18 AM MARIE DARLIN, representing the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) said they had provided a letter of support. The women's initiative of AARP was active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but has since moved on to other issues. It is interesting to note that 25 years ago women made 59 percent of what men did. So 66 percent shows some improvement but we still have a long way to go. AARP has always supported women's commissions in the different states and will continue to do so. 9:21:13 AM ARLENE SUZANNE SMALLEY, Kenai, said she served on the Women's Commission until 1990; during that time she was primarily a homemaker, mother of two boys, wife, and volunteer. Twenty years later she is a grandmother and a volunteer at Highland Mountain Women's Prison and other agencies. Now that she is a senior citizen, she looks at the commission from a different perspective. This goes along with the domestic violence focus of Governor Parnell. The commission is really critical for young women today, because the culture of violence is negatively affecting young women. 9:24:00 AM REGINA MANTEUFEL, Back to Work Network, said her parolee conferences provide women with interview outfits, makeup, proper shoes, plus psychological and career guidance. Dress for Success has been successful, but lacks funding. Because of Department of Labor (DOL) definitions the money does not trickle down. Teenage girls need to be adequately dressed for school. For example, if a girl does not have proper tennis shoes she may not show up for PE. Then her GPA goes down, which makes it harder for her to advance out of poverty. She has run a rooming house in Fairview for 26 years. When pregnant girls drop out of school, there is not enough of a safety net for them. 9:28:04 AM YVONNE GUTIERREZ, representing herself, said she is a community volunteer in Anchorage, and testified in support of SB 5. She is also a civil rights investigator. The commission could monitor the status of sexual assaults against women, domestic violence, employment status, affirmative action, sexual harassment in the workplace, and access to health care for women. 9:30:16 AM JOY GREEN-ARMSTRONG said she is a former member of the commission and a former chair. The state benefitted greatly from the commission in the past. At that time they looked at the family law system and inequities within the court system, violence against women, education, and day care. She would like to see the commission take up where it left off. She was on the commission when it sunset. As an assistant District Attorney she saw much domestic violence. If the commission was reestablished it could help to get more women judges on the bench. 9:32:42 AM HATTIE GARDNER, past state president of the Alaska Federation of Business and Professional Women (BPW), testified in support of SB 5. She is the mother of four daughters and has been in the workplace for over 50 years. Women are still the major caregivers in the family; many of them are also wage earners. Women on average earn substantially less than men in the workplace. She said Alaska need an agency to track and report on these injustices. It is a shame that Alaska leads the nation in the area of violence against women. The Alaska BPW has sponsored a fly-in to the legislature for many years. They have always had a legislative arm, and are still in support of the Alaska Commission on the Status of Women. 9:36:57 AM KATHY DIETRICH, Fairbanks, Alaska Works Partnership, said she runs a program designed to help prepare women for work in nontraditional employment. Women are extremely underrepresented in the trades. The commission would benefit women in Alaska by focusing attention on the need for training and opportunities for women. 9:39:08 AM PORTIA WU, Vice President, National Partnership for Women and Families, a nonpartisan advocacy institute based in Washington, D.C., said the status of women in employment has changed dramatically in recent years. Women's earnings are now critical to working families; 40 percent of working mothers are bringing home over 50 percent of the income in their households. Women are the majority of college degree holders in the country, including advanced degrees. Despite these trends, women are still paid far less on average than men. 9:41:32 AM KAREN TARR, Chair, Anchorage Women's Commission, said they are busy in Anchorage trying to deal with these issues and could use support from around the state. 9:41:58 AM CLOVER SIMON, Planned Parenthood of the Greater Northwest, said Planned Parenthood is the main advocate for family planning in the state. Family planning makes life better for families, women, and children. The voice for family planning in Alaska is often lost; the commission could be a noncontroversial voice supporting health care access and family planning access. CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI closed public testimony and set SB 53 aside.