ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE  HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE  April 15, 2024 8:00 a.m. MEMBERS PRESENT Representative Jamie Allard, Co-Chair Representative Justin Ruffridge, Co-Chair Representative Mike Prax Representative CJ McCormick Representative Tom McKay Representative Rebecca Himschoot Representative Andi Story MEMBERS ABSENT  All members present COMMITTEE CALENDAR  PRESENTATION(S): ALASKA EXCEL - HEARD HOUSE BILL NO. 202 "An Act relating to the availability and administration of opioid overdose drugs in public schools." - MOVED CSHB 202(EDC) OUT OF COMMITTEE PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION  BILL: HB 202 SHORT TITLE: OPIOID OVERDOSE DRUGS IN SCHOOLS SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) D.JOHNSON 05/15/23 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS 05/15/23 (H) EDC, HSS 04/03/24 (H) EDC AT 8:00 AM DAVIS 106 04/03/24 (H) Heard & Held 04/03/24 (H) MINUTE(EDC) 04/05/24 (H) EDC AT 8:00 AM DAVIS 106 04/05/24 (H) Heard & Held 04/05/24 (H) MINUTE(EDC) 04/15/24 (H) EDC AT 8:00 AM DAVIS 106 WITNESS REGISTER JAMIE KLAES, Program Manager Public Relations and Aviation Alaska EXCEL Anchorage, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Co-presented the Alaska EXCEL presentation. CHRISTA WILSON, Executive Finance Director Alaska EXCEL Anchorage, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Co-presented the Alaska EXCEL presentation. NELLIANN SMITH, Alumnus Alaska EXCEL Tuntutuliak, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Co-presented the Alaska EXCEL presentation. NOAH ULROAN, Alumnus Alaska EXCEL Chevak, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Co-presented the Alaska EXCEL presentation. REPRESENTATIVE DELENA JOHNSON Alaska State Legislature Juneau, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: As prime sponsor, presented HB 202. KELLY MANNING, Deputy Director Innovation and Education Excellence Department of Education and Early Development Juneau, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions during the hearing on HB 202. SAVAY BIEBER, Staff Representative DeLena Johnson Alaska State Legislature Juneau, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions during the hearing on HB 202 on behalf of Representative D. Johnson, prime sponsor. ACTION NARRATIVE 8:00:32 AM CO-CHAIR JUSTIN RUFFRIDGE called the House Education Standing Committee meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. Representatives Prax, McKay, Himschoot, and Ruffridge were present at the call to order. Representatives McCormick, Story, and Allard arrived as the meeting was in progress. ^PRESENTATION(S): Alaska Excel PRESENTATION(S): Alaska Excel  8:01:10 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE announced that the first order of business would be the Alaska EXCEL presentation. 8:02:37 AM JAMIE KLAES, Program Manager, Public Relations and Aviation, Alaska EXCEL, co-presented a PowerPoint presentation, titled "Alaska EXCEL" [hard copy included in the committee packet]. She began with a brief introduction and provided information regarding the evolution of the program. 8:04:39 AM MS. KLAES moved to slide 2, titled "Alaska EXCEL Background:," which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: ?November 2012: Established ?2014: Students served 16; 4 school districts ?2015: Students served 375; 8 school districts ?2023: Students served 677; 12 school districts; 797 HS credits; 440 Industry certificates ?2024: Students served 900 (projected) 8:06:18 AM MS. KLAES continued to slide 3, titled "Impact on Rural Students," which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: ? Total Rural Alaskan Students served: 2,434 ? Total High School credits Earned: 2,213 ? Total Industry Certifications Earned: 1,655 ? EXCEL Session Completion Rate: 98.5% ? High School 4-Year Graduation Rate: 88% graduation rate for EXCEL Concentrators. *Concentrator is a student who has attended two or more Alaska EXCEL sessions. Data collected from 2017 through 2023 MS. KLAES added that there is a big problem with substance abuse in the state. She then moved to slide 4, which showed a map of the districts served. 8:09:56 AM CHRISTA WILSON, Executive Finance Director, Alaska EXCEL, joined the presentation on slide 5, addressing foundational sessions for career development, leadership, budgeting, and personal wellbeing; CTE sessions; and internship sessions. This begins in seventh grade, but students can join as late as twelfth grade. Students learn skills, job shadow, and become aware of the idea of choosing a career. She outlined the sessions by year and said students are connected to jobs for which they are suited. She outlined the steps students learn to seek jobs and become successful in the workforce. Eleventh grade students take assessments to determine any educational gaps. She noted other topics that are covered include suicide prevention and drug awareness. She noted that the twelfth grade level is highly individualized. 8:18:06 AM MS. WILSON showed a video on the foundational sessions. Following the video, she noted that students must complete a foundational session in order to be eligible for Alaska EXCEL's career pathway sessions. She turned the presentation over to Nelliann Smith. 8:20:52 AM NELLIANN SMITH, Alumnus, Alaska EXCEL, joined the discussion during the Alaska EXCEL presentation and spoke in her Native language, followed by English, regarding Career Pathways. She shared that with the help of Alaska EXCEL, she became the first woman pilot from her home village, and that she is currently a private pilot also working on her commercial license. She said she wanted to inspire other students, especially Native women, to pursue their dreams. 8:22:13 AM MS. SMITH showed a short video on aviation maintenance. 8:23:25 AM MS. WILSON rejoined the presentation and continued expounding on the contents featured on slide 5. As for Career Pathways, she noted that there are three separate sessions offered including fall, spring, and a summer session which is a month long. Both the foundational and Career Pathways are tied to high school credits, she said, and Career Pathways include industry instructors and many training partners. She explained that students in the twelfth grade can transition into internship programs, and she introduced Noah Ulroan, who completed the program. 8:25:06 AM NOAH ULROAN, Alumnus, Alaska EXCEL, joined the discussion during the presentation and shared that he was a private pilot with an instrument rating working to complete his commercial pilot's license, and that he attended the internship for piloting. He provided a brief background on his work experience and said that the program changed his life as well as the lives of many other rural students. 8:25:47 AM MR. ULROAN showed a short video highlighting the piloting internship program. 8:27:02 AM MS. KLAES rejoined the presentation and added context regarding the internship program, which was featured on slide 5. She stressed the importance of the internship program because for many students, it is the first time they are putting a job on their resume, but she noted there is much more to the internship program than just aviation. She briefly explained the set-up of the internship program in terms of logging hours and actual training, and that it provided a network of industry partners and mentorships for students. 8:29:31 AM MS. KLAES proceeded to slide 6, titled "Alaska EXCEL Alumni 2012-2022." The slide featured survey results based on 188 alumni students, and she highlighted that 80 percent were working in a career cluster; 12 percent were currently in college, trade schools, or miliary; and 8 percent were currently not working. She pointed out that 96 percent of EXCEL alumni remain in Alaska, but those who did not were either in the military or attending school and had plans to return to the state. 8:31:17 AM MS. WILSON continued the presentation on slide 7, titled "Current Challenges," which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: ? Student waitlists exceed 30% current capacity ? Current growth rate 20% ? Additional Rural School Districts want to partner ? Alaska EXCEL's current Lease Agreement with APU does not have room for expansion of the program MS. WILSON also noted the graph on the right side of the slide, titled "Alaska EXCEL Annual Stunts Served." She stressed that students need an extra one to two years of transitioning support to be fully successful when transitioning out of high school into the workforce or urban setting. 8:34:19 AM MS. WILSON moved to slide 8, titled "Solution" [the slide shown during the committee meeting read differently than that which was provided on BASIS]. She explained that EXCEL had located a building outside of the Palmer/Wasilla area which will soon be vacant, and the timing for that would line up with EXCEL's proposed timeline for building its own campus. She added that it would increase capacity by approximately 44 percent for seventh- through twelfth-grade students. She pointed out a bar chart on the right side of the slide that featured student capacity per session. 8:37:24 AM MS. WILSON proceeded to slide 9, which featured a picture she described as the potential of what the building could look like. She advanced to slide 10, which featured an aerial view of proposed building plans with 4 points: existing building, student housing, atrium, commercial kitchen, and transition dorm. She noted it sits on the Palmer-Wasilla Highway. She continued to slide 11, titled "Alaska EXCEL Capital Project 4- Year Budget." The slide featured costs for Pre-Development Design 2024, Construction 2025, Remodel 2026, and Construction 2027. 8:40:41 AM MS. WILSON concluded on slide 12, which featured Alaska EXCEL's 4-year funding projections. She noted that the size of the project would require multiple stakeholders to make it a possibility, and she spoke of the strong partnerships Alaska EXCEL had with regional corporations. 8:42:06 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE thanked the presenters and invited questions from committee members. 8:42:42 AM REPRESENTATIVE PRAX noted a recent court decision about not funding private schools. He inquired whether Alaska EXCEL was a private school. MS. WILSON replied that it was a 501(c)(3) non-profit that served public schools, and any homeschool that gets served would be routed through their district; therefore, the court decision did not affect Alaska EXCEL being it does not serve many homeschool students. REPRESENTATIVE PRAX inquired about how the operating funds worked. MS. WILSON responded that the majority of the school districts are getting written into federal grants. She noted working with the Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) for guidance on funding. She noted many of the district partners use the Perkins Fund to send students to Alaska EXCEL. 8:46:20 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked about support provided to kids who struggle and what kind of counseling is available. MS. WILSON responded there are two clinicians on Alaska EXCEL's staff who help with substance abuse and mental health issues. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked where the program sites are. MS. WILSON replied that they are on the Alaska Pacific University (APU) campus but travel in the summer to different areas throughout the state. She added that some programs are through their industry partners. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT brought up the extended bridge program for transitioning and asked how eligibility is determined or whether it is open to anyone. MS. WILSON said there is a month-long transition program currently operating out of APU because that is all it has the capacity for. The students are ideally prior Alaska EXCEL students, she said. 8:51:33 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked why students need transitioning support. MS. WILSON said the support offered is to help students get into a job aside from job core. She noted the difficulties students may experience transitioning from rural to urban jobs if they do not utilize job core. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked Ms. Wilson how many staff she had and whether the staff are subject to mandatory in-services required for teaching the K-12 population. MS. WILSON replied there are 30 full- and part-time staff members, 3 certified principals, 6 certified teachers, and 2 clinicians. She added that some of the staff hired were prior students, who have gone through training to learn how to deliver curriculum. She clarified that Alaska EXCEL does not receive state funding and is managed under a non-profit; therefore, it is not bound to any of the state mandates. The districts also honor Alaska EXCEL's credits, she added. 8:55:48 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked Ms. Smith and Mr. Ulroan what their plans are. MS. SMITH replied that she wanted to be a certified flight instructor. MR. ULROAN replied that he wanted a commercial pilot license and to be a certified flight instructor. 8:56:48 AM REPRESENTATIVE PRAX recognized that Alaska EXCEL is its own entity and asked who was on the board. MS. WILSON replied that they must have an 80 percent Alaska Native board and there are currently 11 members on the board. 8:57:36 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY noted the numbers served listed on the PowerPoint and questioned the different numbers. MS. WILSON clarified that the 2,400 are total students served since 2010, and the 900 projected relates to the current year. REPRESENTATIVE STORY offered her belief that it was critical that there was a data person to collect all the data. MS. WILSON explained there is a data bank platform, and the data collected for graduates was a team effort. REPRESENTATIVE STORY inquired what the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) completion rate was. MS. WILSON replied it was close to 70 percent, but acknowledged it was a difficult application for many of her students. REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked whether Alaska EXCEL was eligible for Technical Vocational Education Program (TVEP) funds. MS. WILSON affirmed that it is eligible for TVEP, but it is "pretty coveted." 9:02:03 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE asked Ms. Wilson if there are contracts with the districts that Alaska EXCEL serves. MS. WILSON said in the memorandum of agreement (MOA), it is based on the number of students the districts have and the number of slots Alaska EXCEL can fill, and she stated that the districts pick the students that attend. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE asked whether each district allots a certain amount of funds for students to come to the program each year. MS. WILSON clarified yes, for travel only, and the program grants pay for everything else. 9:05:20 AM CO-CHAIR ALLARD asked how many students attend annually. MS. WILSON replied that there were approximately 900 slated for the current year. 9:05:39 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT noted that the new FAFSA form was supposed to be faster. MS. WILSON responded that it is not faster but is "more secure." REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked whether the program was eligible for residential school support since it was not a residential program. MS. WILSON answered that Alaska EXCEL has not explored that route. 9:07:37 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE thanked the presenters. 9:08:04 AM The committee took an at-ease from 9:08 a.m. to 9:10 a.m. HB 202-OPIOID OVERDOSE DRUGS IN SCHOOLS  9:10:25 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 202, "An Act relating to the availability and administration of opioid overdose drugs in public schools." 9:11:26 AM REPRESENTATIVE DELENA JOHNSON, Alaska State Legislature, as prime sponsor of HB 202, thanked the committee for presenting the bill and said she looked forward to addressing the amendments. 9:11:43 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE moved to adopt Amendment 1 to HB 202, labeled 33-LS0705\S.3, Bergerud, 4/9/24, which read as follows: Page 1, line 7: Delete "naloxone nasal spray" Insert "an opioid overdose drug" Page 2, line 1: Delete "naloxone nasal spray" Insert "an opioid overdose drug" Page 2, line 3: Delete "naloxone nasal spray" Insert "an opioid overdose drug" Page 2, line 4: Delete "naloxone nasal spray" Insert "an opioid overdose drug" Page 2, line 9: Delete "naloxone nasal spray" Insert "an opioid overdose drug" Page 2, line 14: Delete all material. Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 2, line 21: Delete "new paragraphs" Insert "a new paragraph" Page 2, lines 22 - 24: Delete all material. Renumber the following paragraph accordingly. Page 3, line 2: Delete "naloxone nasal spray" Insert "an opioid overdose drug" REPRESENTATIVE STORY objected for the purpose of discussion. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE said the amendment adjusts the language in the bill each time naloxone is mentioned. 9:12:58 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT referred to a 15-minute video noted in prior conversations and whether it was specific to the nasal spray in an overdose situation. 9:13:29 AM KELLY MANNING, Deputy Director, Innovation and Education Excellence, Department of Education and Early Development (DEED), explained that there was a course on DEED's eLearning platform developed in partnership with the Department of Health (DOH) covering [naloxone] spray and signs and symptoms of an overdose. It also covers opioids and opioid prevention, she said. 9:14:25 AM REPRESENTATIVE PRAX opined that things are more difficult when they become law and asked for further clarification on the language in the amendment. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE replied that there is broader language in the amendment, and the intent is to not name a specific medication, as there are other reversal agents that can be administered aside from naloxone. 9:17:00 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked Ms. Manning whether the proposed amendment concerned her. MS. MANNING replied that with the adjustment in the amendment, DEED would continue to use the course as it is written, and it would allow flexibility if there were further changes. She stated that DEED would work closely with DOH. REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked whether the bill sponsor was comfortable with the amendment. REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON replied that it was considered a friendly amendment. REPRESENTATIVE STORY removed her objection. There being no further objection, Amendment 1 was adopted. 9:18:31 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE moved to adopt Amendment 2 to HB 202, labeled 33-LS0705\S.2, Bergerud, 4/9/24, which read as follows: Page 2, following line 9: Insert a new subsection to read: "(c) A school district, school, or an individual is not liable for civil damages for an injury to another individual resulting from a failure to possess or maintain naloxone nasal spray under this section." Reletter the following subsection accordingly. Page 2, line 25: Delete "AS 14.30.145(c)" Insert "AS 14.30.145(d)" CO-CHAIR ALLARD objected for the purpose of discussion. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE explained that Amendment 2 inserts a new subsection in reference to a concern that a school district or individual may be liable for damages, and the district or individual would, under the amendment, be non-liable. CO-CHAIR ALLARD expressed concern about the impact on children. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE reiterated that the amendment referenced an individual not being liable. CO-CHAIR ALLARD stressed that she would hesitate and may opt her child out of any administering of a drug, as it could be traumatizing. She further explained her concern was about children being too exposed and whether they would be held responsible for not administering [naloxone]. She said she was not keen on showing the [opioid] video to 13- and 14-year-olds. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE responded that the intent is that it be a school district component, not a requirement, that students get the education which included the aforementioned video. The amendment would eliminate a student's liability in the event they did not feel trained and chose not to engage. 9:23:06 AM SAVAY BIEBER, Staff, Representative DeLena Johnson, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of Representative D. Johnson, prime sponsor of HB 202, added that the amendment is specifically for an injury resulting from failure to possess and maintain; therefore, it did not have to do with children. 9:23:40 AM REPRESENTATIVE PRAX said it occurred to him that the word "administer" should be added in the new subsection, and he also expanded on how personal injury lawyers could look at things. 9:25:08 AM REPRESENTATIVE PRAX moved Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 2, to insert a comma after "possess", delete the word ["or"], add a comma after "maintain", and [following "maintain"] to add "administer". 9:25:30 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE objected. He said the intent of the amendment was to clarify that should someone go to a box [containing naloxone], on the wall or a in the nurse's office, and the box is empty, the school district would not be liable for the empty box. Other law already protects individuals from administering or not administering the antidote. He mentioned the Good Samaritan Law. 9:26:47 AM REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON agreed that the Good Samaritan Law should cover everything else regarding someone not wanting to administer. 9:27:41 AM CO-CHAIR ALLARD stated that she supported the conceptual amendment. 9:28:00 AM A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Prax and Allard voted in favor of Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 2. Representatives McCormick, McKay, Himschoot, Story, and Ruffridge voted against it. Therefore, Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 2 failed to be adopted by a vote of 2-5. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE asked for further discussion on Amendment 2. CO-CHAIR ALLARD withdrew her objection. There being no further objection, Amendment 2 was adopted. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE moved to adopt Amendment 3 to HB 202, labeled 33-LS0705\S.4, Bergerud, 4/9/24, which read as follows: Page 1, line 14, through page 2, line 1: Delete all material. Renumber the following paragraphs accordingly. Page 2, lines 5 - 7: Delete ", and on a school bus while students are being transported to or from school or a school- sponsored event" CO-CHAIR ALLARD objected for the purpose of discussion. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE explained that the amendment was in response to prior committee discussion and would remove the language dealing with school buses. 9:29:32 AM REPRESENTATIVE MCCORMICK asked for understanding why the language is being removed and school buses would not have to be involved. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE stated that he agreed, but school buses are contractual arrangements with school districts. He added that naloxone spray should not be stored in freezing temperatures which can happen if it were on a bus. A requirement that school buses have the spray on board seemed impractical, he posited. REPRESENTATIVE MCCORMICK stated objection to the Amendment 3. 9:31:54 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT stated that she had a similar amendment about language that could be added to encourage districts to encourage their contractors. She mirrored Representative McCormick's concerns and hoped that individual contractors would put policy in place to where drivers are equipped. 9:32:35 AM REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON said she considered the amendment friendly. She said she did not have a chance to look at every school district, and that there are different ways the many districts and contractors deal with things. 9:33:57 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY stated that she supported the amendment but work to renegotiate contracts should be considered. She suggested the committee take further action and reach out to the school boards. CO-CHAIR ALLARD maintained her objection. 9:35:06 AM A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Prax, McKay, Himschoot, Story, Allard, and Ruffridge voted in favor of Amendment 3 to HB 202. Representatives McCormick voted against it. Therefore, Amendment 3 to HB 202 was adopted by a vote of 6-1. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE announced Amendment 4 [would not be offered]. 9:36:06 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT stated she would not offer Amendment 5. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT moved to adopt Amendment 6 to HB 202, labeled 33-LS0705\S.6\Bergerud 4/10/24, which read as follows: Page 2, line 9, following "spray.": Insert "The department shall require each individual who is employed full time by a school district to watch the training video within the individual's first six months of full-time employment." CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE objected for the purpose of discussion. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT explained that there would be a one- time, 15-minute video training commitment by staff, the district would always be compliant in statute, and everyone would know how to administer the spray. 9:37:22 AM CO-CHAIR ALLARD stated that the school district can handle who they wish to designate; it should not be a requirement. 9:38:07 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE expressed concerns about requiring another "set of things" for someone to accomplish, and that although the video would likely be useful, he stated that having it be a requirement for everyone is taking it a step too far at this point. 9:39:16 AM REPRESENTATIVE MCCORMICK asked for a description of the training video. 9:39:39 AM MS. MANNING explained that the video on DEED's eLearning platform is 15 minutes long and covers both the signs of an opioid overdose and the administration of an effective overdose reversal drug. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE asked whether data is kept on the number of times the eLearning platform is accessed. MS. MANNING replied that there are records, and she could provide the data to the committee as a follow-up. 9:40:56 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked Representative Himschoot if she had talked to other districts. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT responded that she had not and stated it would not be practical to always have the one person trained to administer always on site; therefore, with the amendment, everyone would be trained. 9:42:22 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY moved to adopt Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 6, as follows: Following "require" Insert "to the extent practicable that" CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE objected. REPRESENTATIVE MCKAY stated that he did not think the language should be in state law. 9:43:30 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY explained her reasoning and added that she did not know the "ins and outs" of each district, being they are all unique. She asked to hear the bill sponsor's thoughts on the conceptual amendment. REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON responded that there is no way to identify what the words fully mean. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE maintained his objection. 9:44:50 AM A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Story, Prax, McCormick, and Himschoot voted in favor of Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 6. Representatives McKay and Ruffridge voted against it. Therefore, Conceptual Amendment 1 to Amendment 6 was adopted by a vote of 4-2. 9:45:46 AM The committee took an at-ease from 9:45 a.m. to 9:46 a.m. 9:46:04 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT questioned how the language, "to the extent practicable" could be interpreted. MS. MANNING responded that she would need to look into how DEED would track "with the language as stated." She added that with current courses, DEED tracks off of certification. 9:48:12 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE maintained his objection to Amendment 6 [as amended]. 9:48:17 AM A roll call vote was initiated. [Co-Chair Allard entered the room while voting was taking place.] 9:48:45 AM The committee took a brief at-ease at 9:48 a.m. 9:49:03 AM CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE said the roll call vote was voided and asked for another. A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Himschoot, Story, and McCormick voted in favor of Amendment 6, as amended, to HB 202. Representatives McKay, Prax, Allard, and Ruffridge voted against it. Therefore, Amendment 6, as amended, failed to be adopted by a vote of 3-4. 9:50:03 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT moved to adopt Amendment 7 to HB 202, labeled 33-LS0705\S.7\Bergerud 4/10/24, which read as follows: Page 1, line 12: Delete ", whether the event is" Page 1, line 13: Delete "or off of" Page 2, line 5: Delete ", whether the event is" Delete "or off of" CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE objected. 9:50:24 AM The committee took a brief at-ease at 9:50 a.m. 9:50:46 AM REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT explained that the amendment limits the requirement to events only on school grounds. REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON said the amendment is something that she could work with. 9:52:11 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY recalled that the superintendents who had previously testified spoke to the difficulty of having to do this for events, and they cautioned the committee that it would be hard to do. 9:52:44 AM REPRESENTATIVE MCCORMICK said he understood why it may be difficult to enforce the overdose drugs being present and stated that he preferred more discussion on the amendment to shape a better decision. 9:53:59 AM REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON mentioned the importance of the bill becoming law so that the antidote is widely accessible, and she reiterated that the spray is easily administered. 9:55:05 AM A roll call vote was taken. Representatives McCormick, Himschoot, and Prax voted in favor of Amendment 7 to HB 202. Representatives McKay, Story, Allard, and Ruffridge voted against it. Therefore, Amendment 7 failed to be adopted by a vote of 3-4. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT moved to adopt Amendment 8 to HB 202, labeled 33-LS0705\S.8\Bergerud 4/10/24, which read as follows: Page 2, line 8, following "(b)": Insert "The Department of Health shall provide each school district with the naloxone nasal spray required under this section." Page 2, line 29: Delete "and" Insert "from the department and may" CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE objected. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT explained that the amendment puts the expense of the kits on DOH to relieve the burden on districts. 9:56:37 AM REPRESENTATIVE MCKAY asked about a fiscal note of how much it would cost for 54 school districts. REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT offered her understanding that a fiscal note would be needed regardless. REPRESENTATIVE MCKAY opined that school districts should not have to provide a fiscal note and that their money is their business; however, DOH would require a fiscal note. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE asked about the potential of utilizing opioid remediation funds and expressed his concern that the language would reduce that option. REPRESENTATIVE D. JOHNSON said the issue could best be taken up when it moves to the next committee. 9:59:43 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY acknowledged that districts have many demands on their finances, and she opined that it seemed appropriate that DOH take the lead on supplying the kits. REPRESENTATIVE MCCORMICK articulated that the bill should move as quickly as possible, but with some pause. He touched on unfunded mandates and that smaller rural school districts often operate out of compliance; therefore, financial backing must be in place. He offered his support for Amendment 8. 10:01:57 AM A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Prax, McCormick, Himschoot, and Story voted in favor of Amendment 8 to HB 202. Representatives McKay, Allard, and Ruffridge voted against it. Therefore, Amendment 8 was adopted by a vote of 4-3. 10:02:53 AM REPRESENTATIVE STORY moved to rescind action on Amendment 7. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE objected. REPRESENTATIVE STORY explained that she had voted wrong. CO-CHAIR RUFFRIDGE removed his objection. There being no further objection, Amendment 7 was back before the committee. 10:03:49 AM A roll call vote was taken. Representatives Prax, McCormick, Himschoot, and Story voted in favor of Amendment 7 to HB 202. Representatives McKay, Allard, and Ruffridge voted against it. Therefore, Amendment 7 was adopted by a vote of 4-3. 10:04:56 AM The committee took a brief at-ease at 10:05 a.m. 10:05:11 AM CO-CHAIR ALLARD moved to report HB 202, as amended, out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 202(EDC) was reported out of the House Education Standing Committee. 10:05:58 AM ADJOURNMENT  There being no further business before the committee, the House Education Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 10:06 a.m.