HOUSE LABOR AND COMMERCE STANDING COMMITTEE January 26, 2000 3:18 p.m. COMMITTEE CALENDAR Department of Labor and Workforce Development Overview HOUSE BILL NO. 121 "An Act relating to patients' rights under a health care insurance plan or contract providing coverage for dental care, and prohibiting certain practices by health care insurers relating to dental care." - BILL HEARING CANCELED TAPES 00-06, SIDES A & B 00-07, SIDE A CALL TO ORDER CHAIRMAN NORMAN ROKEBERG convened the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee meeting at 3:18 p.m. PRESENT Committee members present were Representatives Rokeberg, Halcro, Murkowski, Harris and Cissna. Representative Sanders arrived at 3:19 p.m. Representative Harris asked to be excused at 3:30 p.m. to attend a meeting of the Mayor's Port Authority. SUMMARY OF INFORMATION ED FLANAGAN, Commissioner, Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DLWD), gave an overview of the Department, its duties, and its new duties arising out of HB 40 from the 1999 session. He discussed the changes over the last year with the addition of the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, job training programs from the former Department of Community and Regional Affairs, and the Adult Basic Education program, which was transferred from the Department of Education and Early Development. He discussed changes in how Unemployment Insurance claims are processed. Budget reductions from last year were felt throughout the department. He discussed a possible bill to implement user fees in some areas (OSHA and Worker's Compensation were mentioned). PAUL GROSSI, Director, Division of Workers' Compensation, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, answered questions about the records and statistics, which the division keeps on hand. He indicated there were 28,000 injuries last year, resulting in about 1,400 claims filed when disputes arose. About 500 of those came from petitions that were mostly from employers. He responded to questions about fraud investigation and the possible proposals coming from the Workers' Compensation Committee of Alaska (WCCA). MR. FLANAGAN continued to brief the committee and discussed the Labor Standards and Safety Division, OSHA outreach, Wage and Hour, and Mechanical Inspection. He responded to questions about elevator inspections, program receipts, budget reductions, the possibility of various local governments handling elevator inspections, and census duties concerning reapportionment. DWIGHT PERKINS, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, discussed the census responsibilities and reapportionment procedure. MR. FLANAGAN, in response to questions, discussed Wage and Hour employees, who handle 23,000 phone contacts per year. J. R. "RANDY" CARR, Chief/Labor Standards & Safety, Wage and Hour, Division of Labor Standards and Safety, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, responded to questions about the Wage and Hour web site. REBECCA GAMEZ, Director, Division of Employment Security, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, responded to questions concerning possible federal sanctions if certain guidelines are not met. MR. FLANAGAN responded to questions about the combination of training programs. He discussed the Alaska Human Resources Investment Council. He also discussed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance in state buildings and the process of disability determinations. PAULA SMITH, Administrative Manager, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, indicated Alaska is the test state for a new pilot program concerning disability determinations. MR. FLANAGAN continued to discuss job training programs. He responded to questions concerning STEP program funding and funding per areas of the state. He also responded to questions concerning the length of time a person receives unemployment insurance benefits. AL DWYER, Director, Division of Labor Standards and Safety, Department of Labor and Workforce Development, briefed the committee on the boiler inspection program, backlog, employees, and the impact of legislation from last year. MR. FLANAGAN responded to questions about minimum wage initiative, tip credits, and learning/training wage. COMMITTEE ACTION The committee took no action. ADJOURNMENT CHAIRMAN ROKEBERG adjourned the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee meeting at 5:00 p.m. NOTE: The meeting was recorded and handwritten log notes were taken. A copy of the tape(s) and log notes may be obtained by contacting the House Records Office at the Terry Miller Legislative Office Building, 129 Sixth Street, Room 229, Juneau, Alaska 99801-1182, (907) 465-2214, and after adjournment of the second session of the Twenty-First Alaska State Legislature, in the Legislative Reference Library, Terry Miller Legislative Office Building, 129 Sixth Street, Room 102, Juneau, Alaska 99801-1182, (907) 465- 3808.