ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE  SENATE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE  April 6, 2016 1:37 p.m.   MEMBERS PRESENT Senator Lesil McGuire, Chair Senator John Coghill, Vice Chair Senator Mia Costello Senator Bill Wielechowski MEMBERS ABSENT  Senator Peter Micciche COMMITTEE CALENDAR  SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 12 Proposing amendments to the Constitution of the State of Alaska relating to the office of attorney general. - MOVED SJR 12 OUT OF COMMITTEE SENATE BILL NO. 164 "An Act relating to sport fishing, hunting, or trapping licenses, tags, or permits; relating to penalties for certain sport fishing, hunting, and trapping license violations; relating to restrictions on the issuance of sport fishing, hunting, and trapping licenses; creating violations and amending fines and restitution for certain fish and game offenses; relating to commercial fishing violations; allowing lost federal matching funds from the Pittman - Robertson, Dingell - Johnson/Wallop - Breaux programs to be included in an order of restitution; adding a definition of 'electronic form'; amending Rule 5(a)(4), Alaska Rules of Minor Offense Procedure; and providing for an effective date." - MOVED CSSB 164(JUD) OUT OF COMMITTEE PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION  BILL: SJR 12 SHORT TITLE: CONST. AM: ELECTED ATTORNEY GENERAL SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) STOLTZE 02/06/15 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS 02/06/15 (S) STA, JUD, FIN 03/03/15 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BUTROVICH 205 03/03/15 (S) Heard & Held 03/03/15 (S) MINUTE (STA) 03/29/16 (S) STA AT 9:00 AM BUTROVICH 205 03/29/16 (S) Moved SJR 12 Out of Committee 03/29/16 (S) MINUTE (STA) 03/30/16 (S) STA RPT 4DP 1NR 03/30/16 (S) DP: STOLTZE, COGHILL, HUGGINS, MCGUIRE 03/30/16 (S) NR: WIELECHOWSKI 04/04/16 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg) 04/04/16 (S) Heard & Held 04/04/16 (S) MINUTE (JUD) 04/06/16 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg) BILL: SB 164 SHORT TITLE: FISH & GAME: OFFENSES; LICENSES; PENALTIES SPONSOR(s): RULES BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR 01/29/16 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS 01/29/16 (S) RES, JUD 02/22/16 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205 02/22/16 (S) Heard & Held 02/22/16 (S) MINUTE (RES) 03/04/16 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205 03/04/16 (S) Moved SB 164 Out of Committee 03/04/16 (S) MINUTE (RES) 03/07/16 (S) RES RPT 1DP 1NR 3AM 03/07/16 (S) DP: GIESSEL 03/07/16 (S) NR: WIELECHOWSKI 03/07/16 (S) AM: COSTELLO, COGHILL, MICCICHE 04/04/16 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg) 04/04/16 (S) Heard & Held 04/04/16 (S) MINUTE(JUD) 04/06/16 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg) WITNESS REGISTER SENATOR STOLTZE Alaska State Legislature Juneau, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Sponsor of SJR 12. KEVIN BROOKS, Deputy Commissioner Alaska Department of Fish and Game Juneau, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Commented on SB 164. AL BARRETTE, representing himself Fairbanks, Alaska POSITION STATEMENT: Offered suggestions for SB 164. ACTION NARRATIVE 1:37:15 PM CHAIR LESIL MCGUIRE called the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee meeting to order at 1:37 p.m. Present at the call to order were Senators Costello, Coghill, and Chair McGuire. Senator Wielechowski arrived during the introduction. SJR 12-CONST. AM: ELECTED ATTORNEY GENERAL  1:37:35 PM CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the consideration of SJR 12. CHAIR MCGUIRE closed public testimony. 1:38:18 PM SENATOR STOLTZE, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor of SJR 12, thanked the committee for its thoughtful deliberation of the legislation. He related that he thought hard about the concept that Senator Wielechowski brought forward to make the attorney general election nonpartisan. He said that's the ideal because it provides an opportunity for less partisanship. CHAIR MCGUIRE expressed appreciation for the sponsor's open- mindedness and Senator Wielechowski for proposing the amendment. She said the idea of specifying that the position would be nonpartisan is important and she considered co-sponsoring the amendment. However, she ultimately decided not to slow the bill because the point of having an elected attorney general is more important than the nonpartisan point. She noted that the legal drafters said it would be very difficult to draft the amendment. She shared that as chair of the Judiciary Committee in the House, she wrote a statute to implement the ruling in Democratic Party of California v. Jones, which provided a strong foundation for Citizens United v. FEC. She related that if she were queen for a day, she would overturn that statute. She trusts the voters and doesn't believe they need a party to tell them what to think. She believes the opportunity to participate in a party process is so elite and removed from the average Alaska that few people feel that they influence the party. CHAIR MCGUIRE shared that in the 2012 election a neighbor called and said she felt her right to privacy was violated and her right to vote denied. This neighbor wanted to vote for Senator McGuire but was denied the opportunity to vote the Republican ballot because she is registered as an Alaska Independent. 1:48:28 PM SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI thanked the sponsor for being accommodating. He thought it would be an easy amendment to draft but legislative legal said it would be very complex to insert in the constitution, the process for conducting an election. SENATOR STOLTZE distinguished between being political and partisanship. CHAIR MCGUIRE suggested that a constitutional amendment to elect the attorney general is more likely to succeed if the term "nonpartisan" is included. SENATOR STOLTZE agreed there may be creative ways to do it that don't interfere with the election process. SENATOR COGHILL reminded the committee that the discussion is about electing an attorney general, not the primary election process. 1:52:16 PM SENATOR COGHILL moved to report SJR 12, version \W, from committee with individual recommendations and attached zero fiscal note. CHAIR MCGUIRE announced that without objection, SJR 12 is reported from the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee. 1:52:48 PM At ease SB 164-FISH & GAME: OFFENSES; LICENSES; PENALTIES  1:52:48 PM CHAIR MCGUIRE reconvened the meeting and announced the consideration of SB 164. [This is the second hearing and the committee adopted version H during the 4/4/2016 hearing.] 1:54:10 PM KEVIN BROOKS, Deputy Commissioner, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, thanked the committee for hearing SB 164 and considering the amendments the department suggested. Positive changes were made to the bill, he said. 1:54:33 PM AL BARRETTE, representing himself, Fairbanks, Alaska, said a lot of work has been done on SB 164 but he continues to advocate to remove the word "sport" from fishing throughout the bill. He opined that this is the year to stop the discriminatory practice of requiring subsistence hunters to have a license but not subsistence fishermen. He talked about Alaskans paying their fair share and that should include subsistence fishermen. MR. BARRETTE pointed out that Section 6 needs work. The fines for a commercial fish violation are doubled for the first and second offense, but only increased by 67 percent on the third offense. He suggested the fine for a third offense ought to be doubled as well. CHAIR MCGUIRE asked him to submit his comments in writing. 1:57:51 PM CHAIR MCGUIRE closed public testimony on SB 164 and solicited a motion. 1:58:01 PM SENATOR COGHILL moved to report the CS for SB 164 from committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s). 1:58:22 PM CHAIR MCGUIRE announced that without objection, CSSB 164(JUD) is reported from Senate Judiciary Standing Committee. 1:58:24 PM There being no further business to come before the committee, Chair McGuire adjourned the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee meeting at 1:58 p.m.