ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE  SENATE STATE AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE  February 4, 2003 3:45 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT Senator Robin Taylor, Chair Senator Fred Dyson Senator Gretchen Guess Senator Lyman Hoffman MEMBERS ABSENT  Senator John Cowdery COMMITTEE CALENDAR    Confirmation Hearings: Commissioner, Department of Corrections-Marc Antrim; Commissioner, Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs-General Craig E. Campbell CONFIRMATIONS ADVANCED PREVIOUS ACTION    No previous action to record. WITNESS REGISTER    Marc Antrim Department of Corrections 431 N. Franklin, Suite 400 Juneau, AK 99801 POSITION STATEMENT: Commissioner-Designate General Craig E. Campbell Department of Military & Veterans Affairs P.O. Box 5800 Fort Richardson, AK 99505-0800 POSITION STATEMENT: Commissioner-Designate ACTION NARRATIVE TAPE 03-1, SIDE A CHAIR ROBIN TAYLOR called the Senate State Affairs Standing Committee meeting to order at 3:45 p.m. Present were Senators Guess, Hoffman, Dyson and Chair Taylor. The first order of business to come before the committee was the confirmation hearing for Mr. Marc Antrim as Commissioner of the Department of Corrections. Chair Taylor asked Mr. Antrim to swear and affirm that the testimony he was about to give was the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth. MARC ANTRIM, Commissioner-Designate of the Department of Corrections, so swore and affirmed. CHAIR TAYLOR asked for a brief resume and an outline of his plans for the department. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM introduced himself and said he would diverge from his prepared statement and begin with his resume. He moved to Juneau when he was a teenager, graduated from the local high school then went on to graduate from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks (UAF). While at UAF he worked with the campus security police. This experience exposed him to the full gamut of law enforcement activities and gave him good experience. He began working for the Department of Corrections full time in 1983 and has been there continuously except for a short time in 1985 when he attended law school in California. He has been involved with a number of employment organizations associated with the department and has been very active in the educational activities of his two children. Currently he serves on the nonprofit board of the local football league. In 2001 he began serving as site contact for President Bush's Faith-Based Initiative effort. Juneau's Catholic Community Services is funded for a statewide project called the Children of Incarcerated Parents. The concept is based on the precept that children of convicted offenders are unintended victims of crime, and the aim of the project is to develop strategies to reconnect these children with their parents. At the demonstration facility at Lemon Creek, prisoners were able to videotape Christmas holiday messages and send them to their families. This was well received and the program has since been expanded to include birthdays and other holidays. In his current position he looks forward to giving this program ongoing support. Given his history with the department, he stressed how honored he feels to have been selected by Governor Murkowski. He started as an officer and worked his way up through the ranks. This department has a unique working environment with most of the staff working together in very close-knit teams on twelve-hour shifts. These teams are asked to do things that most people never see in their normal workday. They tussle with drunks, strip-search people and deescalate combative prisoners with little more than wit and quick tongues. One of the more difficult tasks is putting people back together after suicidal ideations. Doing this work professionally builds character as the employees work to get themselves and their shift members through the workday safely. The men and women that work for the department say they have the toughest beat in the state and he couldn't agree more. The goals of the prison system, as outlined in the state constitution, are to protect the public, provide for community condemnation of offenders, protect the rights of victims, seek restitution from offenders and provide for the principle of reformation. He supports those points and his priority is to protect the public. The department is working to remedy the large number of correction and probation officer vacancies and making a particularly concerted effort to recruit more Alaska Natives and women into uniform and probation officer ranks. Prisoners should be treated firmly but fairly and rules should be applied fairly and uniformly. The approach determines the response is the tenor and tone he wants to set with the department's employees; if you treat someone fairly, you're likely to get that response in return. Although there are offenders that may be beyond redemption, most offenders are released and need tools to ensure their success outside the prison system. To that end, he has begun a review of all programs to ensure they are both effective and cost efficient. He looks forward to expanding faith-based programs because they are some of the most effective programs prison systems offer. This department will look at new and innovative approaches and to new partnerships with Native corporations for treatment programs. The department is working with the Department of Labor and Work Force Development to put together more meaningful job training programs. The goal is to work with trade unions around the state and put some apprenticeship programs in the facilities to teach prisoners a skill so when they are released they have a marketable skill. This increases the likelihood prisoners will not reenter the prison system and makes it possible for them to pay their restitution. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM knows he will be called upon to make reductions in his department and to outline areas that need improvement. He expects to be able to give that information based upon his knowledge of how the facilities work and where cuts or changes can be made with the least impact to security operations. He asked committee members whether they had any questions. SENATOR GRETCHEN GUESS asked whether all Commissioner Antrim's work has been at Lemon Creek. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said she is correct. SENATOR GUESS asked how he plans to expand his knowledge base of other facilities. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM reported he has had wide contact and involvement with a number of statewide projects. Most training takes place in Anchorage and those trainings are used as an opportunity to network. SENATOR GUESS observed that with the goal to protect the public comes the assumption that behavior can be changed. She asked him to expand on his plans to evaluate the success or failure of programs. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM explained they have an auditor who will perform basic program audits to determine whether the particular model is successful and cost effective. Anecdotal substance abuse program evidence suggests that although prisoners go through the phases of treatment while in the system, they become repeat offenders and are quickly back in the system. If this is actually the case, then program changes need to be instituted. Wellness Courts, Wellness Jails and other experimental programs will be thoroughly examined. SENATOR GUESS asked whether the audits would be financial or program audits. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM replied both types would be done because they are tied together, but his emphasis is on program audits because the initial concern is whether the program works. However, he certainly wants to know whether they are cost effective as well. SENATOR LYMAN HOFFMAN referred to the plan to hire more Alaska Natives and asked if he had a target. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM explained that while roughly thirty-four percent of the prison population is Alaska Native, their representation in the corrections workforce has dropped from six to four percent in the last eight to ten years. This is particularly unacceptable since prisoners model prison staff. Recognizing this fact, it makes sense to hire more Alaska Natives as correction officers. These officers are some of the most stable elements in offenders' lives so more Alaska Native correction officers should be models for the value of holding a job and going to work on a daily basis. Karen Neagel is the Cultural Affairs Coordinator and is tasked with developing strategies to address the specific problems associated with current hiring practices. SENATOR HOFFMAN asked how he could measure progress to increase Alaska Native hire within the correction system. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said he was hesitant to give a number because he doesn't know what is realistic, but there are specific systemic issues with the way they are interviewing and administering tests. Having ten percent of the workforce as Alaska Native in the next year or two would be his goal, but he isn't sure whether or not that is attainable. SENATOR HOFFMAN then asked whether the percentage would be increased in subsequent years. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said that was one of his goals. SENATOR HOFFMAN asked whether he has a timeframe for accomplishing the management merger of the Anchorage Jail and the Cook Inlet Pretrial Facility. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM explained the reorganization calls for developing several new job classes. They will begin working through the Department of Administration, Division of Personnel next month. There are a number of employees whose lives will be affected so they need to know; and from a management perspective the department wants to start realizing savings as soon as possible. SENATOR HOFFMAN asked for an outline of his plans to bring prisoners home so they have better access to their families. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said he is aware of a number of construction proposals and getting adequate bed space in the state is a priority. Bed space is driving everything they are doing or unable to do. Years ago the system was fairly cohesive and had various facilities identified with specific missions. The population in the state was fairly stable and long-term treatment was provided to prisoners in facilities that were as close as possible to their homes. Due to bed-space constraints, this is no longer the case. SENATOR HOFFMAN then asked for his position on public versus private beds in Alaska. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM replied he supports Governor Murkowski's position in favor or public prisons. However, he will listen to all proposals and looks forward to working with the legislature through the process. SENATOR FRED DYSON asked for his views on upgrading the quality of personnel by upgrading the threshold of education and other requirements because he has seen that be counterproductive. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said the certification process under the Alaska Police Standards Council that requires all prospective staff to undergo a mental health screening has been problematic. It's not a simple issue to resolve because although they don't want to hire people who are deemed unsafe, the standards are a major stumbling block that is preventing Alaska Natives and women from getting through the process. Beginning on February 6, discussions begin to evaluate the standards and decide on modifications. SENATOR DYSON asked if the problems were mental health issues or old convictions that prevented hire. Individuals who did something dumb at one time and got busted for their actions may have learned from their mistakes and might be exemplary staff. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said past felonies certainly are an issue, but there is a time limit for misdemeanants. The largest stumbling block is that drug use was widespread in the 1970s and 1980s and it's in many people's background. However, the mental health exam is also causing difficulties. SENATOR DYSON assured him the legislature wants him to be able to get qualified people and they stand ready to help. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM thanked him then added he thought his department could make internal adjustments to address the concerns. SENATOR GUESS asked how he would evaluate mental health services to inmates. Reading she has done indicates the prison population has an extraordinary percentage of people who are struggling with mental illness. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM informed members his department considers itself to be the primary mental health provider in the state. At any given time they have three to four hundred chronically mentally ill prisoners. The department's large mental health staff does an excellent job of stabilizing this population then directing them into a number of nonprofit providers around the state upon their release. SENATOR GUESS then asked if there are any plans to move the sex offender program away from the women's prison in Anchorage. 4:20 pm COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM admitted it was an unusual combination and explained Highland Mountain Correctional Center has been a sex offender treatment facility for most of its existence. In the early 1990s, the number of convicted females in the state got so large corrections needed to designate a facility for that population. Highland Mountain was selected because of its size and because it provided access for children of the offenders and access to obstetrician and gynecological care. At that point, males were moved from Highland Mountain to the old female facility. The shift has worked well for both populations but he does share her concern about the locale. There have been few incidents because there is little contact between the two populations and he intends to keep it that way. There are no current plans to move either population. SENATOR HOFFMAN asked whether prisoners with mental illness are better off in prison or in an institution. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM thought that was a question the legislature should answer. There are mental health courts that are trying to divert people out of the prison system, but at this time in Alaska's history, the role of the Department of Corrections is a provider of last resort for a number of things, mental health services being just one. Mental health is a large issue for the Department of Corrections while the role of Alaska Psychiatric Institute (API), which is operated by Health and Social Services, has grown smaller in the field. SENATOR HOFFMAN asked whether the department has considered trying to get assistance from the Mental Health Trust. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM replied the department receives roughly $450 thousand in budgetary support directly from the Mental Health Trust. They support a number of smaller programs as well. The department's general fund line is about $4.5 million dollars of dedicated mental health money. CHAIR TAYLOR asked how he sees corrections interplaying with victim's rights organizations and whether the lines of communication are open and working. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said the department has a staff member with the division of probation and parole who does lots of victim interaction and provides services as needed. The staff member also operates the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) system, an automated system that provides information to victims and other members of the public regarding the whereabouts and status of a prisoner. CHAIR TAYLOR then asked him to address the White Buffalo program. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM confessed he has seen the program as a line item in the budget but he isn't familiar with it and there is no money directed to it at this time. He assured members the department is looking at any kind of innovation. He's convinced current programs and approaches have been successful for some prisoners, but there is need to make some programs more culturally relevant for some segments of the population. Different approaches such as the Wellness Courts or the Wellness Jail that are being discussed. CHAIR TAYLOR explained White Buffalo is a spiritual program based on culture that Senator Ward wanted Native corporations to use. He encouraged the Commissioner to continue to explore such programs to evaluate their merit. BRUCE TANGEMAN, Fiscal Analyst with Legislative Finance, spoke from the back of the committee room to explain the White Buffalo project was appropriated $50 thousand in general funds last year and was subsequently moved to the parole board. CHAIR TAYLOR said he and Senator Dyson have both spent years working to make systemic changes within welfare programs and now they are trying to find ways in which various government agencies can increase partnering to more effectively help the entire family unit. He stressed a willingness to lend legislative support to coordinate those efforts. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM thanked him and assured him that was at the heart of Governor Murkowski's direction to him and Commissioner O'Cleary. Part of the Children of Incarcerated Parents project grant that was given to Catholic Community Services involves tying those services together. He agreed there are lots of duplicative efforts in state government. SENATOR GUESS agreed with Senator Taylor that increased coordination between departments is needed. She cited instances in which a disconnect between the court system and corrections resulted in batterers and domestic violence offenders being housed in the same neighborhood as the victim. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM agreed this area needs work because such instances would be very disturbing to the victim. CHAIR TAYLOR assured members that, from his experience, there has always been a disconnect between the courts and corrections. The court may, in fact, impose a sentence and it may not fit with corrections plan for that individual. He urged the commissioner to do all he could to foster cooperation between agencies and branches of government. Although he said he strongly supports Senator Hoffman's concerns about the number of individuals in different racial groups that may be working for the state, he doesn't want the Commissioner to be left with the impression that he, as chairman, is looking for quotas. He applauds the commissioner's hiring goals but would rather not hear it stated in terms of quotas. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE ANTRIM said he did not understand Senator Hoffman to say he wanted the department to impose a quota. The goal to hire more Alaska Natives in the department is admirable, particularly when they are working with a sizeable population from that group. CHAIR TAYLOR related he frequently sentenced individuals to Anabuse when they were before him [as judge] after having nearly died because of their use of alcohol and drugs. CHAIR TAYLOR said he would entertain a motion. SENATOR DYSON made a motion to forward Commissioner Marc Antrim's name from committee with individual recommendations. There being no stated objection it was so ordered. CHAIR TAYLOR asked General Craig Campbell to step forward and swear and affirm that the testimony he was about to give was the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE CRAIG CAMPBELL did so swear and affirm. CHAIR TAYLOR gave him the floor and asked him to proceed as he saw fit. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE CRAIG E. CAMPBELL identified himself and said he lives in Eagle River, Alaska. He began with his biography because knowing who he is would help members understand the type of background he brings to the position. He has almost 28 years in the military. The United States Air Force brought him to Alaska in 1981 and stationed him at Elmendorf Air Force Base. Three years later he was transferred to Illinois. Although he negotiated to stay in Alaska, it was to no avail. At that point he separated from active duty with almost ten years of service. He is an air traffic controller by background and he separated with the intention of going into the National Guard. He began looking at the Alaska National Guard and found they don't have air traffic controllers. He found an air traffic control position in the California National Guard and worked in that position for seven years. He remained in Eagle River during those seven years and commuted on weekends, once a month and several weeks a year. He did that to keep his military experience alive knowing that sometime he would be able to join th the Alaska Air National Guard. Finally, when the 168Air- Refueling Wing began at Eielson, he was able to find a home th there. In 1991 he became the 168resource manager, squadron commander and served in that position for seven years. From there he worked in headquarters as the chief of plans for the Alaska Air National Guard and was the executive support officer for General Kanellis. Having completed Air War College, a prerequisite for promotion to colonel, he volunteered and was selected as one of two Air National Guard representatives to spend a year attending the Naval War College and obtained a graduate degree. th He returned to Alaska to serve the 168wingas vice-commander. He explained he was vice-commander because he doesn't wear wings. It is significant in an Air Force organization that the commander wears wings. He feels fortunate, not being a pilot or a navigator, to have been allowed to be a vice-commander. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE CAMPBELL explained there were about eight applicants and he was one of the last to put in his application. In the National Guard it is important to have leadership that comes from within the organization. Of the last four adjutant generals, two came from the active duty force, one from the Air Force and one from the Army. Both did outstanding jobs, but it was difficult for them to transition from an Air Force culture into a National Guard culture, to learn the political process of the State of Alaska, and to be successful for the organization. After watching the other two, who were from the National Guard, he determined the next adjutant general needed to come from the Alaska National Guard. He also thought the next adjutant general should come from the Air National Guard. Primarily, this is because the Air National Guard has grown rapidly and is now larger than the Army National Guard. There has not been an adjutant general from the Alaska Air National Guard since 1980. This sends a message to the senior leadership within the Air National Guard that they can succeed and be recognized as leaders in the state. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE CAMPBELL said he is a planner by trade and he wasn't able to identify the direction the Alaska Air National Guard was heading. He began looking for the strategic plan to determine their objectives and found the plan started about eight years ago never came to fruition so there is no written strategic plan for the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs. Additionally, the most current annual report for the department is from 1997. His research indicates that although the department has been doing many important things, it hasn't been in an organized direction and there has been no organized report to the Legislature with demonstrative conclusions that the department was meeting its goals. His findings caused him to became passionately interested in becoming the new adjutant general to provide the "blue suit" Air National Guard leadership with planning and direction. He has begun working with the Murkowski Administration to reorganize the horizontal or flat structure of the department. All division managers were reporting directly to the adjutant general who was also trying to develop policy direction. This plate was too full so they reorganized to give the deputy commissioner more authority under administrative functions. He organized a two-column system with the Army National Guard, the Air National Guard, state defense services and the national militia under the military column of forces and homeland security and emergency services under the civilian column. In the civilian column, Sam Johnson, as assistant commissioner, is charged with merging homeland security and emergency services into one team. He sets the policy; and his team brings him the action plan so they will be able to respond as a team for civilian services. On the military side, General Craig Christensen is deputy military director and the lead for direction of military activities. A team of about five individuals formed from the two columns serves as an executive board to develop and implement a strategic plan and report to the Legislature on their accomplishments. The priority missions are: · Homeland Security: It's ill defined today in terms of what it will look like, how it will be managed, where will the funding come from and how to respond to the citizens. The department has two basic pillars of government it is responsible for. They are the safety and security of the citizenry. If that can't be provided, government can't be provided. The department will work closely with federal agencies to develop a cohesive program. · Recruiting and Retention: There has been a decline in the number of individuals in the National Guard even though the Air National Guard has grown. This trend must be changed for the Army National Guard. Specifically, declines have occurred in rural Alaska and there will be a concerted effort to improve the recruiting and retention of Native Alaskans. Having just four weeks on the job he doesn't yet have a solution, but he has done the research and he understands the problem. He is working with General Christensen on the Army side to find different ways of accomplishing the mission. As he goes forward with strategic plans and performance measures he will ask the Legislature to help him by building performance measures that create a positive direction for recruiting and retention is Western Alaska. · National Missile Defense: The Army, the Air Force and the U.S. Space Command are advancing the program. They are charged with having it operational in 2004 with full buildup in 2005. The Army National Guard is the lead for providing the people and the training for that facility. There will be about 300 Army National Guard people at Fort Greeley in about two years. The majority will be security police and the rest will be operators. The operational control will stay with the active duty but the guard will do the hiring the training and the staffing of the people. That brings a number of challenges including housing people in Delta and whether the skilled recruits will come from Alaska. He would like to attract as many Alaskans as possible to fill those billets. · National Guard Transformation: He would like to change the way the Alaska branches do business. They should work together in one aerospace defense organization that allows each branch to compete equally for assignments. Although this is a difficult challenge in the military structure, he believes it's natural for Alaska and he will be pursuing that approach. · Veteran Issues: Because Alaskan veterans deserve some type of return when they retire, the veterans' home issue needs to come to fruition. The study regarding what is right for Alaska must be completed, the facts assembled, and the veterans enfranchised to support the program that is ultimately selected. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE CAMPBELL assured members he is a fiscal conservative. He accepted the job knowing he would have to work with the Legislature to provide for the safety and security of Alaska without an increased budget. It will be a challenge, but he has already informed his department they will not ask for personnel costs for 2003. When he builds a budget, he expects his divisions to live within that budget. Part of fiscal discipline is requiring people to be accountable for what they ask for. That being said, he will be asking for a supplemental amount for disaster relief. The earthquake and Kenai floods have been significant incidents and will require additional help as is traditional with disasters. He said he is motivated to run the department, has the qualifications to lead the department and has the fiscal understanding to know what must be done to ensure success. He asked members for questions. SENATOR GUESS expressed her appreciation to General Campbell for taking the position. She asked him to discuss the Military Youth Academy and how it fits into his strategic plan. COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE CAMPBELL emphasized the value of the Youth Academy within the Department of Military & Veterans Affairs (DMVA). Although it has receives funding from its tie to the education formula, the success of the program comes from its military structure. As one of the few accredited youth academies in the country, it provides troubled youth the opportunity to enter a structured environment and achieve the goal of a general education diploma (GED) or high school diploma. He advised members that facility money is needed at some point because the Camp Carroll facility is old and overcrowded. CHAIR TAYLOR thanked General Campbell for taking the time to provide the people of the State of Alaska with his exemplary service and assured him his dedication is much appreciated. There was no additional testimony. CHAIR TAYLOR asked for a motion. SENATOR DYSON made a motion to forward General Campbell's name to a joint session for consideration. There being no stated objection it was so ordered. CHAIR TAYLOR adjourned the meeting at 5:00 p.m.