The 32nd Alaska State Legislature convened for the first of its two regular sessions on January 19.   

Residents of the Copper Valley, Prince William Sound, and nearby communities are part of either district 6-C or 9-E.  Residents of district 6-C are represented by Sen. Click Bishop and Rep. Mike Cronk.  Residents of district 9-E are represented by Sen. Mike Shower and Rep. George Rauscher.

One of the longest deadlocks in state history was ended with the appointment of Louise Stutes, R-Kodiak, as Speaker of the House last Thursday, February 11.  Because of the deadlock, the House was unable to take any action on bills or form committees.

To help readers stay informed, the Record has compiled what bills our district senators are sponsoring and what committees they are serving on this legislative session.  When this information is available for our House representatives, it will be provided as well.

Senator Click Bishop, R-Fairbanks
Sen. Bishop is co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, and a member of the Senate Committee on Committees, Senate Legislative Council, Senate Resources Committee, Senate Transportation Committee, and Senate Special Committee on World Trade.

He is sponsoring SB 63 and co-sponsoring SJR 9.

SB 63 is described as: “An Act relating to the appointment of a temporary guardian for a missing person,” and amends Rule 17 of the Alaska Rules of Probate Procedure. 

Its text states: “Unless another petition for guardianship of an individual is pending, an interested person may petition the court to be appointed the temporary guardian of a missing adult individual for the limited purpose of viewing the individual's financial institution records and wireless telephone service records to determine if the records can help locate the individual.”

It was referred to the Health & Social Services, Judiciary, and Finance Committees.

SJR 9 urges Congress to “exempt cruise ships from certain provisions of the Passenger Vessel Services Act and other applicable provisions of federal law for the period during which Canadian ports are closed to cruise ships carrying more than 100 people; and urging the President of the United States not to fine or take actions against cruise ships sailing to the state.”

Foreign-flagged ships are currently required by American law to include at least one other country in their American itineraries. Stopping in Canada before travel to Alaska was the obvious choice. Canada will remain closed to large ships until at least 2022. The large cruise ships owned by companies such as Disney, Norweigan, and Royal Carribean are all foreign-flagged. 

It was referred to the Transportation, and Labor & Commerce Committees.

Senator Mike Shower, R-Wasilla
Sen. Shower is chair of the Joint Armed Services Committee and the Senate State Affairs Committee, vice chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Transportation Committee, and a member of the Senate Legislative Council.

He is sponsoring SB 14, SB 31, SB 39, SJR 2, and SJR 3.

SB 14 is summarized as: "An Act relating to the selection and retention of judicial officers for the court of appeals and the district court and of magistrates; relating to the duties of the judicial council; relating to the duties of the Commission on Judicial Conduct; and relating to retention or rejection of a judicial officer."

In a sponsor statement for the bill, Sen. Shower suggests that “lawyers may have a conflict of interest when they rate judges for retention” and says that SB 14 “strikes more of balance in letting the governor and the people have a small say in who sits in judgment on the bench when they appear before them.”

It was referred to the Judiciary Committee.

SB 31 is: "An Act relating to binding votes by or for a legislator under the Legislative Ethics Act."  

The two-page bill seeks to amend AS 24.60.030, which addresses “prohibitions related to conflicts of interest and unethical conduct.”

It was referred to the State Affairs and Judiciary Committees.

SB 39 is: "An Act relating to elections; relating to voter registration; relating to ballots and a system of tracking and accounting for ballots.”

It would also establish an election offense hotline, as well as designate the collection of ballots from other voters and the intentional opening of or tampering with a sealed ballot without the proper authorization as class C misdemeanors.

It was referred to the State Affairs and Judiciary Committees.

SJR 2 and SJR 3 are proposed amendments to the Constitution of the State of Alaska relating to the membership of the judicial council and political caucuses in the legislature.

Both were referred to the State Affairs, Judiciary, and Finance Committees.

Article by Amanda Swinehart

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If there are legislative stories that affect you, your business, or the greater Copper Valley area, please let us know!