June 28, 2011

Dear fellow Alaskans,

The Senate concluded its one-day meeting in Juneau on June 27 at about 5:30 pm. I can’t refer to this as a “Special Session” because it failed to meet the rule for a Legislative Session. Here’s what I mean: The Legislature conducts itself according to Mason’s Manuel of Parliamentary Procedure. Article 780, Section 12 states that, “It is only when both houses are lawfully assembled that they constitute the legislature of the state.” The House side of the Legislature didn’t convene until about 6:15 pm. Therefore, as was the opinion of our legal counsel, there was no legislative session until both houses gaveled in to session. I objected to this breech of the rules, and Senator Coghill joined me in the objection. We were over-ruled by the Senate President.

The Senate met for one day with the stated goal of addressing Alaska Coastal Management Plan (ACMP). After about 6 hours of closed door meetings, and no committee hearings or public input, the Bipartisan Coalition put forth the same bill that failed to pass the 1st Special Session last month. This passed the Senate by a vote of 11 for to 7 against.

The Senate adjourned, sine die, before the House had even been called to order. The House now remains in Juneau, and plans to hold public hearings on the bill left by the Senate. Unless the House accepts, without changes, the same bill the Senate passed, nothing will have been accomplished. This is disappointing from the perspective that we paid for about 52 Legislators to fly to Juneau, paid per diem, and, for some, lodging…but accomplished nothing.

Today, the House Finance Committee is holding 3 hours of public testimony on the bill passed by the Senate.

ACMP is a voluntary program that the State has participated in since 1979. It creates an advisory board made up of people from rural areas, who offer input on resource development in coastal areas.

The program includes the Division of Coastal Ocean Management (DCOM), which coordinates project reviews for projects along our coast. Since the Legislature failed to renew the program by the time it adjourned the second special session on May 17, the DCOM has been reassigning staff, archiving documents, released office space leases, and did not apply for the federal grant monies (which have now been allocated among other states).

If the Legislature were to re-start the program now, it would require hiring new personnel who would need training and orientation before they would be effective. DCOM received about 100 applications a month. Projects needing permits this year would be unable to go forward. Delayed projects mean a lost 2011 construction season. These projects are located in job-hungry rural areas of our state. Roads, airports, docks, buildings – all this construction would be delayed a year, while DCOM hired and educated new staff.

In the Department of Natural Resources, the Office of Project Management and Permitting (OPNP) helps larger projects identify needed permits. OPMP could provide the same service for smaller projects that presently rely on ACMP for that assistance.

It is critical that investors see Alaska as “open for business!” I do not favor knee-jerk legislation, with murky statements, and no public comment.

I joined 4 other Senators in voting “no” to calling this 2nd Special Session, because important issues, such as ACMP, deserve careful deliberation and public process.

I voted “no” on the ACMP bill that was offered because it contained vague terms such as “aggregate evidence,” and made no provision for the time needed to restore a functional DCOM office and qualified staff.

I agree with the Senate President, who stated, in a concluding press conference, that good legislation requires time to make good decisions. He said “Fast decisions are not always the best decisions.” In this case, the Senate made a “fast decision” on ACMP. The decision was made in a hastily convened “Special Session,” located in Juneau, far from the input of citizens. The process and outcome of yesterday’s Senate meeting is disappointing to me and, I believe, to most Alaskans.

Cathy
Senator Cathy Giessel

District contact:
716 West 4th Avenue, Anchorage, AK 99501
Office 907 269 0181
Fax 907 269 0184

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