Legislature Passes House Bill 101 to Better Protect Annuities and Life Insurance from Garnishment – Sen. Coghill in Unusual Position of Voting for his Bill in Both House and Senate

Juneau – HB 101 increases to $500,000 the $10,000 cap on annuities and life insurance, allowing Alaskan families to plan for their retirement without the threat of garnishment.

While public retirement programs have exemption without limitation, non-government workers and small business owners rely on life insurance and annuity contracts to supplement their retirements. This bill ensures that life insurance and annuities have limited liability to satisfy debt created after the effective date of the legislation.

“With the uncertain fiscal situation we as a country find ourselves in, most of us are not planning on social security as our only form of retirement or to leave to our survivors,” Coghill said. “This bill allows Alaskans to better plan for their retirement, and for the provision of their loved ones, by adding protection to life insurance and annuities.”

When HB 101 was calendared for a vote in the Senate on April 6th of this year, Senator Coghill found himself in an unusual position of being able to vote in both the House and Senate to pass HB 101, a bill he introduced last year to provide a higher level of protection against garnishment for life insurance and annuities. The bill passed the House unanimously on April 3, 2009.

Today the House concurred in amendments made to the bill in the Senate, and it now awaits transmittal to the Governor for his signature.

Coghill Bill to Incentivize Hospitals, Medical Centers to Become Certified Trauma Centers Passes Legislature

Juneau – Legislation that would provide state dollars to incentivize medical facilities to become certified to better respond to trauma emergencies has unanimously passed the State Senate. It previously passed the House of Representatives, also unanimously. The bill, HB 168, was introduced by Sen. John Coghill, R-North Pole, when he was a member of the House last year. In the House, the bill has been championed by Bethel Rep. Bob Herron, co-chair of the House Health and Social Services committee.

“A good trauma system is an organized, multidisciplinary response to treatment of severely injured people,” Coghill said. “It spans the full spectrum from prevention to emergency care and recovery. A trauma system should increase the chances of survival by having designated and qualified first responders, and hospitals and doctors that are well-coordinated throughout our state.”

Coghill noted that the nearest level 1 trauma care center is Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The highest level maintained in Alaska is the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, a level 2 facility.

“We were looking for a way to encourage hospitals and other medical facilities to get certified at a certain level to respond to trauma incidents, so HB 168 provides that incentive,” Coghill said. “The bill would establish a fund that could be accessed by hospitals if they get the highest level of trauma designation possible. The fund could help in defraying the cost of emergency room staffing and doctor agreements that are critical to a higher level trauma designation.”

Senate Republican Caucus Responds to Governor’s Goals in Supplemental Budget

Juneau – Members of the Senate Republican Caucus today expressed their support for many of the goals contained within Governor Sean Parnell’s FY2010 supplemental budget released today while recognizing room for increased savings and encouraging a more long-term view of state budget surpluses.

Among other spending requests, the supplemental budget bill would finish repaying the Constitutional Budget Reserve, forward-fund K-12 education for FY2011, and, in a separate bill, ask for an additional $100 million for deferred maintenance projects.

“While I recognize the importance of addressing some of the pressing needs outlined in the Governor’s supplemental budget, I strongly encourage that any spending proposals based on using a budget surplus, in this or any other year, look at that ’surplus’ in the context of a three- or five-year spending plan,” said Sen. Con Bunde, R-Anchorage. “I think the question of whether or not it is truly a ‘surplus’ – if it is sandwiched between two or four years of deficit or even flat spending – is one we should be asking ourselves more often.”

Sen. Fred Dyson, R-Eagle River, said he is concerned about the rising cost of formula-driven spending. “I recognize that programs such as Medicaid are expanding in numbers of users, and that is reflected in the $44 million requested for formula programs. I note that the Governor did not request funding for an increase in eligibility for Denali KidCare because the bill to do so has not passed. While he and I disagree on expanding the program from 175 to 200 percent of poverty level, he may be amenable to making such an increase contingent on having a budget surplus.”

Sen. Tom Wagoner, R-Kenai, said he would support the deferred maintenance bill and expects the projects included in it to be in the public’s interest. “It makes a lot of sense to get funding approved for projects that can go to contract this spring. At the same time, the Governor needs to take another look at his $75 million request for a new crime lab, which we don’t need. That project should be on the deferred maintenance list, and the existing crime lab should be remodeled and expanded at a much lower cost, not the current $75 million projected for a new lab.”

Sen. John Coghill, R-North Pole, agreed that the Governor’s first priority should be saving surplus dollars. “I support the Governor’s request to return the $402 million to the CBR that we have borrowed over the lean years. That is what the CBR is there for. I also support any efforts to park more of the surplus in the statutory budget reserve. While that reserve is accessible with only a majority vote, it shows good faith and statesmanship on the part of legislators and the Governor to set the surplus aside. We anticipate more lean years for Alaska, with the Trans Alaska Pipeline dropping in through-put by six percent or more a year. Alaska’s leaders have done a good job in the past of saving for future generations – through the Permanent Fund, the CBR, and other set-asides – and I think we need to continue with that attitude.”

Coghill Looks Forward to New, Productive Senate Duties

Juneau – Newly-appointed Senator John Coghill, R-North Pole, today said he is looking forward to a productive relationship with his Senate colleagues, as well as getting to know his constituents throughout District F. Coghill was sworn in today in Anchorage by Lt. Governor Craig Campbell.

“I’m excited to get started building relationships with my Senate colleagues, as well as getting acquainted with the residents of House District 12,” Coghill said. “I look forward to getting to know the people, places, and policy issues important to the communities my district now encompasses. I’ve already been able to speak on Valdez Public Radio, and later this week I’m taking a road trip to attend events in Delta and Glennallen. I have enjoyed working with former Senator Gene Therriault and Representative John Harris, and I will make use of their experience.”

In the Senate, he will be a member of the Senate Judiciary and Legislative Ethics committees. “I think my committee assignments play to my strengths,” Coghill said. “I served on the House Judiciary Committee for 11 years, so I am familiar with the issues that come before that committee. I have also worked on past ethics legislation as well as serving on the Ethics Committee as a House Member.”

Coghill has represented the North Pole House District 11 in the Legislature since 1999. District 12 stretches from Eielson AFB in the north, along the Richardson Highway through Delta Junction, Paxson and Glennallen to Valdez at the southern end, and along the Glenn Highway from Glennallen through Lake Louise to the outskirts of Palmer. The two House districts make up Senate District F.