UFA Legislative Update: May 11, 2018

Dear UFA Members and Friends,

Rumor has it the 30th Legislature will be gaveling out sometime this weekend.  The flurry of bills being pushed out in the past two weeks and no meetings scheduled for next week lead us to believe the rumors are true.

Highlights this week include the Conference Committee approving the full increment ($997k) for the ADFG budget.  HB 76 – Mariculture Loan Funds, a UFA supported bill, passed the Senate on Monday and is now awaiting transmittal to the Governor.  Also awaiting transmittal is HB 56 – Comfish Loan Limits which passed the Senate on Wednesday.  This is great news as UFA supported all three of these measures.

Thanks for hanging in there with us this session and be sure to look for our session recap next week.  For those of you starting in salmon openers in the weeks to come, we wish you many deck loads and a safe season.

-Frances Leach, Executive Director

Please support our business members – see links on our website
To join UFA see https://www.ufafish.org/become-a-member/


Contents:
1. Legislation – happenings from this week
2. Legislative meetings of interest for next week
3. To testify, watch or listen in to a hearing
4. Bills related to fisheries, and others that may be of interest to fishermen
-Bills passed
-Others


1. Legislation – happenings from this week on fisheries bills:

HB 76 – Mariculture Loans – Amended in Senate Finance last Friday – Passed Senate Floor Monday 5/7 final version is SCS CSHB 76(FIN) … awaiting transmittal to Governor.

HB 56 – ComFish Loan limits (Ortiz) – Passed Senate Wednesday 5/9… final version is the same as first introduced – awaiting transmittal to Governor.

HB 260 – ADFG Electronic license (Saddler) …does not include commercial crew licenses – Passed Senate on 5/1 – final version is CSHB 260(FIN) am… awaiting transmitted to Governor.


2. Legislative meetings of interest for the week of May 14There are no meetings scheduled for next week, which may confirm reports that the legislature will be gaveling out by this weekend.  You may continue to check the daily House and Senate floor schedules and committee schedule daily, or check on individual bills with the links below.


3. To testify, watch or listen in to a hearing …To testify it’s best to go to a Legislative Information office – see them online at http://akleg.gov/lios.php . If you can’t get to an LIO you can call in to listen in or testify through the following numbers – call & ask for the specific committee hearing:
From Anchorage based phones call 907-563-9085;
From Juneau based phones or outside Alaska call 907-586-9085;
From other areas of Alaska, call toll-free 844-586-9085…and ask for the specific hearing.

To watch hearings online go to legislative home page at http://w3.akleg.gov/  at the time of the hearing, and click on the “Live Now” tab, and then select the meeting.

To watch floor sessions and other hearings see Gavel to Gavel archives.

To find your legislators and contact info see http://w3.legis.state.ak.us/  – see “WHO REPRESENTS ME?” in the lower right corner of the page.


4. Bills related to fisheries, and others that may be of interest to fishermen…with primary sponsor and current committee.

Bills Passed:
HJR 19 – Arctic Marine Safety Agreements (Lincoln) – Passed House and Senate, awaiting transmittal to the governor. Final version.

SB 37 – Boards of Pharmacy and Commercial Fishery Entry Commission – Includes amended language from HB 231 CFEC bill – Passed House and Senate and awaiting transmittal to the governor (UFA supported the initial bill and version D and was not able to meet as a board on the final version adopted into SB37).

HJR 12 – Opposing FDA approval of GM Salmon and urging labeling (Tarr – passed House and Senate, awaiting transmittal to the Governor – UFA Supports)

SB 92 –An Act relating to abandoned and derelict vessels; relating to the registration of vessel (Micciche) – passed Senate and House, now awaiting transmittal to the Governor

HB 267 re release of certain records relating to big game hunters, guided hunts, and guided sport fishing activities to municipalities for verification of taxes (Edgmon),  now awaiting transmittal to the Governor

HB 354 – Dive Fishery management (Ortiz – Senate Resources – UFA Supports), awaiting transmittal to the Governor

HR 8 – Locate NOAA Assets in Alaska –New resolution from House Community and Regional Affairs April 30, passed House May 4, awaiting transmittal to Governor

HB 56 – Comfish loan limits – (Ortiz – UFA supports) Passed Senate Wednesday 5/9, awaiting transmittal to Governor

HB 76 – Mariculture Loans – (Ortiz – UFA supports) final version is SCS CSHB 76(FIN) … awaiting transmittal to Governor.

Others:

HCR 8  – Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center (House Fisheries – passed House and Senate Committees, now in Senate Rules – UFA Supports)

HB 14  – Leg. approval of Bristol Bay sulfide mine (Josephson – now in House Resources – new fiscal notes posted by DEC, DNR & ADFG)

HB 17 – Establishing a fish and game conservation program/account in ADFG (Josephson – now in House Resources)

HB 19 – Ban neonicotinoid pesticides (Drummond – passed House Resources, now in Finance)

SB25 – Motor Fuel Tax – Senate Rules by Request of the Governor (Senate Finance)

HB 29 – Prohibiting sale of genetically modified fish/fish products  (Tarr – House Fisheries)

HB 32  – Relating to the labeling of food; relating to the misbranding of food; requiring labeling of food produced with genetic engineering (Tarr- House Resources – UFA Supports)

HB 42 – Relating to seizure of property; relating to forfeiture to the state – includes language on seizure of fishing permits (Wilson – House Finance)

HB 46 – Procure AK Fish, Ag Prod.; Raw Milk Sales (Tarr – House Finance)

SB 71 – Relating to limitations on certain commercial fishing loans (Stevens –Senate Finance – UFA Supports)

HB 60 – Motor Fuel Tax (House Rules by Request of the Governor –now in House Finance)

SB 89  – Shellfish Enhancement Hatcheries (Stevens – now in Senate Finance – UFA Supports)

HB 128  – Companion bill (Ortiz – passed House and now in Senate Rules – UFA Supports)

SB 95 – Mariculture revolving loan fund (Stevens – Senate Finance – UFA Supports)

HB 87 – Board of Fisheries and Board of Game – Conflict of Interest (Stutes –passed House, now in Senate State Affairs – UFA Supports)

HB 88 –  Board of Fisheries Membership (Rep. Stutes – now in House Fisheries)

HB 386 – Derelict vessels House companion (Seaton) – See SB 92 above under bills passed.

HB 107 –  Fisheries enhancement permit – egg & unfed fry enhancement in same waters (Talerico – House Resources)

SB 115 – “An Act relating to the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission; and providing for an effective date.” (Administration – Senate State Affairs) See SB 37 above under bills passed.

HB 231 – “An Act relating to the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission; and providing for an effective date.” (Administration –House Rules – UFA Supports). See SB 37 above under bills passed.

HB 129 – Fish and Game offense, licenses, and penalties (Administration – Passed House committees and now in Rules)
&
SB 60  – Companion bill passed (Administration -now in Senate Judiciary)

SB 135 – Cook Inlet Setnet Buyback (Micciche – Senate Resources)

HB 149 – Board of Fisheries five year cycle (Chenault – WITHDRAWN – UFA Supported)

HB 155 – AK Mental Health Land Exchange (Ortiz –House Finance)

SB 173 –”An Act relating to the liability of a person or the state for the release of certain pesticides during application on a utility pole.” (Micciche – passed S. Resources and now in S. Judiciary)

HB 173 – Climate Change Commission (Josephson – now in House resources)

HB 177 – Invasive Species (Tarr–House Finance – now in House Rules)

HB 188 – Regional permit banks (Kreiss–Tomkins – passed House Fisheries, now in House Labor and Commerce)

HB 199 – Salmon Habitat permitting (Stutes – House Fisheries – New CS version I)

HB 237 – Salmon Escapement Goals (Neuman – House Fisheries)

HB 379 – Fishermen’s Fund reimbursement (Ortiz – passed House committees and in House Finance– UFA Supports)

SB 210 – Mislabeling by retail food establishments (Wielechowski – Senate Judiciary – UFA Supports)

SB 211 – “An Act relating to the temporary transfer of limited entry commercial fishing permits; and providing for an effective date.”  (Stevens, referred to Resources and Finance committees)

HJR 35  –Urging Co-Management Plan for Sea Otters (Millett – House Community and Regional Affairs – UFA Supports)

SJR 13: – Urging Co-Management Plan for Sea Otters (Stedman – Passed the Senate and now in House Resources – UFA Supports)

SJR 3  – Urging the President of the United States and the United States Congress to mitigate the harm done to the state’s seafood industry because of the withdrawal of the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement; and urging the President of the United States and the United States Congress to work to benefit and protect the state’s seafood industry (Senator Wielechowski –Senate State Affairs – UFA Supports)

HCR 25  – Requesting the Governor to establish an office of outdoor access and recreation (Kreiss–Tomkins – House Resources)


Compiled by UFA staff and made possible by the support of our Group, Business, Individual and Crew members.
To join UFA see https://www.ufafish.org/become-a-member/