{"id":34021,"date":"2016-04-17T17:12:08","date_gmt":"2016-04-18T00:12:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spijue.wpengine.com\/news\/saturday-recap-lawmakers-approve-sharing-of-voter-information\/"},"modified":"2016-04-17T17:12:08","modified_gmt":"2016-04-18T00:12:08","slug":"saturday-recap-lawmakers-approve-sharing-of-voter-information","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/news\/saturday-recap-lawmakers-approve-sharing-of-voter-information\/","title":{"rendered":"Saturday recap: Lawmakers approve sharing of voter information"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Alaska House has approved a bill calling for the state to share voter information with other states in an effort to deter voter fraud.<\/p>\n

Representatives voted 36-3 Saturday afternoon to approve Senate Bill 9, one of many items of legislation considered by the Alaska House and Alaska Senate on the 89th day of the Legislative session.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Electronic Registration Information Center is a project of several states and supported by the Pew Charitable Trusts. As of December 2015, 15 states participated in the information-sharing program, including Republican-leaning ones like Alabama and Democratic-leaning ones like Oregon.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cERIC is a proven model that works,\u201d said Rep. Dan Saddler, R-Eagle River and the bill\u2019s prime sponsor in the House.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rep. Sam Kito III, D-Juneau, spoke up in support. In a speech on the House floor, he explained how one Juneau woman, attending college Outside, was encouraged to register to vote at the college when she couldn\u2019t remember if she had previously registered in Alaska.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBy registering again, she lost her eligibility for her Permanent Fund Dividend,\u201d Kito said. \u201cIt\u2019s important for us to be able to share information with other states.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>When the Senate approved SB 9 last year, it was written as a measure to repeal the ability of political parties to put partisan advertising in the state\u2019s printed election pamphlet. The version of the bill passed by the House still includes that repeal, but the Senate never voted on the information-sharing components of the bill.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thus, the bill will go back to the Senate for a concurrence vote. Only if the Senate agrees with the information-sharing aspects of the bill will it advance to the desk of Gov. Bill Walker.<\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson outflanks committees<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a bit of floor maneuvering, Rep. Tammie Wilson, R-North Pole, amended an ethics bill to include a measure barring state contractors from participating in the state\u2019s public employees retirement system.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson\u2019s amendment to Senate Bill 24 was approved 34-4 on Saturday. The text of the amendment is her House Bill 299, which was introduced in February but stalled in the House Labor and Commerce Committee.<\/span><\/p>\n

Senate Bill 24, as designed by Sen. Berta Gardner, R-Anchorage, and approved in the Senate on April 1, exempts state contractors from irrelevant portions of the state\u2019s ethics guidelines. It doesn\u2019t make sense, Gardner said on the Senate floor, for the contractor in charge of printing the Legislative journals to be required to undergo training about answering constituent questions and political contributions.<\/span><\/p>\n

SB 24 was approved 35-4 in the House and now returns to the Senate, where lawmakers will be asked whether to agree with Wilson\u2019s amendment and other changes in the House.<\/span><\/p>\n

To help the bill on its way, House lawmakers also voted 38-0 in favor of<\/span> <\/span>House Concurrent Resolution 34, which waives some rules of the House for SB 24.<\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Senate approves federal veto<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a 13-5 vote, the Senate on Saturday approved House Joint Resolution 14, which says the state supports a call for a U.S. Constitutional convention with the intent to pass an amendment that would allow states to \u201ccountermand\u201d or veto a piece of federal legislation or a federal court decision.<\/span><\/p>\n

The House approved the resolution 24-15 on April 10. <\/span><\/p>\n

The resolution does not have to be approved by the governor, but it will not become effective unless two-thirds (34) of all U.S. states request one on the same topic. Alaska is the first state to request a constitutional convention on the countermand issue under Article V of the U.S. Constitution.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Legislature in 2014 passed a resolution calling for an Article V convention to \u201cimpose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government, and limit the terms of office of federal government officials.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Tennessee, Alabama, Florida and Georgia have also requested Article V conventions on that topic, according to a list kept by the chief clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives.<\/span><\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s resolution was strongly opposed by the Senate\u2019s Democratic minority. All four members of the minority voted against it, as did Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka. Sen. Lesil McGuire, R-Anchorage, did not vote, and Sen. Pete Kelly, R-Fairbanks, was absent from the vote. <\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Other items<\/strong><\/p>\n

The House and Senate had ample other business Saturday:<\/span><\/p>\n