Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

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                                            SENATE BILL NO. 18
                         IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
                             THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION
     BY SENATOR HOFFMAN
     Introduced: 1/18/17
     Referred: Community and Regional Affairs, State Affairs
                                                     A BILL
                                         FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
 "An Act relating to third class boroughs."
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:
   * Section 1. AS 14.08.011(a) is amended to read:
                 (a) It is the purpose of this chapter to provide for public education in the
         unorganized borough, third class boroughs, and the military reservations in the state.
   * Sec. 2. AS 14.08.031(a) is amended to read:
                 (a) The Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development,
         in consultation with the Department of Education and Early Development and local
         communities, shall divide the area comprising the unorganized borough and third
         class boroughs into educational service areas using the boundaries or sub-boundaries
         of the regional corporations established under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement
         Act, unless by referendum a community votes to merge with another community
         contiguous to it but within the boundaries or sub-boundaries of another regional
         corporation.
   * Sec. 3. AS 14.08.031(b) is amended to read:
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                (b)   An educational service area established in the area comprising the
         unorganized borough and third class boroughs under (a) of this section constitutes a
          regional educational attendance area. As far as practicable, each regional educational
         attendance area shall contain an integrated socio-economic, linguistically and
         culturally homogeneous area. In the formation of the regional educational attendance
         areas, consideration shall be given to the transportation and communication network to
         facilitate the administration of education and communication between communities
         that comprise the area. Whenever possible, municipalities, other governmental or
         regional corporate entities, drainage basins, and other identifiable geographic features
         shall be used in describing the boundaries of the regional school attendance areas.
  * Sec. 4. AS 14.08.071(a) is amended to read:
                (a) In each regional educational attendance area in the area comprising the
         unorganized borough and third class boroughs, the lieutenant governor, within not
         less than 60, nor more than 90, days after the establishment of the regional educational
         attendance area, shall provide for the election of a regional school board.
  * Sec. 5. AS 14.12.010 is amended to read:
                Sec. 14.12.010. Districts of state public school system. The districts of the
         state public school system are as follows:
                        (1) each home rule and first class city in the unorganized borough or
         in a third class borough is a city school district;
                        (2)   each first class, second class, or home rule [ORGANIZED]
         borough is a borough school district;
                        (3)    the area outside first class, second class, or home rule
         [ORGANIZED] boroughs and outside home rule and first class cities is divided into
         regional educational attendance areas.
  * Sec. 6. AS 14.12.110 is amended to read:
                Sec. 14.12.110. Single body as assembly and school board. Notwithstanding
         the provisions of this chapter or other law, a single body may serve as both the
         assembly and school board in the manner provided under (b) of this section [FOR
         THIRD CLASS BOROUGHS UNDER AS 29.20.300(b)], if
                        (1) an ordinance for that purpose is approved by the assembly and
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       ratified by a referendum of a majority of the qualified borough voters voting on the
       question at a regular or special election; and
                      (2) the public school population within the borough is 500 pupils or
       less.
  * Sec. 7. AS 14.12.110 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
                (b) When a single body serves as both the assembly and the school board, the
        mayor is the presiding officer of the assembly and president of the school board.
       However, the mayor may not veto an action of the school board.
  * Sec. 8. AS 14.60.010(7) is amended to read:
                      (7)   "regional educational attendance area" means an educational
       service area in the area comprising the unorganized borough and third class
       boroughs, which may [OR MAY NOT] include a military reservation, and that
       contains one or more public schools with one or more grade levels of [GRADE
       LEVELS] K-12 [OR ANY PORTION OF THOSE GRADE LEVELS THAT ARE TO
       BE] operated under the management and control of a single regional school board;
  * Sec. 9. AS 23.40.250(8) is amended to read:
                      (8)   "regional educational attendance area" means an educational
       service area in the area comprising the unorganized borough and third class
       boroughs, which [THAT] may [OR MAY NOT] include a military reservation, and
       that contains one or more public schools with one or more grade levels of [GRADE
       LEVELS] K - 12 [OR ANY PORTION OF THOSE GRADE LEVELS THAT ARE
       TO BE] operated under the management and control of a single regional school board;
  * Sec. 10. AS 29.04.060(a) is amended to read:
               (a) A third class borough may reclassify as a first or second class borough in
       the manner provided by AS 29.35.320 - 29.35.330 for the addition of an areawide
       power by a first or second class borough, except the petition or proposal requests
       reclassification instead of requesting addition of a power. [AT THE TIME OF
       VOTING ON RECLASSIFICATION OF A THIRD CLASS BOROUGH TO FIRST
       OR SECOND CLASS STATUS, VOTERS SHALL VOTE ALSO ON WHETHER
       THE BOROUGH SHALL, ON RECLASSIFICATION, RETAIN A COMBINED
       ASSEMBLY AND SCHOOL BOARD OR ELECT A SEPARATE ASSEMBLY
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         AND BOARD AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR FIRST AND SECOND CLASS
         BOROUGHS.]
  * Sec. 11. AS 29.05.031(a) is amended to read:
                (a) An area that meets the following standards may incorporate as a home rule,
         first class, [OR] second class, or third class borough, or as a unified municipality:
                        (1) the population of the area is interrelated and integrated as to its
         social, cultural, and economic activities, and is large and stable enough to support
         borough government;
                        (2) the boundaries of the proposed borough or unified municipality
         conform generally to natural geography and include all areas necessary for full
         development of municipal services;
                        (3) the economy of the area includes the human and financial resources
         capable of providing municipal services; evaluation of an area's economy includes
         land use, property values, total economic base, total personal income, resource and
         commercial development, anticipated functions, expenses, and income of the proposed
         borough or unified municipality;
                        (4)     land, water, and air transportation facilities allow the
         communication and exchange necessary for the development of integrated borough
         government.
  * Sec. 12. AS 29.05.190(c) is amended to read:
                (c)    This [EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN (d) OF THIS SECTION, THIS]
         section does not apply to a borough incorporated by consolidation or to a unified
         municipality that occupies the area formerly occupied by a borough.
  * Sec. 13. AS 29.06.090(a) is amended to read:
                (a) Two or more municipalities may merge or consolidate to form a single
         general law or home rule municipality [, EXCEPT A THIRD CLASS BOROUGH
         MAY NOT BE FORMED THROUGH MERGER OR CONSOLIDATION].
  * Sec. 14. AS 29.06.470(a) is amended to read:
                (a) Except as provided in (b) of this section, voters of a municipality may
         petition for dissolution when the municipality is free of debt, or, if in debt, each of its
         creditors is satisfied with a method of repayment and
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                       (1)    the municipality no longer meets the minimum standards
        prescribed for incorporation by AS 29.05 [, OR FORMER AS 29.18.030 IF IT IS A
        THIRD CLASS BOROUGH];
                       (2) the municipality ceases to use each of its mandatory powers; or
                       (3) the dissolution petition filed under AS 29.06.460 is signed by a
        number of voters of the municipality proposed to be dissolved greater than 50 percent
        of the number of votes cast in the last regular election in that municipality.
  * Sec. 15. AS 29.20.300(a) is amended to read:
               (a) Each municipal school district has a school board. Members [EXCEPT
        AS PROVIDED IN (b) OF THIS SECTION, MEMBERS] of a school board are
        elected at the regular election for three-year terms and until their successors take
        office. Members are elected at large unless a different method of election has been
        approved by the voters in a regular election.
  * Sec. 16. AS 29.35.160(a) is amended to read:
               (a) Each first class, second class, and home rule borough constitutes a
        borough school district and establishes, maintains, and operates a system of public
        schools on an areawide basis as provided in AS 14.14.060. A military reservation in a
        borough is not part of the borough school district until the military mission is
        terminated or until inclusion in the borough school district is approved by the
        Department of Education and Early Development. However, operation of the military
        reservation schools by the borough school district may be required by the Department
        of Education and Early Development under AS 14.14.110. If the military mission of a
        military reservation terminates or continued management and control by a regional
        educational attendance area is disapproved by the Department of Education and Early
        Development, operation, management, and control of schools on the military
        reservation transfers to the borough school district in which the military reservation is
        located.
  * Sec. 17. AS 29.35.220 is repealed and reenacted to read:
        AS 29.35.220. Third class borough powers. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision
 of law, a third class borough has only the following powers:
                       (1) to levy a property tax and impose a lien for its enforcement as
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         provided in AS 29.45.020 - 29.45.500;
                         (2) to enter into an agreement with a taxpayer for the taxpayer to make
         a payment to the borough in lieu of taxes;
                         (3) to issue bonds to finance an energy infrastructure project in the
         borough; the borough may only borrow money and issue evidence of indebtedness for
         this purpose;
                         (4) to enact and enforce an ordinance necessary to carry out its powers
         under this subsection and to prescribe a civil penalty for violation of an ordinance.
                (b) The legislative power of a third class borough shall be vested in the
         assembly under AS 29.20.050 - 29.20.180. The assembly shall enact and enforce
         ordinances under AS 29.25.010 - 29.25.075, except that a third class borough may not
         prescribe or enforce a penalty of imprisonment for violation of an ordinance.
                (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a third class borough may not
         acquire or exercise any power not listed under (a) of this section.
  * Sec. 18. AS 38.05.037(a) is amended to read:
                (a)   In areas of the state outside first or [,] second [, OR THIRD] class
         boroughs where there is no municipality with a zoning power, the division of lands
         shall exercise the zoning power by adopting zoning regulations.
  * Sec. 19. AS 46.14.400(a) is amended to read:
                (a) With the approval of the department, a municipality may establish and
         administer within its jurisdiction a local air quality control program that operates in
         lieu of and is consistent with all or part of the department's air quality program as
         established under this chapter. A first or second class borough may administer an air
         quality control program approved by the department under this subsection on an
         areawide basis and is not subject to the restrictions for acquiring additional areawide
         powers specified in AS 29.35.300 - 29.35.350. [A THIRD CLASS BOROUGH MAY
         ADMINISTER A LOCAL AIR QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM APPROVED BY
         THE DEPARTMENT UNDER THIS SUBSECTION ONLY IN A SERVICE AREA
         FORMED UNDER AS 29.35.490(b) OR (c).]
  * Sec. 20. AS 14.12.110; AS 29.04.060(b), 29.04.060(c); AS 29.05.031(b), 29.05.190(d);
 AS 29.10.080(b); and AS 29.20.300(b) are repealed.
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Statutes affected: 
SB0018A, AM SB 18, introduced 01/18/2017: 14.08.011, 14.08.031, 14.08.071, 14.12.010, 14.12.110, 29.20.300, 14.60.010, 23.40.250, 29.04.060, 29.35.320, 29.35.330, 29.05.031, 29.05.190, 29.06.090, 29.06.470, 29.18.030, 29.06.460, 29.35.160, 14.14.060, 14.14.110, 29.35.220, 29.45.020, 29.45.500, 29.20.050, 29.20.180, 29.25.010, 29.25.075, 38.05.037, 46.14.400