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HB379 • 2026

SERVICE AREA ELECTIONS

An Act relating to service areas; and providing for an effective date.

Elections
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
HOUSE STATE AFFAIRS BY REQUEST
Last action
2026-05-06
Official status
(H) RLS
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on consequences for lack of voter approval.

Service Area Elections

This act requires voter approval for abolishing, replacing, altering, or combining service areas that provide road, fire protection, or parks and recreation services.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires voter approval for the abolishment of a service area providing road, fire protection, or parks and recreation services if residents live within it.
  • Necessitates separate majority votes from affected voters when replacing an existing service area with a larger one that provides road, fire protection, or parks and recreation services.
  • Revises the process to ensure that altering or combining service areas providing road, fire protection, or parks and recreation services requires approval from all involved voters.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Residents of service areas providing road, fire protection, and parks and recreation services.
  • Voters who live within the boundaries of these service areas.

Terms To Know

Service Area
A defined area where a local government provides specific public services such as roads or fire protection.
Second Class Borough
A type of administrative division in Alaska, typically smaller and less populated than first class boroughs.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify what happens if the required voter approval is not obtained.
  • It only applies to service areas providing road, fire protection, or parks and recreation services.
  • Some changes in second-class boroughs are exempt from needing voter approval under certain conditions.

Bill History

  1. 2026-05-06 Alaska State Legislature

    (H) REFERRED TO RULES

  2. 2026-05-06 Alaska State Legislature

    (H) FN1: ZERO(CED)

  3. 2026-05-06 Alaska State Legislature

    (H) NR: VANCE, MCCABE

  4. 2026-05-06 Alaska State Legislature

    (H) DP: ST. CLAIR, HOLLAND, HIMSCHOOT, STORY, CARRICK

  5. 2026-05-06 Alaska State Legislature

    (H) STA RPT 5DP 2NR

  6. 2026-05-05 Text

    (H) Moved HB 379 Out of Committee

  7. 2026-05-05 Text

    (H) STATE AFFAIRS at 03:15 PM GRUENBERG 120

  8. 2026-04-30 Text

    (H) Heard & Held

  9. 2026-04-30 Text

    (H) STATE AFFAIRS at 03:15 PM GRUENBERG 120

  10. 2026-04-23 Text

    (H) Heard & Held

  11. 2026-04-23 Text

    (H) STATE AFFAIRS at 03:15 PM GRUENBERG 120

  12. 2026-04-14 Text

    (H) Moved HB 379 Out of Committee

  13. 2026-04-14 Text

    (H) COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS at 08:00 AM BARNES 124

  14. 2026-04-14 2167

    (H) FN1: ZERO(CED)

  15. 2026-04-14 2167

    (H) NR: G.NELSON, ST. CLAIR

  16. 2026-04-14 2167

    (H) DNP: PRAX

  17. 2026-04-14 2167

    (H) DP: HOLLAND, HALL, HIMSCHOOT, MEARS

  18. 2026-04-14 2167

    (H) CRA RPT 4DP 1DNP 2NR

  19. 2026-04-09 Text

    (H) Heard & Held -- Delayed to 9:00 am --

  20. 2026-04-09 Text

    (H) COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS at 08:00 AM BARNES 124

  21. 2026-03-26 Text

    (H) Heard & Held

  22. 2026-03-26 Text

    (H) COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS at 08:00 AM BARNES 124

  23. 2026-03-16 1857

    (H) CRA, STA

  24. 2026-03-16 1857

    (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS

Official Summary Text

SERVICE AREA ELECTIONS
An Act relating to service areas; and providing for an effective date.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HB0379a -1- HB 379
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

34-LS1528\A

HOUSE BILL NO. 379

IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA

THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION

BY THE HOUSE STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE BY REQUEST

Introduced: 3/16/26
Referred: Community and Regional Affairs, State Affairs

A BILL

FOR AN ACT ENTITLED

"An Act relating to service areas; and providing for an effective date." 1
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 2
* Section 1. AS 29.35.450(c) is amended to read: 3
(c) If voters reside within a service area that provides road, fire protection, or 4
parks and recreation services, abolishment of the service area is subject to approval by 5
the majority of the voters residing in the service area who vote on the question. A 6
service area that provides road, fire protection, or parks and recreation services in 7
which voters reside may not be abolished and replaced by a larger service area unless 8
that proposal is approved, separately, by a majority of the voters who vote on the 9
question residing in the existing service area and by a majority of the voters who vote 10
on the question residing in the area proposed to be included within the new service 11
area but outside of the existing service area. A service area that provides road, fire 12
protection, or parks and recreation services in which voters reside may not be altered 13
or combined with another service area unless that proposal is approved, separately, by 14
a majority of the voters who vote on the question and who reside in each of the service 15
34-LS1528\A
HB 379 -2- HB0379a
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

areas or in the area outside of service areas that is affected by the proposal. This 1
subsection does not apply 2
(1) to a proposed change to a service area that provides fire protection 3
services 4
(A) that would result in increasing the number of parcels of 5
land in the service area or successor service area if the increase is not more 6
than six percent and would add not more than 1,000 residents; 7
(B) in a second class borough that would result in 8
(i) decreasing the number of parcels of land in the 9
service area or successor service area if the owner of the property to be 10
removed from the area requests removal and the removal meets criteria 11
adopted by ordinance; or 12
(ii) increasing or decreasing the number of parcels of 13
land in the service area or successor service area if the parcel is 14
transferred to a service area that provides more accessible fire 15
protection services to the transferred parcel; 16
(2) in a second class borough to abolishment of a road service area or 17
consolidation of two or more road service areas if 18
(A) taxes have not been levied in the service area for road 19
maintenance or construction during the last 12 months and there is no balance 20
in any account available to pay for these road services for the service area; 21
(B) during the last 12 months, the service area board has not 22
met with a quorum present and in accordance with law; or 23
(C) there are no road maintenance contracts in effect for the 24
service area or the existing road maintenance contracts fail to provide for 25
minimum road standards required by law that are necessary to protect the 26
borough from civil liability; 27
(3) to require approval by the voters residing in a subdivision or parcel 28
proposed to be added to a road service area if roads maintained by the service area 29
provide the only access to the subdivision or parcel or provide access to the 30
subdivision or parcel that is required by the subdivision plat or by other regulation or 31
34-LS1528\A
HB0379a -3- HB 379
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

ordinance; 1
(4) to a change in the boundaries of a road service area to exclude a 2
subdivision or parcel that does not rely on the use of roads maintained by the service 3
area for the subdivision's or parcel's only access or for access that is required by the 4
subdivision plat or by other regulation or ordinance; 5
(5) to a change in the boundaries of a road service area to include or 6
exclude a parcel that is located in more than one service area so that the parcel is only 7
located in one road service area; 8
(6) to a change in the boundaries of a road service area to include a 9
parcel that is partially located in the road service area if roads maintained by the 10
service area provide the only access to the parcel; 11
(7) in a second class borough to abolishment, replacement, or 12
alteration of a service area created on or after July 1, 2026, or combination of two 13
or more service areas created on or after July 1, 2026. 14
* Sec. 2. This Act takes effect July 1, 2026. 15