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HOUSE BILL NO. 58
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION
BY REPRESENTATIVES FIELDS, Josephson, Story
Introduced: 1/22/25
Referred: Community and Regional Affairs, State Affairs
A BILL
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
"An Act relating to the office of public advocacy; and relating to the public advocate." 1
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 2
* Section 1. AS 13.26.750(a) is amended to read: 3
(a) The public advocate [COMMISSIONER OF ADMINISTRATION] may 4
establish by regulation a schedule of reasonable fees for the c osts of the public 5
guardian's services. The fee schedule established may be based on [UPON] the ability 6
of the ward or protected person to pay for guardian services bu t may not exceed the 7
actual cost of providing public g uardian services. The office o f public advocacy shall 8
charge and collect the fees established under this subsection, but may waive collection 9
of a fee upon a finding that collection is not economically fea sible or in the public 10
interest. 11
* Sec. 2. AS 36.30.305(a) is amended to read: 12
(a) A construction contract under $100,000, or a contract for supplies, 13
services, or professional services, may be awarded without comp etitive sealed bidding 14
or competitive sealed proposals, in accordance with regulations adopted by the 15
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commissioner. A contract may be awarded under this section only when the chief 1
procurement officer determines in writing that a situation exis ts that makes 2
competitive sealed bidding or competitive sealed proposals impr actical or contrary to 3
the public interest, except that the attorney general, the publ ic defender, or the public 4
advocate [DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC ADVOCACY] as provided in 5
AS 36.30.015(k) may make the determination for services of lega l counsel, and the 6
commissioner of transportation and public facilities may make t he determination for 7
construction contracts under $100,000, leases of space, or proc urements for the state 8
equipment fleet. Procurements under this section shall be made with competition that 9
is practicable under the circumstance. Except for procurements of supplies, services, 10
professional services, or construction that do not exceed the a mount for small 11
procurements under AS 36.30.320(a), as applicable, the authorit y to make a 12
determination required by this section may not be delegated. 13
* Sec. 3. AS 36.30.850(b) is amended to read: 14
(b) This chapter applies to every expenditure of state money b y the state, 15
acting through an agency, under a contract, except that this chapter does not apply to 16
(1) grants; 17
(2) contracts for professional w itnesses to provide for profes sional 18
services or testimony relating to 19
(A) existing or probable lawsuits in which the state is or may 20
become a party; or 21
(B) litigation in which the Public Defender Agency or the 22
office of public advocacy has been appointed to represent a person; 23
(3) contracts of the University of Alaska where the work is to b e 24
performed substantially by students enrolled in the university; 25
(4) contracts for medical doctors and dentists; 26
(5) acquisitions or disposals of real property or interest in real 27
property, except as provided in AS 36.30.080 and 36.30.085; 28
(6) disposals under AS 38.05; 29
(7) contracts for the transportation of ballots under AS 15; 30
(8) acquisitions or disposals of property and other contracts relating to 31
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airports under AS 02.15.070, 02.15.090, 02.15.091, and AS 44.88; 1
(9) disposals of obsolete property under AS 19.05.060; 2
(10) disposals of obsolete material or equipment under AS 35.20.060; 3
(11) agreements with provi ders of services under AS 47.25.071 - 4
47.25.095; AS 47.07; AS 47.08; AS 47.10; AS 47.12; AS 47.14; AS 47.17; AS 47.24; 5
and AS 47.27, including contractors under AS 47.27.050; 6
(12) contracts of the Department o f F i s h a n d G a m e f o r f l i g h t s that 7
involve specialized flying and piloting skills and are not point-to-point; 8
(13) purchases of income-producin g assets for the state treasu ry or a 9
public corporation of the state; 10
(14) a contract that is a delegation, in whole or in part, of investment 11
powers held by 12
(A) the commissioner of revenue under AS 14.42.200, 13
14.42.210, AS 18.56.095, AS 37.10.070, 37.10.071, or AS 37.14; 14
(B) the Board of Regents of the University of Alaska under 15
AS 14.40.250 - 14.40.491; 16
(15) a contract that is a delegation, in whole or in part, of investment 17
powers or fiduciary duties of 18
(A) the Board of Trustees of the Alaska Permanent Fund 19
Corporation under AS 37.13; 20
(B) the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority under 21
AS 37.14.001 - 37.14.099; 22
(16) the purchase of books, book binding services, newspapers, 23
periodicals, audio-visual materia ls, network information servic es access, approval 24
plans, professional memberships, archival materials, objects of art, and items for 25
museum or archival acquisition ha ving cultural, historical, or archaeological 26
significance; in this paragraph 27
(A) "approval plans" means book selection services in which 28
current book titles meeting an agency's customized specificatio ns are provided 29
to the agency subject to the right of the agency to return thos e books that do 30
not meet with the agency's approval; 31
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(B) "archival materials" means the noncurrent records of an 1
agency that are preserved after appraisal because of their value; 2
(C) "audio-visual materials" means nonbook prerecorded 3
materials, including records, tapes, slides, transparencies, fi lms, filmstrips, 4
cassettes, videos, compact discs, laser discs, and items that r equire the use of 5
equipment to render them usable; 6
(D) "network information services" means a group of resources 7
from which cataloging informati on, holdings records, inter-libr ary loans, 8
acquisitions information, and other reference resources can be obtained; 9
(17) contracts for the purchase of standardized examinations f or 10
licensure under AS 08; 11
(18) contracts for home health care provided under regulations adopted 12
by the Department of Health and for adult residential care serv ices provided under 13
regulations adopted by the Department of Health or by the Depar tment of 14
Administration; 15
(19) contracts for supplies or s ervices for research projects funded by 16
money received from the federal government or private grants; 17
(20) guest speakers or performers for an educational or cultur al 18
activity; 19
(21) contracts of the Alaska I ndustrial Development and Export 20
Authority for a clean coal technology demonstration project that 21
(A) is attempting to develop a coal-fired electric generation 22
project; 23
(B) uses technology that is capable of commercialization 24
during the 1990's; and 25
(C) qualifies for federal financial participation under P.L. 9 9-26
190 as amended; 27
(22) operation and protection of assets or disposals of equipm ent and 28
supplies acquired through foreclosure or other legal proceeding s relating to loans 29
issued under AS 03.10; 30
(23) purchases of curatorial a nd conservation services to main tain, 31
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preserve, and interpret 1
(A) objects of art; and 2
(B) items having cultural, historical, or archaeological 3
significance to the state; 4
(24) acquisition of confidential seismic survey data necessary for pre-5
sale oil and gas lease or gas only lease analyses under AS 38.05.180; 6
(25) contracts for village public safety officers; 7
(26) purchases of supplies and services to support the operations of the 8
Alaska state troopers or law enforcement officers engaged in fi sh and wildlife 9
protection if the procurement o fficer for the Department of Pub lic Safety makes a 10
written determination that publicity of the purchases would jeo pardize the safety of 11
personnel or the success of a covert operation; 12
(27) expenditures when rates are set by law or ordinance; 13
(28) construction of n ew vessels by the Department of Transpor tation 14
and Public Facilities for the Alaska marine highway system; 15
(29) contracts entered into with a regional development organi zation; 16
in this paragraph, "regional development organization" means a nonprofit organization 17
or nonprofit corporation formed t o encourage economic developme nt within a 18
particular region of the state that includes the entire area of each municipality within 19
that region and that has a board of directors that represents t he region's economic, 20
political, and social interests; 21
(30) contracts that are to be performed in an area outside of the country 22
and that require a knowledge of the customs, procedures, rules, or laws of the area; 23
(31) contracts that are between the 24
(A) Department of Law and attorneys who are not employed by 25
the state and that are for the review or prosecution of possibl e violations of the 26
criminal law of the state in situations where the attorney general concludes that 27
an actual or potential conflict of interest makes it inappropri ate for the 28
Department of Law to review or prosecute the possible violations; and 29
(B) Public Defender Agency or the office of public advocacy 30
and attorneys who are not employed by the state and that are fo r the review or 31
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defense of possible violations of the criminal law of the state in situations 1
where the public defender or the public advocate [ D I R E C T O R O F T H E 2
OFFICE OF PUBLIC ADVOCACY] concludes that an actual or potentia l 3
conflict of interest makes it in appropriate for t he Public Defe nder Agency or 4
the office of public advocacy to review or defend the possible violations; 5
(32) contracts between the Depar tment of Natural Resources and 6
contractors qualified to evaluate hydrocarbon development, production, transportation, 7
and economics, to assist the co mmissioner of natural resources in evaluating 8
applications for royalty increases or decreases or other royalt y adjustments, and 9
evaluating the related financial and technical data, entered into under AS 38.05.180(j); 10
(33) contracts of the Alaska I ndustrial Development and Export 11
Authority made with the develope r of an integrated transportati on and port facility 12
owned by the authority; 13
(34) procurements of contracts with the media for advertising; 14
(35) contracts between the stat e medical examiner and a provid er of 15
medical services to perform or assist in performing the duties assigned to the state 16
medical examiner in AS 12.65.020; 17
(36) contracts between the co mmissioner of revenue and an 18
independent contractor under AS 43.82.240; 19
(37) contracts for a convener under AS 44.62.730 or for a faci litator 20
under AS 44.62.760 related to a nego tiated regulation making pr ocess under 21
AS 44.62.710 - 44.62.800; 22
(38) grants and contracts with qualified entities for services under 23
AS 47.18.330 for the foster care transition program; 24
(39) contracts for travel services, including airplane travel, hotel 25
accommodations, and travel agency services, but excluding motor vehicle rentals; 26
(40) contracts of the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Educa tion 27
or the Alaska Student Loan Corpor ation for the guarantee and di sbursing of financial 28
aid money to institutions of postsecondary education under the financial aid programs 29
under AS 14.43.091 - 14.43.750 and AS 14.44.025; 30
(41) contracts for an arbitration panel to determine whether a project is 31
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uneconomic under AS 43.90.240, and contracts for the developmen t of application 1
provisions for licensure and for the evaluation of those applications under AS 43.90; 2
(42) contracts for delivery of home heating assistance under 3
AS 47.25.626; 4
(43) contracts of the Alaska Pe nsion Obligation Bond Corporati on 5
under AS 37.16.010 - 37.16.900; 6
(44) the Alaska Gasline Devel opment Corporation (AS 31.25) and 7
subsidiaries of the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation; 8
(45) contracts for professional and technical services by the 9
Department of Natural Resources to support the development of a greements and 10
contracts under AS 38.05.020(b)(10) and (11); 11
(46) contracts of the Department of Law developed with client 12
participation for legal services related to an Alaska liquefied natural gas project as that 13
project is defined in AS 31.25.390, except that, to the extent practicable, the 14
Department of Law shall use th e procurement process under AS 36 .30.320 with the 15
participation of the client; 16
(47) contracts of the Department of Education and Early Develo pment 17
for student assessments required under AS 14.03.123 and AS 14.07.020; 18
(48) a contract under AS 06.65; 19
(49) contracts of the Alaska Ta x Credit Certificate Bond Corpo ration 20
under AS 37.18; 21
(50) overriding royalty interest agreements under AS 44.37.230; 22
(51) contracts between a registry and the Department of Natura l 23
Resources under AS 38.95.400 - 38.95.499; in this paragraph, "r e g i s t r y " h a s t h e 24
meaning given in AS 38.95.499. 25
* Sec. 4. AS 44.21.400 is amended to read: 26
Sec. 44.21.400. Public advocacy office established. There is created in the 27
Department of Administration the office of public advocacy. The office is 28
administered by the public advocate. 29
* Sec. 5. AS 44.21 is amended by adding a new section to read: 30
Sec. 44.21.405. Appointment, removal, and vacancy. (a) The governor shall 31
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appoint the public advocate from among two or more persons nomi nated for that 1
position by the judicial council. The appointment is subject to confirmation by a 2
majority of the members of the legislature in joint session. Th e public advocate shall 3
serve a term of four years. If the governor decides to retain t he public advocate for 4
another term, the governor need not call for nominations from t he judicial council; 5
however, the retention must be a pproved by a majority of the me mbers of the 6
legislature in joint session. 7
(b) The public advocate is subject to removal by the governor for good cause. 8
If the public advocate is removed, the governor shall submit a report stating the 9
reasons for removal to the senate secretary and the chief clerk of the house of 10
representatives and notify the legislature that the report is a vailable. The governor 11
shall submit the report within 10 days after the action has bee n taken if the legislature 12
is in session or, if the legisla ture is not in session, within 10 days after the convening 13
of the next regular or special session. 14
(c) A person is not eligible t o be the public advocate unless admitted to the 15
practice of law in this state not later than 10 months followin g the commencement of 16
the person's employment by the office. 17
(d) If the position of public advocate becomes vacant for any reason, the 18
governor may appoint an acting public advocate to serve until t he regular appointment 19
procedures under (a) of this section are complied with. The gov ernor and the judicial 20
council shall act under (a) of thi s section as soon as possible after the vacancy occurs. 21
A person appointed under (a) of this section to fill a vacancy begins a new four-year 22
term. 23
* Sec. 6. AS 44.21.410(a) is amended to read: 24
(a) The office of public advocacy shall 25
(1) perform the duties of t he public guardian under AS 13.26.7 00 - 26
13.26.750; 27
(2) provide guardian ad litem services to children in child pr otection 28
actions under AS 47.17.030(e) and to wards and respondents in g uardianship 29
proceedings who will suffer financial hardship or become depend ent on [UPON] a 30
government agency or a private p erson or agency if the services are not provided at 31
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state expense under AS 13.26.041; 1
(3) provide legal representa tion in cases involving judicial b ypass 2
procedures for minors seeking abortions under AS 18.16.030, in guardianship 3
proceedings to respondents who are financially unable to employ attorneys under 4
AS 13.26.226(b), to indigent parties in cases involving child c ustody in which the 5
opposing party is represented by counsel provided by a public a gency, and to indigent 6
parents or guardians of a minor respondent in a commitment proc eeding concerning 7
the minor under AS 47.30.775; 8
(4) provide legal representation and guardian ad litem service s under 9
AS 25.24.310; in cases arising unde r AS 47.15 (Interstate Compa ct for Juveniles); in 10
cases involving petitions to adopt a minor under AS 25.23.125(b ) or petitions for the 11
termination of parental rights under AS 25.23.180(c)(2); in cases involving petitions to 12
remove the disabilities of a minor under AS 09.55.590; in children's proceedings under 13
AS 47.10.050(a) or under AS 47.12.090; in cases involving appoi ntments under 14
AS 18.66.100(a) in petitions for prot ective orders on behalf of a minor; and in cases 15
involving indigent persons who are entitled to representation u nder AS 18.85.100 and 16
who cannot be represented by the public defender agency because of a conflict of 17
interests; 18
(5) develop and coordinate a program to recruit, select, train , assign, 19
and supervise volunteer guardians ad litem from local communities to aid in delivering 20
services in cases in which the office of public advocacy is app ointed as guardian ad 21
litem; 22
(6) provide [PROVIDE] guardian ad litem services in proceedings 23
under AS 12.45.046 or AS 18.15.355 - 18.15.395; 24
(7) establish a fee schedule and collect fees for services pro vided by 25
the office, except as provided in AS 18.85.120 or when impositi on or collection of a 26
fee is not in the public interest as defined under regulations adopted by the public 27
advocate [COMMISSIONER OF ADMINISTRATION]; 28
(8) provide guardians ad litem in proceedings under AS 47.30.839; 29
(9) provide legal representati on to an indigent parent of a ch ild with a 30
disability; in this paragraph, "child with a disability" has th e meaning given in 31
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AS 14.30.350; 1
(10) investigate complaints a nd bring civil actions under 2
AS 44.21.415(a) involving fraud committed against residents of the state who are 60 3
years of age or older; in this paragraph, "fraud" has the meani ng given in 4
AS 44.21.415. 5
* Sec. 7. AS 44.21.410(b) is amended to read: 6
(b) The public advocate [COMMISSIONER OF ADMINISTRATION] may 7
(1) adopt regulations that the public advocate [COMMISSIONER] 8
considers necessary to implement AS 44.21.400 - 44.21.470; 9
(2) report on the operation of the office of public advocacy w hen 10
requested by the governor or legislature or when required by law; 11
(3) solicit and accept grants o f funds from governments and fr om 12
persons, and allocate or restrict the use of those funds as required by the grantor. 13
* Sec. 8. AS 44.21.415(c) is amended to read: 14
(c) In addition to the functions described under (a) and (b) o f this section, the 15
office of elder fraud and assist ance shall provide information, referrals, and other 16
assistance to older Alaskans who are victims of fraud and make recommendations to 17
the public advocate [COMMISSIONER] for regulations on eligibility for assistance 18
needed to implement this section. 19
* Sec. 9. AS 44.21.415(e) is amended to read: 20
(e) Subject to the discretion of the court and standards estab lished in 21
regulation adopted by the public advocate [ C O M M I S S I O N E R O F 22
ADMINISTRATION] and taking into consideration the financial con dition of the 23
parties to a civil suit brought under this section, the office of public advocacy may 24
seek recovery of all or part of litigation costs and fees from any party, including costs 25
incurred during the investigation of the case, when the office of public advocacy is 26
found to be a prevailing party af ter trial or settlement negotiation. The office of public 27
advocacy shall enter into a fee agreement with a client that is consistent with this 28
section, the Alaska Rules of Court, and the Alaska Rules of Professional Conduct. 29
* Sec. 10. AS 44.21.420 is amended to read: 30
Sec. 44.21.420. Employment of office personnel. (a) The public advocate 31
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[COMMISSIONER OF ADMINISTRATION] may employ guardians ad litem, public 1
guardians, clerical staff, and other assistants that the public advocate 2
[COMMISSIONER] determines are needed to perform the duties set out in 3
AS 44.21.410. Employees under this subsection are in the classi fied service under 4
AS 39.25.100. 5
(b) The public advocate [COMMISSIONER OF ADMINISTRATION] may 6
employ attorneys needed to perform the duties set out in AS 44. 21.410. Attorneys 7
employed [BY THE COMMISSIONER OF ADMINISTRATION] in the office of 8
public advocacy are in the partially exempt service under AS 39.25.120. 9
(c) The public advocate [COMMISSIONER] may contract with attorneys to 10
provide legal representation, a nd with other persons to provide guardian ad litem 11
services, as needed to perform the duties set out in AS 44.21.4 10. The public 12
advocate [COMMISSIONER] may determine the rate of compensation for contractual 13
services, taking into account t he time involved, the skill and experience required, and 14
other pertinent factors. 15
* Sec. 11. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 16
read: 17
TRANSITION. (a) Orders and regulations issued or adopted by the commissioner of 18
administration under authority of a law amended by this Act rem a i n i n e f f e c t f o r t h e t e r m 19
issued, or until revoked, vacated, or otherwise modified under the provisions of this Act. All 20
contracts, rights, liabilities, and obligations created by or u nder a law amended by this Act 21
and in effect on the effective date of this Act remain in effec t notwithstanding this Act's 22
taking effect. 23
(b) Notwithstanding AS 44.21.405, enacted by sec. 5 of this Act , the individual 24
employed as the director of th e office of public advocacy on th e day before the effective date 25
of this Act may serve as the public advocate until the governor a p p o i n t s a n e w p u b l i c 26
advocate. 27