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SB47 • 2026

CHUGACH STATE PARK EASEMENTS

An Act relating to Chugach State Park; and providing for an effective date.

Passed Legislature

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

Sponsor
SENATOR GIESSEL REPRESENTATIVES Holland, Coulombe, Josephson
Last action
2025-07-30
Official status
CHAPTER 6 SLA 25
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Chugach State Park Easements and Road Maintenance

This law clarifies that the state department manages Chugach State Park while allowing it to grant road access rights to local cities if they pay all costs, maintain the roads, and follow public hearing rules.

What This Bill Does

  • Assigns control, development, and maintenance of Chugach State Park lands to a single department, except for existing public roads which are handled by the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities unless an agreement exists with a municipality.
  • Allows the park department to grant easements or right-of-way to municipalities for building or fixing roads inside the park if specific conditions are met.
  • Requires that any municipality receiving an easement must pay all costs associated with it and agree to maintain those road areas for the duration of the agreement, which can be temporary or permanent.
  • Mandates public notice and at least one hearing before granting any new easement or right-of-way within the park.
  • Allows the commissioner to modify up to 20 percent of the park's boundaries if land ownership conflicts cannot be resolved without unreasonable cost.

Who It Names or Affects

  • The state department responsible for managing Chugach State Park.
  • The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.
  • Municipalities (local city or borough governments) requesting road access within the park.
  • Residents who use roads inside Chugach State Park.

Terms To Know

Easement
A legal right to use someone else's land for a specific purpose, such as building or fixing a road.
Right-of-way
The space of land needed to build and maintain roads, bridges, or other transportation facilities.

Limits and Unknowns

  • Easements can only be granted if the commissioner finds they improve public access and are in the public interest.
  • Municipalities must pay all costs for any new easement; the state does not fund these specific projects under this law.
  • The duration of an easement is set by the agreement and may be temporary or perpetual.

Bill History

  1. 2025-07-30 1397

    (S) EFFECTIVE DATE(S) OF LAW 7/1/25

  2. 2025-07-30 1397

    (S) LAW W/O GOV SIGNATURE 6/6 CHAPTER 6 SLA 25

  3. 2025-05-16 1307

    (S) MANIFEST ERROR(S)

  4. 2025-05-16 1306

    (S) 3:50 P.M. 5/15/25 TRANSMITTED TO GOVERNOR

  5. 2025-05-02 1001

    (H) CROSS SPONSOR(S): JOSEPHSON

  6. 2025-05-02 997

    (H) VERSION: CSSB 47(RES)

  7. 2025-05-02 997

    (H) RETURN TO (S), TRANSMIT TO GOV NEXT

  8. 2025-05-02 997

    (H) EFFECTIVE DATE(S) SAME AS PASSAGE

  9. 2025-05-02 996

    (H) PASSED Y35 N4 E1

  10. 2025-05-02 996

    (H) READ THE THIRD TIME CSSB 47(RES)

  11. 2025-05-02 996

    (H) ADVANCED TO THIRD READING UC

  12. 2025-05-02 996

    (H) READ THE SECOND TIME

  13. 2025-05-02 996

    (H) RULES TO CALENDAR 5/2/2025

  14. 2025-04-18 829

    (H) CROSS SPONSOR(S): COULOMBE

  15. 2025-04-09 638

    (H) FN1: ZERO(DNR)

  16. 2025-04-09 638

    (H) DP: COULOMBE, HALL, RAUSCHER, ELAM, MEARS, FIELDS, SADDLER, DIBERT, BURKE

  17. 2025-04-09 638

    (H) RES RPT 9DP

  18. 2025-04-07 Min

    (H) Minutes (HRES)

  19. 2025-04-07 Text

    (H) Moved CSSB 47(RES) Out of Committee

  20. 2025-04-07 Text

    (H) RESOURCES at 01:00 PM BARNES 124

  21. 2025-04-07 628

    (H) CROSS SPONSOR(S): HOLLAND

  22. 2025-03-28 561

    (H) FN1: ZERO(DNR)

  23. 2025-03-28 561

    (H) NR: MOORE, MINA, STUTES

  24. 2025-03-28 561

    (H) DP: CARRICK, EISCHEID

  25. 2025-03-28 561

    (H) TRA RPT 2DP 3NR

  26. 2025-03-27 Min

    (H) Minutes (HTRA)

  27. 2025-03-27 Text

    (H) Moved CSSB 47(RES) Out of Committee -- Delayed to 2:00 pm --

  28. 2025-03-27 Text

    (H) TRANSPORTATION at 01:00 PM BARNES 124

  29. 2025-03-25 Min

    (H) Minutes (HTRA)

  30. 2025-03-25 Text

    (H) Heard & Held -- Please Note Time Change --

  31. 2025-03-25 Text

    (H) TRANSPORTATION at 01:30 PM BARNES 124

  32. 2025-03-20 Min

    (H) Minutes (HTRA)

  33. 2025-03-20 Text

    (H) Heard & Held

  34. 2025-03-20 Text

    (H) TRANSPORTATION at 01:00 PM BARNES 124

  35. 2025-03-11 404

    (H) TRA, RES

  36. 2025-03-11 404

    (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS

  37. 2025-03-10 472

    (S) VERSION: CSSB 47(RES)

  38. 2025-03-10 472

    (S) TRANSMITTED TO (H)

  39. 2025-03-10 470

    (S) EFFECTIVE DATE(S) SAME AS PASSAGE

  40. 2025-03-10 470

    (S) PASSED Y18 N1 E1

  41. 2025-03-10 470

    (S) READ THE THIRD TIME CSSB 47(RES)

  42. 2025-03-06 442

    (S) ADVANCED TO THIRD READING 3/10 CAL

  43. 2025-03-06 442

    (S) RES CS ADOPTED UC

  44. 2025-03-06 442

    (S) READ THE SECOND TIME

  45. 2025-03-06 442

    (S) RULES TO CALENDAR 3/6/2025

  46. 2025-02-28 382

    (S) FN1: ZERO(DNR)

  47. 2025-02-28 381

    (S) NR: KAWASAKI

  48. 2025-02-28 381

    (S) DP: GIESSEL, HUGHES, DUNBAR, CLAMAN, MYERS, WIELECHOWSKI

  49. 2025-02-28 381

    (S) RES RPT CS 6DP 1NR SAME TITLE

  50. 2025-02-26 Min

    (S) Minutes (SRES)

  51. 2025-02-26 Text

    (S) Moved CSSB 47(RES) Out of Committee

  52. 2025-02-26 Text

    (S) RESOURCES at 03:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  53. 2025-02-17 Min

    (S) Minutes (SRES)

  54. 2025-02-17 Text

    (S) Heard & Held

  55. 2025-02-17 Text

    (S) RESOURCES at 03:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  56. 2025-02-14 258

    (S) FN1: ZERO(DNR)

  57. 2025-02-14 258

    (S) NR: TOBIN

  58. 2025-02-14 258

    (S) DNP: SHOWER

  59. 2025-02-14 258

    (S) DP: BJORKMAN, KIEHL

  60. 2025-02-14 258

    (S) TRA RPT 2DP 1DNP 1NR

  61. 2025-02-11 Min

    (S) Minutes (STRA)

  62. 2025-02-11 Text

    (S) Moved SB 47 Out of Committee

  63. 2025-02-11 Text

    (S) TRANSPORTATION at 01:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  64. 2025-02-04 Min

    (S) Minutes (STRA)

  65. 2025-02-04 Text

    (S) Heard & Held

  66. 2025-02-04 Text

    (S) TRANSPORTATION at 01:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  67. 2025-01-22 39

    (S) TRA, RES

  68. 2025-01-22 39

    (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS

  69. 2025-01-22 39

    (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/17/25

Official Summary Text

CHUGACH STATE PARK EASEMENTS
An Act relating to Chugach State Park; and providing for an effective date.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
Enrolled SB 47
LAWS OF ALASKA

2025

Source Chapter No.
CSSB 47(RES) _______

AN ACT

Relating to Chugach State Park; and providing for an effective date.

_______________

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:

THE ACT FOLLOWS ON PAGE 1

-1- Enrolled SB 47

AN ACT

Relating to Chugach State Park; and providing for an effective date. 1
_______________ 2
* Section 1. AS 41.21.122 is amended to read: 3
Sec. 41.21.122. Management respons ibility. Except as provided by (b) and 4
(c) of this section, control, development, and maintenance of [THE] state land and 5
water described in AS 41.21.121 as the Chugach State Park and control of roadside 6
structures within the park are [I S ] a s s i g n e d t o t h e d e p a r t m e n t [ F O R CO N T R O L , 7
DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE, EXCEPT THAT THE DEPARTMENT 8
OF TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC FACILITIES IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE 9
REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE OF ALL EXISTING PUBLIC ROADS WITHIN 10
THE PARK. THE CONTROL OF HIGHWAY ACCESS AND ROADSIDE 11
STRUCTURES WITHIN THE CHUGACH STATE PARK IS THE 12
RESPONSIBILITY OF THE DEPARTMENT]. The Department of Fish and G ame 13
shall cooperate with the department to provide for those purpos es under AS 41.21.121 14
relevant to the duties of the D epartment of Fish and Game. If, in the exercise of 15

Enrolled SB 47 -2-
management responsibility under t his section, c onflicts of land o w n e r s h i p , 1
jurisdiction, or authority are unr econcilable or unmanageable o ther than at an 2
unreasonable cost and expense to the state, the commissioner , after public hearing in 3
accordance with AS 44.62, may modify, subject to the appr oval of the legislature, the 4
boundaries of the Chugach State Park , not to exceed 20 percent of the total acreage 5
described in AS 41.21.121. 6
* Sec. 2. AS 41.21.122 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 7
(b) The department may grant an easement or right-of-way withi n the 8
Chugach State Park for the purpos es of repairing, maintaining, and constructing roads 9
and related facilities within the park to a municipality if 10
(1) the easement or right-of-way is requested by the municipality; 11
(2) the municipality bears any costs associated with the grant ed 12
easement or right-of-way and facilities related to the easement or right-of-way; 13
(3) the municipality assumes the duty of maintaining the easem ent or 14
right-of-way and any related constructed facilities for the duration of the grant; 15
(4) the easement or right-of-way sets out the period of its du ration, 16
whether temporary or perpetual; 17
(5) the department provides notice of the proposed grant in the manner 18
provided by AS 44.62.190 and 44.62.200 and conducts at least on e hearing in 19
accordance with the provisions of AS 44.62.210; and 20
(6) the commissioner finds that granting the easement or right-of-way 21
(A) will improve, facilitate, or maintain public access to the 22
park; and 23
(B) is in the public interest. 24
(c) The Department of Transportation and Public Facilities sha ll repair and 25
maintain existing public roads within the Chugach State Park ex cept for repairs and 26
maintenance performed by a municipality under (b) of this section. 27
* Sec. 3. This Act takes effect July 1, 2025. 28