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SENATE BILL NO. 51
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION
BY SENATOR MYERS
Introduced: 1/24/25
Referred: Labor and Commerce, Finance
A BILL
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
"An Act establishing the Sunrise Review Board; relating to revi ew of proposed 1
legislation relating to authoriza tion to engage in the practice of a profession or 2
occupation; and providing for an effective date." 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 4
* Section 1. The uncodified law of the State o f Alaska is amended by adding a new section 5
to read: 6
LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS. The legislature finds that it is in the i nterest of the state 7
to promote economic development, competition, and job growth by lowering barriers to entry 8
created by professional and occ upational licensure whenever pos sible, to prevent barriers to 9
entry for professional and occ upational licensure , to encourage as many competent 10
practitioners as possible to practice in the state, and to incr ease the participation of 11
nongovernmental organizations tha t issue certifications for or regulate the quality of 12
professions and occupations in the governing of those professions and occupations. 13
* Sec. 2. AS 08.02 is amended by adding new sections to read: 14
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Article 3A. Sunrise Review Board. 1
Sec. 08.02.200. Board established. ( a ) T h e S u n r i s e R e v i e w B o a r d i s 2
established in the department. The board shall meet at the call of the chair. The board 3
may meet in person, telephonically, or by electronic means. 4
(b) The board consists of seven members, as follows: 5
(1) the director of the division in the Department of Commerce , 6
Community, and Economic Developmen t responsible for corporation s and business 7
and professional licensing, or the director's designee, who shall serve as chair; 8
(2) the director of the division in the Department of Health r esponsible 9
for public health, or the director's designee; 10
( 3 ) t h e d i r e c t o r o f t h e d i v i s i o n i n t h e D e p a r t m e n t o f L a b o r a nd 11
Workforce Development responsible for standards and safety, or the director's 12
designee; 13
(4) an employee in the division of the Department of Law respo nsible 14
for civil cases who has a background in fraud or consumer prote ction, appointed by 15
the attorney general; 16
(5) an employee who conducts research in the Department of Lab or 17
and Workforce Development, appointed by the commissioner of lab or and workforce 18
development; 19
(6) a public member with experience in business or accounting, 20
appointed by the governor; 21
(7) a public member with experience in health and safety, appointed by 22
the governor. 23
(c) Members of the board serve without compensation but are en titled to per 24
diem and travel expenses authorized for boards and commissions under AS 39.20.180. 25
(d) Members appointed under (a)(4) - (7) of this section serve staggered terms 26
of three years or until a successor is appointed. 27
Sec. 08.02.210. Regulations. The board may adopt regulations necessary to 28
implement AS 08.02.200 - 08.02.290. 29
Sec. 08.02.220. Board review of change to licensure. (a) The board shall 30
review legislation proposing a change to licensure that is intr oduced in the legislature, 31
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unless the proposed change has been the subject of a review wit hin the preceding four 1
years. 2
(b) The board shall review other proposed changes to licensure upon request. 3
(c) The board may request from a department, board, commission, association, 4
or person requesting a review a dditional information the board finds necessary to 5
complete a review of a proposed change to licensure. 6
Sec. 08.02.230. Request for review. (a) A review of a proposed change to 7
licensure may be requested by 8
(1) the governor, a legislator, or the head of a principal exe cutive 9
department of the state; or 10
(2) a person practicing a pr ofession or occupation, group repr esenting 11
a profession or occupation, or person receiving goods or servic es from another person 12
in the practice of the other p erson's profession or occupation, upon payment of a fee 13
set by the board in regulation. 14
(b) A request for review of a proposed change to licensure for a profession or 15
occupation must be submitted in a form prescribed by the board and must 16
(1) identify the requestor and the requestor's relationship to the 17
profession or occupation; 18
(2) describe the proposed change; the description may include draft 19
legislation; 20
(3) explain the problem the pr oposed change seeks to address a nd the 21
reason the change is necessary; 22
(4) describe any previous efforts made to address the problem without 23
a change to licensure, including voluntary efforts made by memb ers of the profession 24
or occupation and the reason those efforts were insufficient; 25
(5) explain how the proposed cha nge is the least-restrictive m ethod of 26
regulation to protect the public; 27
(6) describe alternatives to the proposed change that have bee n 28
considered, the manner in which the alternatives would restrict the practice of the 29
profession or occupation, and the reason the alternatives are not preferred; 30
(7) describe potential benefits to the public that would resul t from the 31
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proposed change; 1
(8) describe potential harm to the public that could result fr om the 2
proposed change; 3
(9) estimate the costs to the state associated with the proposed change; 4
(10) describe the group that would be affected by the proposed change, 5
including the names of professi onal or occupational association s that would be 6
affected, and the estimated number of practitioners and busines ses that would be 7
affected by the proposed change; 8
(11) if the proposed change would regulate the practice of a p rofession 9
or occupation, document specific harm caused to the public by a lack of reg ulation; 10
documentation may include reference to a civil or criminal action against an individual 11
relating to the practice of the profession or occupation in the state; 12
(12) list the state and federal laws enacted in the preceding five years 13
related to the profession or occupation and the reasons the law s were insufficient to 14
carry out the proposed change; 15
(13) describe the cost, availability, and appropriateness of t raining and 16
examination requirements, if the proposed change imposes a new training or 17
examination requirement; 18
(14) review the availability of nongovernmental organizations that 19
issue certifications for or regulate the quality of the profession or occupation; 20
(15) if the proposed change woul d require a new license, descr ibe 21
anticipated disqualifying conditions and how the conditions wou ld serve public safety, 22
commercial, or consumer protection interests; 23
(16) propose a funding mechanism to pay the administrative cos ts 24
associated with the proposed change. 25
Sec. 08.02.240. Scope of review; recommendations. (a) The board' s review 26
of a proposed change to licensure must evaluate 27
(1) the possibility of harm arising from the unregulated pract ice of the 28
profession or occupation; 29
(2) whether the public needs and reasonably expects to benefit from an 30
assurance of initial and ongoing professional or occupational competence, and whether 31
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the public can be adequately protected through other means in a more cost-effective 1
manner; and 2
(3) the anticipated costs to the state, the public, and person s being 3
regulated, and whether the costs are reasonable and can be met. 4
(b) If the board finds a possibility of harm arising from the unregulated 5
practice of the profession or o ccupation, the board shall recom mend the least-6
restrictive means reasonably ne cessary to protect the public in terests. When possible, 7
the board shall recommend regulating a business or employer ins tead of an employee, 8
profession, or occupation. The board shall recommend the least- restrictive type of 9
regulation within the following categories: 10
(1) strengthening protections under AS 45.50.471 - 45.50.561 ( Alaska 11
Unfair Trade Practices and Consum er Protection Act) if the prop osed change is 12
predominantly intended to protect consumers against fraud; 13
(2) requiring periodic inspec tions if the proposed change is 14
predominantly intended to protect against unsanitary facilities or general health, 15
safety, or welfare concerns; 16
(3) requiring bonding or insurance if the proposed change is 17
predominantly intended to protect against potential damages to third parties; 18
(4) requiring registration with the state if the proposed chan ge is 19
predominantly intended to protect against potential damages by persons who, while 20
physically located in the state, practice a profession or occup ation in an organized 21
borough of the state or a census area in an unorganized borough of the state for less 22
than 30 days in a calendar year; 23
(5) offering voluntary state certification, unless suitable pr ivate 24
voluntary certification exists, if the proposed change is predo minantly intended to 25
protect against asymmetric information between the seller and buyer; 26
(6) developing formal licensure if the proposed change is 27
predominantly intended to protect the immediate health and safety of consumers or the 28
general public and no other adequate system of regulation exists. 29
(c) In this section, "possibility of harm" means a clear poten tial that the 30
unregulated practice of a profe ssion or occupation could endang er the health, safety, 31
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or welfare of the public. 1
Sec. 08.02.250. Reports. (a) For each review of a proposed change to 2
licensure, the board shall prepare a review report. 3
(b) A review report must include 4
(1) the recommended level of regulation, as provided in 5
AS 08.02.240(b); 6
(2) a comparison of how other s tates regulate the profession o r 7
occupation; 8
(3) reference to applicable federal statutes and regulations a nd 9
proposed federal legislation; 10
(4) the cost of regulation to consumers, including an increase o r 11
decrease in services available; 12
(5) the cost of regulation to current and future practitioners , including 13
job creation, retention, and wages; 14
(6) the costs to employers; 15
(7) an analysis of each item listed in AS 08.02.230(b)(1) - (16). 16
(c) For a review requested under AS 08.02.230(b), the board sh all submit the 17
report to the senate secretary and the chief clerk of the house of representatives, and 18
notify the legislature that the report is available, on or before the first day of 19
(1) the next regular legislative session following the date th e request 20
was received by the board for requests received by the board be fore April 1 of a 21
calendar year; 22
(2) a regular legislative session after the next regular sessi on following 23
the date the request was received by the board for requests rec eived by the board on or 24
after April 1 of a calendar year. 25
(d) The board shall deliver a copy of a report prepared in res ponse to a request 26
under AS 08.02.230(b) to the person that requested the review. 27
Sec. 08.02.290. Definitions. In AS 08.02.200 - 08.02.290, 28
(1) "board" means the Sunrise Review Board established in 29
AS 08.02.200; 30
(2) "change to licensure" means the creation or recognition in statute 31
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of a new type of license to engage in a profession or occupation, a change in the scope 1
of practice of a license issued, or the elimination of a license; 2
(3) "license" means a certificate, registration, permit, or ot her 3
authorization to engage in a profession or occupation issued un der this title by the 4
department or a board, commission, or association. 5
* Sec. 3. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 6
read: 7
SUNRISE REVIEW BOARD; STAGGERED TERMS. Notwithstanding 8
AS 08.02.200, added by sec. 2 of this Act, the initial terms of the members of the Sunrise 9
Review Board appointed under AS 08.02.200, added by sec. 2 of this Act, are as follows: 10
(1) the member appointed under AS 08.02.200(4) shall serve a one-year term; 11
(2) the member appointed under AS 08.02.200(5) shall serve a two-year term; 12
(3) the members appointed under AS 08.02.200(6) and (7) shall each serve a 13
three-year term. 14
* Sec. 4. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 15
read: 16
TRANSITION: REGULATIONS. The Department of Commerce, Community, and 17
Economic Development may adopt r egulations necessary to impleme nt the changes made by 18
this Act. The regulations take effect under AS 44.62 (Administr ative Procedure Act), but not 19
before the effective date of the law implemented by the regulation. 20
* Sec. 5. Section 4 of this Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c). 21
* Sec. 6. Except as provided in sec. 5 of this Act, this Act takes effect January 1, 2026. 22