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SB78 • 2026

DISCLOSURE OF WAGE INFORMATION

An Act relating to disclosure of information regarding employee compensation by employers, employees, and applicants for employment.

Labor
Passed Legislature

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

Sponsor
SENATOR DUNBAR
Last action
2026-04-08
Official status
(S) L&C
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The effective date is listed in the official metadata as empty; therefore, it cannot be stated when this law begins applying beyond 'on or after' that unknown date.

Alaska SB78: Rules About Sharing Pay Information

This law requires employers to list pay in job ads, stops them from asking about past salaries or punishing workers for talking about money, and sets fines for breaking these rules.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires employers to include a description of compensation, including salary or range of salaries, in all employment notices, advertisements, or solicitations.
  • Stops employers from banning employees or applicants from sharing their own pay or discussing the pay of others.
  • Prohibits employers from asking job applicants about wages they earned at previous jobs.
  • Forbids employers from firing, disciplining, threatening, discriminating against, or penalizing workers for using these new rights or helping others use them.
  • Allows employees to sue in court for damages, including reinstatement and lost wages, if an employer retaliates against them.
  • Sets state fines between $100 and $2,000 for each violation of the law.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Employers including private businesses with one or more employees, the State of Alaska, the University of Alaska, the Alaska Railroad Corporation, and local government units.
  • Employees who work as natural persons rather than independent contractors.
  • Applicants for employment seeking jobs in these workplaces.

Terms To Know

Retaliation
Punishing an employee, such as firing or disciplining them, because they used a legal right under this law.
Commissioner
The government official who approves the required summary of the law and decides on fines for violations.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This law only applies to work performed on or after the date it officially takes effect.
  • Employees are not required by this law to share their pay information if they do not want to, though employers may consider voluntary disclosures when setting pay.
  • The exact text of the summary that must be posted will be approved later by regulations.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-08 Text

    (S) Heard & Held

  2. 2026-04-08 Text

    (S) LABOR & COMMERCE at 01:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)

  3. 2025-05-07 Min

    (H) Minutes (HL&C)

  4. 2025-05-07 Text

    (H) LABOR & COMMERCE at 03:15 PM BARNES 124

  5. 2025-05-02 1085

    (S) REFERRED TO LABOR & COMMERCE

  6. 2025-05-02 1085

    (S) FN1: (LWF)

  7. 2025-05-02 1085

    (S) NR: KIEHL, MYERS

  8. 2025-05-02 1085

    (S) DP: CLAMAN, STEVENS

  9. 2025-05-02 1085

    (S) JUD RPT 2DP 2NR

  10. 2025-04-30 Min

    (S) Minutes (SJUD)

  11. 2025-04-30 Text

    (S) Moved SB 78 Out of Committee

  12. 2025-04-30 Text

    (S) JUDICIARY at 01:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  13. 2025-04-11 Min

    (S) Minutes (SJUD)

  14. 2025-04-11 Text

    (S) <Bill Hearing Canceled>

  15. 2025-04-11 Text

    (S) JUDICIARY at 01:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  16. 2025-04-07 Min

    (S) Minutes (SJUD)

  17. 2025-04-07 Text

    (S) <Bill Hearing Rescheduled to 04/11/25>

  18. 2025-04-07 Text

    (S) JUDICIARY at 01:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  19. 2025-03-26 Min

    (S) Minutes (SJUD)

  20. 2025-03-26 Text

    (S) Heard & Held -- Agenda Change --

  21. 2025-03-26 Text

    (S) JUDICIARY at 01:30 PM BUTROVICH 205

  22. 2025-01-29 124

    (S) JUD, L&C

  23. 2025-01-29 124

    (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS

Official Summary Text

DISCLOSURE OF WAGE INFORMATION
An Act relating to disclosure of information regarding employee compensation by employers, employees, and applicants for employment.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
SB0078A -1- SB 78
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

34-LS0060\A

SENATE BILL NO. 78

IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA

THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION

BY SENATOR DUNBAR

Introduced: 1/29/25
Referred: Judiciary, Labor and Commerce

A BILL

FOR AN ACT ENTITLED

"An Act relating to disclosure of information regarding employe e compensation by 1
employers, employees, and applicants for employment." 2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 3
* Section 1. AS 23.10 is amended by adding new sections to read: 4
Article 9. Disclosure of Employee Compensation. 5
Sec. 23.10.700. Disclosure or discussion of wages. (a) An employer who 6
publishes a notice, advertisement, or other solicitation for employment shall include in 7
the notice, advertisement, or other solicitation a description of the compensation, 8
including the salary or range of salaries, for the position. 9
(b) An employer may not 10
(1) prohibit an employee or applicant for employment from disc losing 11
the employee's or applicant's compensation or discussing or ask ing about the 12
compensation of another; 13
(2) ask an applicant for employ ment about compensation the app licant 14
34-LS0060\A
SB 78 -2- SB0078A
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

may have received from another employer; or 1
(3) prohibit an employee or applicant for employment from help ing or 2
encouraging another individual to exercise a right under this subsection. 3
(c) Nothing in this section 4
(1) creates an obligation for an employee or applicant for emp loyment 5
to disclose information about the employee's or applicant's com pensation or the 6
compensation of another; 7
(2) prohibits an employee or applicant for employment from 8
voluntarily disclosing to an employer information about the emp loyee's or applicant's 9
compensation; 10
(3) prohibits an employer from considering or relying on infor mation 11
disclosed under (2) of this subs ection when determining the com pensation of an 12
employee or applicant for employment. 13
Sec. 23.10.705. Posting summary required. An employer subject to 14
AS 23.10.700 - 23.10.740 shall keep a summary of the requirements in AS 23.10.700 - 15
23.10.740 approved by the commissione r and post the summary in a conspicuous 16
location at a place where an employee is employed. Upon request , the commissioner 17
shall provide a copy of the summary to an employer without charge. 18
Sec. 23.10.710. Retaliation prohibited. An employer may not discharge, 19
discipline, threaten, discriminate against, or penalize an empl oyee for exercising a 20
right under AS 23.10.700 - 23.10.740 or participating in or ben efitting from a 21
complaint, claim, trial, agreement, or investigation resulting from an alleged violation 22
of AS 23.10.700 - 23.10.740. 23
Sec. 23.10.715. Damages for retaliation. An employee who has been 24
discharged, disciplined, threatened, discriminated against, or penalized in violation of 25
AS 23.10.710 may file a civil claim against the employer for da mages, including 26
reinstatement and lost wages, separate from and in addition to a fine recoverable by 27
the state under AS 23.10.725. 28
Sec. 23.10.720. Statute of limitations. An action under AS 23.10.715 may be 29
filed not later than three years after the injury to the aggrieved employee last occurs. 30
Sec. 23.10.725. Penalty. (a) A violation of AS 23.10.700 - 23.10.740 or a 31
34-LS0060\A
SB0078A -3- SB 78
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

regulation or order of the commissioner issued under AS 23.10.7 00 - 23.10.740 is 1
punishable by a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $2 ,000 as determined by 2
the commissioner. 3
(b) Each day a violation occurs may constitute a separate viol ation as 4
determined by the commissioner. 5
(c) If an employer conducts an internal audit for the purpose of avoiding or 6
correcting violations of AS 23.10.700 - 23.10.740, the commissi oner may reduce the 7
amount of a fine otherwise payable under this section. 8
Sec. 23.10.730. Regulations. The commissioner shall adopt regulations under 9
AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedur e Act) to implement and interp ret AS 23.10.700 - 10
23.10.740. 11
Sec. 23.10.740. Definitions. In AS 23.10.700 - 23.10.740, 12
(1) "employee" means a natural p erson, other than an independe nt 13
contractor, in the service of an employer; 14
(2) "employer" means the state, the University of Alaska, the Alaska 15
Railroad Corporation, a political subdivision of the state, and a person who employs 16
one or more employees. 17
* Sec. 2. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 18
read: 19
APPLICABILITY. This Act applies to compensation for services pe rformed on or 20
after the effective date of this Act. 21