 New Laws Protect Victims of Domestic Violence, Impose Fee for Excessive Police Visits, Allow Travel Agencies to Compete for State Business, Establish Seismic Hazards Safety Commission July 02, 2002
House Bill 348, introduced by Rep. Eric Croft (D-Anch), changes the allowable defense for violations of court-issued restraining orders in domestic violence cases by accepting only reasonable misinterpretations as an excuse for the violation. Under current law, a defendant can claim ignorance that his or her actions were prohibited by the protective order, no matter how ridiculous that claim may be. The bill amends the law so that only violations of a restraining order based on a reasonable misunderstanding of the terms of that order will be tolerated. "The most dangerous time for victims of domestic violence is when they try to get away from their abuser," said Rep. Croft. "People need to know that when they get a protective order against an aggressor, that order will be upheld. The responsibility of following the letter of the law should fall squarely on the shoulders of the criminal." House Bill 135, introduced by Rep. Gretchen Guess (D-Anch), allows municipalities to impose a fee on residential property owners if the police are called to their property an excessive number of times. Local governments are allowed to define "excessive" police visits and set the fee amount, which may not exceed the local government's actual cost for making excessive police visits. The bill grants specific exemptions for potential domestic violence, child neglect and stalking calls. HB 135 strengthens Alaska's Landlord Tenant Law by granting landlords the right to give a notice of eviction to tenants who engage in conduct resulting in a fine under the provisions of this bill. HB 135 also makes provisions to ensure responsible property owners are not punished. The bill states the property owner may not be assessed a fee if corrective action is promptly taken. "I wrote this bill in direct response to concerns of my neighbors and my community councils," said Rep. Guess. "Few things affect our quality of life more than the quality of our neighborhoods." Under House Bill 300, sponsored by Rep. Joe Hayes (D-Fairbanks), travel agencies in communities throughout Alaska will be able to compete for state travel services. Like many businesses and individuals, the state has long relied on professional agents in the private sector for free travel services. Because airlines have been reducing or eliminating commissions paid to travel agencies for bookings, most travel agencies have recently been forced to charge a nominal fee for their services to stay in business. The current state procurement code requires the state to put out a competitive bid for the lowest fee and award a contract to one agency. The new law exempts airline and hotel travel services from the procurement code so that the Department of Administration can establish a benchmark fee by meeting with travel industry representatives. "It's not fair that the state doesn't pay a dime for services rendered by a business," said Rep. Hayes. "No one should work for free. Air transportation is of great importance to Alaskans, including state travelers. Any travel agency offering services at or below the benchmark could do business with the state. Competition is fostered because all agencies can be considered. It's a great victory for small business." House Bill 53, sponsored by Rep. John Davies (D-Fairbanks), establishes the Alaska Seismic Hazards Safety Commission (ASHSC) as part of the Office of the Governor. The new office would provide oversight of programs and practices at all levels of government in the state, and in the private sector, to ensure Alaska is prepared to handle damage to life and property from seismic activity (earthquakes). The main goal of the ASHSC, according to Representative Davies, is prevention and mitigation of loss of life and property damage due to major earthquakes. "The fortunate thing is that major earthquakes occur very infrequently in Alaska," Rep. Davies said. "The unfortunate thing is that the infrequency of big, damaging earthquakes creates a tendency to ignore the hazards associated with such seismic activity. We forget just how much damage they can cause. And while the Good Friday earthquake was a wake-up call for most western states, which established their own seismic hazard commissions, the home of the Good Friday quake - Alaska - did not. This bill fixes that discrepancy."
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