Dunleavy to sign four bills in Fairbanks on Monday

Gov. Mike Dunleavy will be at the Tanana Valley State Fair in Fairbanks on Monday for a bill signing ceremony, where he will discuss four House bills that have Fairbanks-area sponsors.

Bill 104Sponsored by Rep. Mike Cronk, the legislation is about saving insect-infested timber from national forests. After an insect infestation, such as the occasional spruce bark beetle infestation, timber dies by the millions of board feet and can become a fire hazard. The legislation directs the Division of Forestry to target areas with commercially viable timber where fire hazard is high. The prioritization could provide fuel for biomass energy production and expansion.

In addition to Rep. Cronk, other lawmakers co-sponsoring the bill include Reps. George Rauscher, Kevin McCabe, Tom McKay, Jess Sumner, Fran Tomaszewski, Craig Johnson, Ben Carpenter, Sarah Vance, DeLena Johnson, Justin Ruffridge and Stanley Wright; as well as Senators Jesse Bjorkman, Kelly Merrick, Mike Shower, Bert Stedman, James Kaufman and Shelley Hughes.

Bill 155Sponsored by Rep. Will Stapp, the bill establishes the Alaska Military Affairs Commission, which will provide advice, counsel, and recommendations on military issues and economic and industrial development relating to military issues to the governor, state agencies, the Legislature, communities, and the state’s congressional delegation. The AMAC will work to expand and grow the current military presence in the state, including new bases, expanded missions, and increased training.

In addition to Stapp, the other lawmakers co-sponsoring House Bill 155 are the Representatives. Frank Tomaszewski, Julie Coulombe, Alyse Galvin, Cliff Groh, Dan Saddler, Mike Cronk, Stanley Wright, Kevin McCabe, Andy Josephson, Maxine Dibert and George Rauscher; also Senators Jesse Bjorkman, Forrest Dunbar, Scott Kawasaki, Robb Myers, Kelly Merrick, Mike Shower, Click Bishop, Matt Claman, Gary Stevens, Bill Wielechowski, Elvi Gray-Jackson, Bert Stedman, Loki Tobin, Shelley Hughes and James Kaufman.

Bill 233, Sponsored by Rep. Frank Tomaszewski, the bill makes a significant change to the Auto Warranty Act by adding time fees to the compensation program for warranty work. Thousands of Alaskans benefit from warranty work each year as part of their agreements with the automakers from whom they purchased their vehicles. By agreeing to sell cars on behalf of certain manufacturers, auto dealers assume the responsibility of coordinating the time and labor spent performing warranty repair work on their vehicles. The bill follows an approach used by states such as Colorado, Montana and Illinois by requiring manufacturers to compensate dealers for warranty work at the same rates and time fees that the dealer charges retail customers for similar, non-warranty work.

In addition to Tomaszewski, other lawmakers co-sponsoring the bill include Reps. Laddie Shaw, Andy Josephson, Will Stapp, Julie Coulombe, Ashley Carrick, Stanley Wright, Jamie Allard, Mike Cronk, Justin Ruffridge, Louise Stutes, Mike Prax, Sarah Vance, Daniel Ortiz, Neal Foster, Alyse Galvin, Tom McKay, Jennie Armstrong and Jesse Sumner; as well as Senators Robert Myers, Matt Claman, Jesse Bjorkman and Elvi Gray-Jackson.

Bill 237sponsored by Rep. Mike Prax, addresses the nursing shortage in Alaska. Currently, a nurse whose license has expired and who applies for a renewed license in Alaska cannot receive a non-renewable temporary license. However, a nurse who is applying for a license in Alaska for the first time can receive a temporary license. HB 237 could help nurses get back to work faster.

In addition to Rep. Prax, other lawmakers co-sponsoring the bill include Reps. Rebecca Himschoot, Stanley Wright, Dan Saddler, Alyse Galvin, Andy Josephson, George Rauscher, Ben Carpenter, Daniel Ortiz, Frank Tomaszewski, Donna Mears and Cathy Tilton; as well as Senators Robert Myers, Shelley Hughes, David Wilson, Scott Kawasaki, James Kaufman, Loki Tobin, Mike Shower, Forrest Dunbar, Matt Claman, Jesse Bjorkman, Kelly Merrick, Bert Stedman and Click Bishop.

The bill signing is at 12:30 p.m. Monday at the Usibelli Stage at the Tanana Valley State Fairgrounds, 1800 College Road, in Fairbanks. The Tanana Valley State Fair, founded in 1924, is the oldest state fair.