Like the rain that keeps falling in Juneau, legislation continues to move through your government.

Personal Legislation

I introduced House Joint Resolution 9, which has been referred to the Resources and Judiciary Committees. This resolution urges the United States Congress to respect the judicial process and refrain from enacting any legislation that would alter the punitive damages awarded to more than 32,000 plaintiffs as a result of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill as finally determined by the federals courts.

Nearly 15 years after the disaster, and more than ten years after the original jury verdict, the plaintiffs are still waiting resolution of the lawsuit.

When the United States Congress considered the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, Exxon Mobil Corporation sought an amendment that would have substantially reduced the punitive damages that it would have paid for the Exxon Valdez oil spill. This resolution simply urges Congress to let the courts determine this matter.

When a hearing is scheduled on this resolution, I urge people to testify.

Fisheries

HB 26 Short-Term Commercial Crewmember Licenses sponsored by Representative Carl Moses passed out of the Fisheries Committee with a committee substitute (CS) that incorporated changes outlining the 1-week period with the adjusted cost of $30. The current version, CSHB 26, passed out of the Resources committee and will be heard in Finance.

SB 93, a Senate Bill relating to Fishing Permit and Vessel License Fees is sponsored by Senator Ben Stevens. This bill would lift the $300 cap on commercial fishing permit fees. SB 93 passed out of Senate Labor & Commerce on February 23, 2005. It has been referred to Senate Finance, but has not yet been scheduled. You can contact Traci Carpenter, the Senate Finance Aide for more information via e-mail at Traci_Carpenter ''at'' legis.state.ak.us or telephone at (907) 465-6518 or (907) 465-6600.

There is a companion bill to SB 93. Representative Ralph Samuels has introduced HB 174, the house version, relating to Fishing Permit and Vessel License Fees. HB 174 was referred to Fisheries, Resources and Finance committees on the house side. As of today, there has not been a request for a hearing in the Fisheries committee.

Sponsored by Senator Ben Stevens, SB 113 relates to Gulf of Alaska Groundfish Fishery. This bill would delegate to the Board of Fisheries and/or the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission new duties to develop a limited entry system for state groundfish fisheries, which will then be known as a "dedicated access privilege program." This bill was referred to Senate Resources and Senate Finance. A hearing for Senate Resources has not yet been scheduled. The Senate Resources Aide is Mary Jackson and she can be reached via e-mail at Mary_Jackson ''at'' legis.state.ak.us or by phone at (907) 465-4907.

As always, if you would like e-mail updates about fisheries or would like to provide feedback or comments regarding SB 93/HB 174, or SB 113, please send an e-mail to Kimberly_Wallace ''at'' legis.state.ak.us with the appropriate information in the subject line.

I will keep you updated on bills and resolutions to be heard in Fisheries Committee meetings. There will be a Fish Caucus on Harbor Maintenance Funding Issues this Thursday, March 3rd from noon to 1:00pm in Room 205 of the State Capitol. This meeting is open to the public and will be a listen only teleconference.

Other Legislation

HB 130, the University Land Grant bill, is still in the Resources committee. There is a work session scheduled on this bill March 2nd. I appreciate all of you who took your time to call, e-mail, fax and write in on this legislation. I too am very concerned about the inclusion of the Narrow Cape parcel in this legislation and will do my best to safeguard Kodiak interests.

I offered an amendment that was adopted in State Affairs on HB 94, which is a bill that deals with elections. My amendment eases witnessing requirements for absentee ballots. This will make absentee voting easier for our fisherman as well as overseas, military, and student voters.

HB 1 increases the base student allocation foundation formula to $4,919 dollars per student. This is an increase of 18% over the original proposed base student allocation of $4,169. Overall, this will mean an increase of more than $70 million for education. For our district this will mean an increase of $1.5 million for the Kodiak Island School Borough District and $480,000 for the Lake and Peninsula School District. If this bill is quickly passed by the Senate, both teachers and school districts can plan in advance for the following academic year.

Your Permanent Fund Dividend

Don't forget, your Permanent Fund Dividend application is due by midnight March 31, 2005. You can apply online at https://myalaska.state.ak.us/PFDOnline/Welcome.aspx. Applications are also available at the Legislative Information Office (LIO) located at 112 Mill Bay Road.

Come Visit

It was great to see the following from Kodiak Electric Association: Stosh Anderson, Mike Brechan, Cliff Davidson, Gordon Gould, Bob Hatcher, Walter Sapp and Darren Scott. Many thanks also to the following Kodiak people for stopping by the office: Bill and Ann Barker, Pat Branson, Al Burch, Cece Esparza, Wallace Fields, Benjamin Ortez, Julia Walker, and Norm Wooten. I also had the opportunity to visit with Duncan Fields at an Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute event and Bruce Schactler at a United Fishermen Association meeting. Finally, I enjoyed visiting with John Sevier, formerly from Kodiak and Dennis Trefon from Nondalton. Whenever you have business in Juneau, I encourage you to stop by.

I was able to return to our district for two memorial services. The first service was for the crew of the F/V Big Valley in Kodiak and the other service was in Port Alsworth for the Davis children, Samantha, Jesse and Kadee who perished in a tragic airplane crash. It is always reassuring to see how communities all over Alaska band together in the face of tragedy.

I was also able to attend the Newhalen Carnival and visit with folks in Newhalen and Iliamna. I would like to thank the Soroptimists in Kodiak for inviting me to speak at their "Women In Politics" panel last February. During the month of March, I am looking forward to attending the Kokhanok festival as well as our own ComFish.

I hope you will attend this year's ComFish. With the assistance of Kimberly Wallace, my Fisheries Committee Aide, I will host a roundtable of community members. The topic of discussion is Gulf of Alaska Groundfish Rationalization and other fisheries issues pertinent to Kodiak. Please join us on Thursday, March 17, 2005 in the Gerald C. Wilson Auditorium Choral Pod from 3:00-4:00 pm.

Contact Us

I appreciate local input. You can contact me toll free at 1-800-865-2487, or via e-mail at: representative_gabrielle_ledoux ''at'' legis.state.ak.us. I can be reached by fax at (907) 465-4956 and by U.S. Mail at:

Representative Gabrielle LeDoux
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182

I would like to thank the Kodiak Daily Mirror for providing this space to keep you informed. Past editions of Your Representative's Report is available online at http://www.akrepublicans.org/ledoux/index.php. If you would like to receive an e-mail version of this column, please contact Christine R. Marasigan in my office at: christine_marasigan ''at'' legis.state.ak.us.

Thank you for reading your Representative's Report.

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