Alaska 2023-2024 Regular Session

Alaska Senate Bill SCR13 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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2	2	SCR013A -1- SCR 13
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5	5	33-LS1543\B
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11	11	SENATE CONCURRENT R ESOLUTION NO. 13
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13	13	IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
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15	15	THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION
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17	17	BY THE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
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19	19	Introduced: 4/8/24
20	20	Referred: Community and Regional Affairs
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23	23	A RESOLUTION
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25	25	Relating to the procedure that the Thirty-Third Alaska State Legislature will use to 1
26	26	reconsider bills and items vetoed by the governor. 2
27	27	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 3
28	28	WHEREAS, on January 11, 1956, the Alaska Constitutional Convention Delegates 4
29	29	voted 39-12 to adopt an amendment proposed by Delegate Katherine Nordale that inserted 5
30	30	into the section that became art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, the word 6
31	31	"immediately" following "shall," thereby directing that the legislature "shall meet 7
32	32	immediately in joint session and reconsider passage of the vetoed bill or item"; and 8
33	33	WHEREAS the delegates stated that the purpose of inserting the word "immediately" 9
34	34	in the section that became art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, was to direct the 10
35	35	legislature to meet in joint session and provide that the house of origin cannot "sit on the bill 11
36	36	and allow the veto to kill the bill"; and 12
37	37	WHEREAS, during the First Regular Session of the First Alaska State Legislature in 13
38	38	1959, Senator Joseph Earl Cooper, chair of the Senate Rules Committee, reported that "both 14
39	39	the State Constitution and the Joint Rules directed the House and Senate to meet immediately 15
40	40	upon receiving a veto message from the Governor"; and 16 33-LS1543\B
41	41	SCR 13 -2- SCR013A
42	42	New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]
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44	44	WHEREAS, in response to the adoption of House Joint Resolution No. 11 by the 1
45	45	Alaska State Legislature in 1975, the voters of the state voted in 1976 to approve an 2
46	46	amendment to art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, further clarifying that 3
47	47	"[b]ills vetoed after adjournment of the first regular session of the legislature shall be 4
48	48	reconsidered by the legislature sitting as one body no later than the fifth day of the next 5
49	49	regular or special session," and "[b]ills vetoed after adjournment of the second regular session 6
50	50	shall be reconsidered by the legislature sitting as one body no later than the fifth day of a 7
51	51	special session of that legislature, if one is called"; and 8
52	52	WHEREAS Alaska State Legislature Uniform Rule 45 recognizes that the language 9
53	53	"shall meet immediately in joint session" under art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of 10
54	54	Alaska, requires that the bodies act "promptly," and also recognizes the five-day requirement 11
55	55	approved by the voters in 1976; and 12
56	56	WHEREAS, in January 2024, during the Second Regular Session of the Thirty-Third 13
57	57	Alaska State Legislature, members of the legislature reviewed the language in art. II, sec. 16, 14
58	58	Constitution of the State of Alaska, that states "the legislature shall meet immediately in joint 15
59	59	session and reconsider passage of the vetoed bill or item"; and 16
60	60	WHEREAS, without formally deciding whether the language "shall meet 17
61	61	immediately in joint session" in art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is 18
62	62	discretionary or mandatory, the legislature met in joint session on January 18, 2024, the third 19
63	63	legislative day of the Second Regular Session of the Thirty-Third Alaska State Legislature, 20
64	64	and reconsidered items from House Bill No. 39, enacted as ch. 1, FSSLA 2023, that were 21
65	65	vetoed by the governor during the interim, and, after receiving a veto message on Friday, 22
66	66	March 15, 2024, with regard to Senate Bill No. 140, the legislature met in joint session on 23
67	67	Monday, March 18, 2024, to reconsider passage of that measure; and 24
68	68	WHEREAS members of the public and the legislature should have predictability and 25
69	69	certainty about the process the legislature will follow for reconsideration of vetoed bills and 26
70	70	items; and 27
71	71	WHEREAS the Thirty-Third Alaska State Legislature finds that the precedent of the 28
72	72	First Alaska State Legislature and the interpretation of art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State 29
73	73	of Alaska, and the Joint Rules by Senator Joseph Earl Cooper, Senate Rules Committee chair 30
74	74	in the First Alaska State Legislature, are persuasive; and 31 33-LS1543\B
75	75	SCR013A -3- SCR 13
76	76	New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]
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78	78	WHEREAS the Alaska State Legislature finds that the voters, by approving House 1
79	79	Joint Resolution No. 11 in 1976, expected and directed the Alaska State Legislature to act 2
80	80	within the first five days of the next regular or special session to reconsider bills or items 3
81	81	vetoed by the governor after adjournment; 4
82	82	BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature interprets the phrase "the 5
83	83	legislature shall meet immediately" in art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, as 6
84	84	meaning that an immediate joint session of the legislature is mandatory; and be it 7
85	85	FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature finds that Uniform Rule 8
86	86	45 requires that the legislature meet "promptly" in joint session; and be it 9
87	87	FURTHER RESOLVED that the Thirty-Third Alaska State Legislature, in 10
88	88	accordance with Uniform Rule 45 and art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, will 11
89	89	"meet immediately in joint session" to "promptly" reconsider bills and items vetoed by the 12
90	90	governor; and be it 13
91	91	FURTHER RESOLVED that the Thirty-Third Alaska State Legislature will meet in 14
92	92	joint session to reconsider vetoed bills and items as follows: 15
93	93	(1) If the legislature receives a veto message during session, upon receiving 16
94	94	the veto message, the legislature shall meet immediately in joint session to reconsider the 17
95	95	vetoed bill or item; 18
96	96	(2) If the legislature receives a veto message after adjournment of the first 19
97	97	regular session and no special session is called, the legislature shall meet in joint session to 20
98	98	reconsider the vetoed bill or item not later than the fifth day of the next regular session; 21
99	99	(3) If the legislature receives a veto message after adjournment of the first or 22
100	100	second regular session and a special session is called, the legislature shall meet in joint 23
101	101	session to reconsider the vetoed bill or item not later than the fifth day of the special session; 24
102	102	(4) If the legislature receives a veto message after adjournment of the second 25
103	103	regular session and no special session is called, the legislature will not meet in joint session to 26
104	104	reconsider the vetoed bill or item. 27