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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Assembly Rules Committee Meeting - March 12, 2026

Assembly & Committee Meetings — Thursday, March 12, 2026

BodyAnchorage, Alaska

SessionAssembly & Committee Meetings

DateThursday, March 12, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:15:55

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:23

Okay, everyone, let's go ahead and get started.

0:25

I'm gonna call the meeting to order.

0:28

Um, we are uh here today for the assembly rules committee meeting.

0:32

Um, I will be chairing today as Chair Constant is out of town.

0:36

Um we are noticed uh today is Thursday, March 12th.

0:38

We are noticed from 1 p.m.

0:40

to 3 p.m.

0:40

in this room, and uh we'll do introductions and we'll move through our agenda.

0:44

Uh so we'll start in the room.

0:46

Aaron Baldwin Day, Chair Gerger, Keith McCormick.

0:49

Anna Brawley.

0:50

And on the phone, I see Member Silvers.

0:51

Or sorry, we're we're uh doing first names because it's rules committee.

0:54

So Yarrow.

0:56

Uh yeah, here.

0:58

And Zach.

1:01

I'm here.

1:02

Thanks.

1:02

And we are joined in the room and on the phone by Assembly Council, uh, legislative services office, uh, clerk's office.

1:08

I know our ombudsman's on the way uh and representatives from the mayor's office plus the public.

1:13

So let us go ahead and move through our agenda.

1:16

Um, I'm gonna go ahead, I don't have a report from the assembly chair, other than uh we are uh about to embark on first quarter budget revisions.

1:25

Um so then I will move on and ask for a mayor's report from uh Suzanne and our municipal attorney Ava.

1:32

Okay.

1:34

Thanks, everyone.

1:35

Good afternoon.

1:36

Oh, and I'm sorry to interrupt.

1:37

Uh we were also just joined by uh by George on the phone.

1:40

Are you there?

1:44

Yes, I am thanks, Evan.

1:46

Thank you.

1:46

Uh go ahead.

1:47

Okay, for the record, Suzanne Green, Chief of Staff to Mayor La France.

1:52

Um, I'm in joined by our municipal attorney, Eva Gardner, who actually wanted to, we wanted to give you two quick updates on public safety issues.

2:02

Uh so I'll turn it over to Eva and she can talk about Title Eight as well as the quality of life task force that was announced by the mayor and Governor Dunlevy yesterday.

2:14

Hello, Eva Gardner Municipal Attorney.

2:16

Uh so Title Eight, you recently passed uh some changes to our penal code.

2:21

Those are went into effect last week.

2:23

Um we are still waiting for them to process their way through the State Department of Public Safety and the court system so they actually become chargeable, but we're not letting that hold up on training.

2:33

So just this morning I was over with APD starting the work of training their supervisors on how to enforce uh these changes to the law.

2:40

So hopefully enforcement will begin soon.

2:42

We have a, I think target date of the 16th to have all the officers trained up.

2:46

Um that may need to flex a little bit depending on the the court timeline for getting those in the system.

2:52

And I can give you more boring detail on that process if you would like it uh separately after.

2:56

Uh and then yesterday there was as uh chief of staff said a joint press conference with the mayor and the governor and the AG and I participated as well, just sharing more information with the public on the joint task force we have entered into with the state on public safety.

3:11

So we have some cross-designations of prosecutors and are moving forward um with aggressive prosecution of retail theft uh as well as some other joint efforts.

3:21

And I think you've heard about it a few times by now, uh, but happy to take questions.

3:26

Okay, any questions from members and folks on the phone, of course, text me if you want to be in the queue.

3:34

Okay, I'll take the mic back then.

3:37

Um other updates.

3:39

One, I just want to let everybody know, which I think you do because we've sent information out, but there is a flyer on the table.

3:47

We are hosting a bond fair on March 19th at Lusac Library.

3:54

This is to help educate the public about initiatives that are on the ballot, and we will have all the relevant municipal departments, including the clerk's office, there to inform the public about more of the detail of what is both in the bonds and the education levy.

4:14

So please encourage your constituents that have questions to come to that event.

4:20

Um also wanted to highlight a couple of things from Juno.

4:26

One, our port director, Terry Umatum was there yesterday and was testifying in front of Senate resources on the port modernization project as well as our 200 million dollar request for state funding.

4:44

And if you want to watch that testimony, you can go to Gavel DeGavel and click on, I think it's the newest item there for Senate resources.

4:54

So that was good.

5:00

We will be hosting a delegation that is coming up at the end of April at the port from the Pacific Northwest, continuing a decades-long cooperative effort between the port of Alaska and the Port of Tacoma, but we're also trying to get some federal officials specifically from MARAD to join that tour as well.

5:18

We have a new MARAD administrator, and we know that good discussions have happened between the administrator and our delegation.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Public Engagement███████████████████19%

Affordable Housing████████████████16%

Data Management███████████████15%

Meeting Procedures████████████12%

Election Procedures██████████10%

Public Safety███████7%

Personnel Matters██████6%

Ombudsman Services████4%

Budget Equity Analysis███3%

Summary of Proceedings

Assembly Rules Committee Meeting - March 12, 2026

The Assembly Rules Committee met on Thursday, March 12, 2026, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. The meeting was chaired by Evan (substituting for Chair Constant). Members present included Aaron Baldwin Day, Chair Gerger, Keith McCormick, Anna Brawley, and on phone: Yarrow, Zach, and George. Staff from the Assembly Council, Legislative Services, Clerk's Office, Ombudsman, and Mayor's Office were also present.

Consent Calendar

No consent calendar items were noted.

Public Comments & Testimony

Jamie Lopez (East Acres, formerly homeless) testified on several issues. He characterized the Quality of Life Task Force as a symptom of economic struggles, arguing that people steal for food due to poverty, and urged against creating more criminals. He criticized a reduction in curfew at the Alex Out Hotel, suggesting it creates barriers to shelter. He also mentioned reported stop-and-frisk incidents in Mountain View and raised concerns about election security, advocating for air-gapped systems not connected to the internet.

Mayor's Report

Eva Gardner (Municipal Attorney) reported that Title 8 penal code changes went into effect last week. APD supervisor training began March 12, with a target date of March 16 for full officer training, pending court system processing.
Suzanne Green (Chief of Staff) announced the Quality of Life Task Force, a joint state-municipal effort to aggressively prosecute retail theft. The MOU runs for one year and is terminable on 14-day notice.
A bond fair will be held March 19 at Lusac Library to educate the public on ballot initiatives (bonds and education levy).
Port Director Terry Umatum testified in Juneau on the port modernization project and a $200 million state funding request.
A delegation from the Port of Tacoma will visit the Port of Alaska at the end of April; federal MARAD officials may also attend.
The administration is monitoring the state operating supplemental; transportation funding for Anchorage was not included but is being pursued.
A letter of interest for the Rural Health Transformation Project (federal funding) was submitted; a follow-up meeting with the commissioner of health is pending.

Clerk's Office Report

Jamie reported that the elections team is monitoring cybersecurity issues related to the Iran conflict, targeting local/state/tribal websites and data centers.
Senate Bill 64, which includes assembly legislative package amendments, was in finance committee and continued to the next day.

Council Update

Dean reported that the council is identifying members not returning after the election and working to ensure their projects are introduced before the last meeting (April 28).

Legislative Services Report

Claire announced the new "Civic Anchor" civic engagement program, including a physical space at Lusac Library and resources for youth engagement.
The first pre-approved ADU design was released; more to follow.
A new constituent services aide, Noah Warnock, was introduced. He will assist with communications and research.
The newsletter themed around gardening achieved the highest click rates of the year so far.
Claire clarified the program name is "Civic Anchor" (not "Civic Anger").

Ombudsman Report

Daryl reported that the office is approaching its 300th case entry for the year, with numbers up from last year.
An investigative report by Drew was issued and will be on the consent agenda.
The office hosted an open house for its 49th anniversary with over 100 attendees.
A difficult dialogues workshop with Libby Roderick is planned for late April.

Unfinished Business: Assembly Email Routing

Jamie presented two options for routing constituent emails to appropriate district members: FormStack with district selection or distribution groups by district.
Members discussed the challenge of identifying constituent emails. Aaron initiated the conversation to prioritize constituent responses.
Keith supports keeping the mass email option but restricts replies to his district.
Claire offered that legislative services could help with general responses, and new aide Noah could request district information.
No decision was made; the topic will be revisited with visual examples.

New Business: Committee Meeting Schedule

Evan opened a discussion on meeting structure, suggesting options like one-hour meetings, less frequent committees, or more work through committees.
Jared prefers longer committee meetings to reduce the number of work sessions.
Aaron supports flexibility and adjusting meeting frequency based on workload.
Daniel emphasized the need to preserve the ability for members with other jobs and suggested streamlining or moving some committees to bi-monthly/quarterly.
Keith agreed, preferring scheduled meetings over ad hoc work sessions.
Zach stressed the importance of preserving deliberative process through work sessions.
No formal action; discussion to continue.

Assembly Member Updates on Pending Business

Aaron provided an update on the Transit Supportive Development Overlay (formerly TISDO). She plans public meetings in March, April, and May to discuss housing supply. The ordinance will be introduced with minor changes and a name change, with a public hearing in the fall.
Jared announced a veteran preference ordinance for city contracts (Title 7) nearing introduction.
Evan reported that the federal "21st Century Road to Housing" bill passed the Senate 89-10; a letter of support was sent with the chair and mayor. It will be discussed in the legislative committee on March 25.
Evan noted S versions for the ASD budget (allowing adjustment if Proposition 9 passes) and data centers (tweaking definitions).
Evan mentioned the Sunset of Urban Design Commission is still moving through the process.
A potential special meeting on April 22 was proposed to clear agenda items before new members are seated.

Key Outcomes

Reports from the Mayor's Office, Clerk, Council, Legislative Services, and Ombudsman were received.
No votes were taken; decisions on email routing and committee schedule are deferred for further discussion.
The next regular assembly meeting is April 14, with a potential special meeting on April 22.

Meeting Transcript

Okay, everyone, let's go ahead and get started. I'm gonna call the meeting to order. Um, we are uh here today for the assembly rules committee meeting. Um, I will be chairing today as Chair Constant is out of town. Um we are noticed uh today is Thursday, March 12th. We are noticed from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. in this room, and uh we'll do introductions and we'll move through our agenda. Uh so we'll start in the room. Aaron Baldwin Day, Chair Gerger, Keith McCormick. Anna Brawley. And on the phone, I see Member Silvers. Or sorry, we're we're uh doing first names because it's rules committee. So Yarrow. Uh yeah, here. And Zach. I'm here. Thanks. And we are joined in the room and on the phone by Assembly Council, uh, legislative services office, uh, clerk's office. I know our ombudsman's on the way uh and representatives from the mayor's office plus the public. So let us go ahead and move through our agenda. Um, I'm gonna go ahead, I don't have a report from the assembly chair, other than uh we are uh about to embark on first quarter budget revisions. Um so then I will move on and ask for a mayor's report from uh Suzanne and our municipal attorney Ava. Okay. Thanks, everyone. Good afternoon. Oh, and I'm sorry to interrupt. Uh we were also just joined by uh by George on the phone. Are you there? Yes, I am thanks, Evan. Thank you. Uh go ahead. Okay, for the record, Suzanne Green, Chief of Staff to Mayor La France. Um, I'm in joined by our municipal attorney, Eva Gardner, who actually wanted to, we wanted to give you two quick updates on public safety issues. Uh so I'll turn it over to Eva and she can talk about Title Eight as well as the quality of life task force that was announced by the mayor and Governor Dunlevy yesterday. Hello, Eva Gardner Municipal Attorney. Uh so Title Eight, you recently passed uh some changes to our penal code. Those are went into effect last week. Um we are still waiting for them to process their way through the State Department of Public Safety and the court system so they actually become chargeable, but we're not letting that hold up on training. So just this morning I was over with APD starting the work of training their supervisors on how to enforce uh these changes to the law. So hopefully enforcement will begin soon. We have a, I think target date of the 16th to have all the officers trained up. Um that may need to flex a little bit depending on the the court timeline for getting those in the system. And I can give you more boring detail on that process if you would like it uh separately after. Uh and then yesterday there was as uh chief of staff said a joint press conference with the mayor and the governor and the AG and I participated as well, just sharing more information with the public on the joint task force we have entered into with the state on public safety. So we have some cross-designations of prosecutors and are moving forward um with aggressive prosecution of retail theft uh as well as some other joint efforts. And I think you've heard about it a few times by now, uh, but happy to take questions. Okay, any questions from members and folks on the phone, of course, text me if you want to be in the queue. Okay, I'll take the mic back then. Um other updates.

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