Juneau -- Thursday the Alaska Senate passed Senate Bill 229, sponsored by Senator Drue Pearce (R-Anchorage). SB 229 makes changes to SB 133, which passed the legislature last year. SB 133 abolished the Alaska Public Utilities Commission (APUC) and established the Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA).

The first change repeals the provision in SB 133 that obligated the RCA to move in with the Alaska Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC). "We believed that both RCA and AOGCC would save money by sharing clerical staff and record storage facilities," said Pearce. "The space that the RCA currently occupies is very inexpensive. We realized after a review by the Department of Administration that it would actually cost more for them to share space with AOGCC than it would to stay where they are."

The second change corrects a drafting error that allowed the commission to employ hearing officers instead of hearing examiners. Hearing examiners must be attorneys, while hearing officers do not have to meet this requirement. "It is necessary that the person conducting a hearing for the RCA be an attorney," said Pearce. "They are called on to adjudicate legal matters during hearings, and they need to be proficient in judicial proceedings and rules of evidence and of practice."

The final revision clarifies that the RCA may employ and utilize mediators as well as arbitrators in its hearing process. Mediation is a less formal process than arbitration, and tends to expedite the process of finding common ground among the interested parties.

SB 229 passes to the House for consideration.