[{"_1":2,"_85":-5,"_86":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":59,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":65,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6259940,"mediaKeyId","3136664-cccbb5c2b414d814c1351cb87ae6fbec","parentId",3136664,"title","House Finance advances bill to raise Alaska age of consent to 18, adopts close-in-age and authority exceptions","audioSeconds",3599,"startMs",200000,"endMs",3799000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3136664-cccbb5c2b414d814c1351cb87ae6fbec&start=200&end=3799","thumbnailUrl","https://d352y6ypj4mjo3.cloudfront.net/AudioPlaceholder.png","articleUrl","/articles/6259940/Alaska/House-Finance-advances-bill-to-raise-Alaska-age-of-consent-to-18-adopts-close-in-age-and-authority-exceptions","mediaUrl","author","Alaska State Legislature","date","2025-04-25T00:00:00Z","article","The Alaska House Finance Committee on April 25 advanced House Bill 101, a proposal to raise the state's age of consent from 16 to 18, adopting two amendments that expand a close-in-age exemption for 16- and 17-year-olds and preserve a two-year exception where the older person occupies a position of authority. The committee voted 8-1 to move the bill out of committee as amended.

House Bill 101, sponsored in the House by Representative Gray, was presented to the committee as a measure intended \"to help prevent assault of those 16 and 17 year olds,\" Gray said in her opening recap. The bill was introduced after requests from victim-service organizations that identified Alaska's 16-year age of consent as a vulnerability exploited by older predators.

The bill drew public testimony from survivors and community members. Lori Pickett, who identified herself as a nonprofit and public-sector volunteer, told the committee she strongly supports HB101 and said the change would better protect teens. \"This isn't an extreme idea. It's a necessary one,\" Pickett said. Two callers from Ketchikan described cases they said illustrated the law's current limits: \"I am personally aware of a situation ... in which the district attorney could not go forward with a case based on this law from a 16 year old who had been exploited by a 23 year old,\" caller Jerry Baluta said. Other callers echoed that view.

Amendment details and committee action

The committee adopted two amendments during the hearing. Amendment 1, moved by Representative Jimmy, expands the bill's proposed \"close-in-age\" exemption for 16- and 17-year-olds. Under the amendment the exemption applies when the older partner is \"less than six years older\" (formally described as 5 years and 364 days), allowing certain consensual teenage relationships to remain outside of criminal liability. Representative Rachel Gunn, staff to Representative Jimmy, said the change reflected a request from ANDVSA (an advocacy network for domestic violence and sexual assault service providers) to avoid forcing mandated reporters to refer otherwise nonproblematic, consensual teen relationships.

Amendment 2, introduced by Representative Josephson and adopted by the committee, preserves a two-year age separation in statutory provisions that apply where the older person \"occupies a position of authority\" over the younger person or the younger person resides in the same household. The amendment keeps the existing two-year cutoff in those circumstances so that, for example, the statutory exposure for someone who has authority over a minor remains measured by that narrower gap.

Department of Law and sentencing implications

Casey Schroeder, senior assistant attorney general with the Department of Law, briefed the committee on legal consequences under current law. She told members the provisions the committee was considering interact with criminal offenses that can carry severe penalties and registration requirements: \"The presumptive sentence for [sexual abuse of a minor in the first degree] is 20 to 30 years, and it carries a lifetime registration requirement,\" and for the second-degree offense \"the presumptive term is 5 to 15 years, and the maximum is 99,\" she said. Schroeder told the committee that prosecutors evaluate cases on the facts and on the interest of justice when defendants and alleged victims are close to statutory lines.

Committee votes and next steps

Both amendments were adopted by recorded voice and roll-call votes (each 6-3). After amendment votes and discussion the committee approved a motion to report HB101 out of House Finance as amended with individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes; that final motion passed on an 8-1 vote. The committee packet lists the bill version as 34-LS0451.

Why it matters

Supporters told the committee raising the age of consent closes a statutory gap they said is exploited by older adults targeting 16- and 17-year-olds. Opponents and some committee members warned that widening exemptions could criminalize adults who are close in age to minors in contexts such as workplaces or family households and that the interaction of new age cutoffs with existing statutes and mandatory reporting rules requires careful calibration.

The bill now moves to the next stage in the legislative process with the committee's recommended changes recorded in the committee report.

","mediaType","Audio","parentTitle","HOUSE FIN\t04/25/2025 03:32 PM","oneSentenceSummary","The Alaska House Finance Committee on April 25 advanced House Bill 101, a proposal to raise the state's age of consent from 16 to 18, adopting two amendments that expand a close-in-age exemption for 16- and 17-year-olds and preserve a two-year exception where the older person occupies a position of authority.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature Alaska, Alaska","taxId",78559,"location","Alaska","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":50,"_51":82,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":83,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":84,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},6259936,"Committee hears bill to create statewide stroke and heart-attack system; amendment deadline set",711,3817000,4528000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3136664-cccbb5c2b414d814c1351cb87ae6fbec&start=3817&end=4528","/articles/6259936/Alaska/Committee-hears-bill-to-create-statewide-stroke-and-heart-attack-system-amendment-deadline-set","The Alaska House Finance Committee on April 25 heard testimony on House Bill 27, a measure to establish a statewide system of care for time-sensitive medical emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes. Sponsors and supporters said the bill would replicate features of the existing trauma system to standardize facility designation, prehospital protocols and statewide data collection.

Katie Georgio, staff to Representative Genevieve Mina (the bill sponsor), told the committee HB27 would place the stroke and heart-attack system within the Department of Health and would allow hospitals and clinics to seek voluntary designation as heart-attack or stroke centers of varying levels depending on their capabilities. Georgio said the proposal would also standardize protocols for prehospital transport, including air and ground services.

Witnesses from EMS and medical organizations urged passage. Brian Webb, who said he has 50 years of experience in emergency medical services, told the committee: \"Let's just pass HB 27 and build our statewide time sensitive medical emergencies model just as we did for trauma.\" Webb said a unified data system and facility designation process would allow Alaska EMS and hospitals to target resources and improve outcomes.

Dr. Tim Peterson, a physician and medical director for Southeast Region EMS, described the challenges posed by Alaska's remoteness and said the state lacks a coordinated system for heart attack and stroke comparable to its trauma network. \"Once you're in an ER in this state and you need to be transferred to another hospital, it can take hours, and those hours can cost lives,\" he said.

Jamie Morgan, senior regional leader for government relations at the American Heart Association, spoke in support and cited national evidence on the impact of coordinated systems of care. \"When dealing with a time sensitive medical emergency like a stroke, the right care at the right time at the right facility is essential,\" Morgan said, and noted research indicating modest percentage reductions in stroke mortality would translate to many lives saved nationally.

Committee action

Committee members closed public testimony and set an amendment deadline of Tuesday, April 29 at 5:00 p.m. for HB27; sponsors were instructed to submit amendments to committee staff. No committee vote on the bill occurred on April 25; the measure will return to the committee for further consideration.

Why it matters

Supporters said a formal system of care for heart attacks and strokes would standardize triage and transport, enable facility designations, improve training and equip EMS agencies across Alaska, and provide centralized data to identify geographic gaps in care. Witnesses told members the measure could reduce permanent disability and improve cost-effectiveness by directing patients to the most appropriate hospitals and shortening time to definitive treatment.

Next steps

The committee set the amendment deadline and will schedule further consideration; staff contact information and submission instructions were provided to sponsors during the hearing.","House Bill 27 would mirror Alaska's trauma system to create a voluntary statewide designation, protocols and data collection for time-sensitive heart attack and stroke care. EMS leaders, an emergency physician and the American Heart Association testified in support. The committee set an amendment deadline of April 29, 2025 at 5 p.m.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

House Finance advances bill to raise Alaska age of consent to 18, adopts close-in-age and authority exceptions

Committee hears bill to create statewide stroke and heart-attack system; amendment deadline set