House committee advances bill to create universal temporary professional licenses, align state law with federal military licensing rules

JUNEAU, Alaska — The House Special Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs on May 13, 2025, advanced House Bill 158, which would create a universal temporary licensure pathway for professionals and align Alaska law with federal statutes passed in 2023 that ease licensure portability for military members and military spouses.

Representative Ayesha, chair of the House Special Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs, opened the meeting and the committee accepted the bill out of committee with individual recommendations and an accompanying fiscal note after no public testimony and no amendments were filed before the deadline.

Sylvain Raab, director of the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing in the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, told the committee the bill “does 2 primary things. The first thing is to create universal temporary licensure for all professions marine pilots. The second thing the bill does is to align Alaska statute with, federal statutes that passed in 2023 related to licensure portability for military members and military spouses.”

Representative Hall asked why the bill embeds federal provisions in state statute rather than simply referencing federal law. Raab replied, “It is much easier, for licensees and less confusing, when they're looking for pathways to licensure, if they can find all of those in Alaska statute. Additionally, trying to find, federal statutes can be, cumbersome, to say the least. And so we're looking to make it, as easy as possible for people transitioning, to have an easy way to find all of their pathways to licensure.”

Representative Sadler asked whether the department had an estimate of how many military spouses arriving in Alaska hold professional licenses that would benefit from temporary licensure. Raab said the department did not have a statewide estimate of how many military families come to Alaska each year but reported that “since we've started issuing licenses under the Servicemember Civil Relief Act, the military provision in this bill, we have issued, in excess of a hundred, licenses.” He also identified nursing as among the top professions the division covers.

Public testimony was opened and closed with no speakers in the room or online. The committee noted an amendment deadline of Wednesday, May 14 at noon; no amendments were filed before the committee voted to report the bill. Representative Hall moved to report House Bill 158 from committee; seeing no objection, the chair announced the bill was reported out with individual recommendations and an accompanying fiscal note.

The committee adjourned after completing the three-item agenda. House Bill 158 must still proceed through the legislative process before becoming law.