The Senate Labor and Commerce Committee advanced Senate Bill 117, a technical and organizational package for the Alaska State Human Rights Commission that includes a name change and several operational clarifications.

Senator Scott Kawasaki (chair, Senate State Affairs Committee) told the committee the bill renames the body to the Alaska State Commission for Civil Rights to align modern terminology with the agency's functions and to clarify several authorities. "It also does four other items," Kawasaki said, summarizing the bill: it clarifies the commission can investigate and hold hearings involving nonprofit employers; it permits a religious‑organization defense in discrimination claims; it changes the timing and format of the commission's annual report to November 15 and electronic delivery; and it narrows the grounds for gubernatorial removal of commissioners to cause (including incompetence, neglect or misconduct), rather than removal without cause.

Rebecca Carrillo, a commission representative, explained the practical reason for shifting the report deadline: ASHIRA (data) is not available early enough for immediate post‑session reporting and the later date allows staff adequate time to analyze data and prepare the report.

William Craig and other invited witnesses, including commission staff, voiced support for the name alignment and the reporting change. Committee members had no substantive questions on the bill during the hearing. The committee moved to report Senate Bill 117 from committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes (motion recorded in the transcript as adopted "without objection").