House State Affairs committee forwards Kenai police chief David Ross to joint session for Alaska Police Standards Council consideration

Representative Kerrick, chair of the House State Affairs Committee, opened the committee’s introductory hearing on the governor’s appointee to the Alaska Police Standards Council and asked the nominee to put his name on the record.

David Ross, police chief for the city of Kenai, told the committee he has been with the Kenai Police Department for almost 24 years, including about nine years as chief, and has served on the Alaska Police Standards Council for roughly three years. “I feel like during that time, the council has performed valuable work,” Ross said.

Ross described the council’s primary responsibilities as reviewing cases in which officers or corrections employees may lose certification and evaluating regulations that affect who can be hired or retain certification. He said the council must both remove people who should not be in the profession and consider rehabilitation for those who may merit a second chance.

Committee members asked about Ross’s training and priorities. Representative Hemschute asked whether Ross’s Department of Public Safety basic academy training was in Sitka; Ross confirmed it was in February 2001. Vice Chair Story asked him to elaborate on the “valuable work” he referenced; Ross said the council must balance public safety and professional standards while overseeing hiring and discipline rules. Representative Vance asked which training areas the council should prioritize; Ross listed critical-incident response, mental-health de‑escalation, domestic-violence response and use-of-force training and said Alaska has increasing demand for mental‑health-related response skills.

Representative Holland asked who is responsible for cultural training added to academy requirements; Ross said he believed it had been added to academy training but that statewide in‑service rollout has been inconsistent and suggested the Alaska Police Standards Council or the Department of Public Safety should provide uniform in‑service training rather than leaving it to each agency.

The committee opened and closed public testimony on the nominee with no speakers in the room or online. In accordance with AS 39.05.080, the committee “held a hearing on the following appointee and recommends they be forwarded to a joint session for consideration” — David Ross. The committee signed the report to forward the nomination; the chair noted the signature does not indicate how members will vote at any future joint session.

The committee then took a brief recess to complete the paperwork for the report and moved to other agenda items.