Alaska House Judiciary Committee advances bill to increase court-fee funding for legal services

The Alaska House Judiciary Committee on Feb. 7 reported House Bill 48 out of committee after a public hearing that featured testimony from advocates who said expanding funding for civil legal services would help survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault obtain protective orders and access housing and benefits.

Supporters said the change — increasing the share of court filing fees directed to legal services from 10% to 25% — would expand help for victims seeking protective orders, custody orders and other civil remedies. Laurie Morton, deputy director of the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, told the committee that legal aid can be a decisive factor for survivors.

"The Office of Justice Programs at the Department of Justice found that obtaining a permanent protection order results in a statistically significant reduction, 80 percent, in police reported physical violence in the 12 months after the order is granted," Morton said, citing federal research during her two-minute testimony. She said Alaska Legal Services and partner organizations help survivors navigate courts and related benefits and housing systems.

Representative Sara Hannon, sponsor of House Bill 48, told the committee that Alaska Legal Services’ Juneau office is co-located with other social services at a local center, allowing clients to move from initial intake to legal help more efficiently. Hannon said that on-site legal assistance helps people obtain benefits and move into permanent housing and urged committee members to support the bill: "I hope that you will all support the bill," she said.

Committee Chair Representative Gray then called for a motion. A committee member moved that House Bill 48 (work order 334 LS 0405, cited in the hearing record as "backslash alpha") be reported out of the judiciary committee with individual recommendations and two attached fiscal notes. After there were no objections, Chair Gray announced that the bill was reported out of committee "with individual recommendations and attached fiscal notes." The motion record did not show a named second or a recorded roll-call vote; the committee advanced the bill by unanimous consent.

The testimony and discussion at the Feb. 7 hearing focused on the bill’s intended effect of increasing funding available to organizations that provide civil legal services to victims, with advocates emphasizing the role of attorneys in obtaining and enforcing protective orders and in helping clients secure public benefits and stable housing. The hearing included one in-room public testifier and remarks from the bill sponsor; no online testimony was recorded.

The committee signed paperwork at the conclusion of the meeting. The chair said the committee will hear a presentation from the Alaska Reentry Coalition the following Monday and may consider House Bill 68 the following Wednesday. The committee adjourned at approximately 1:12 p.m.

Notes: The committee record identifies the bill as House Bill 48 and references a work order code read aloud during the meeting; fiscal notes (two) were attached for committee consideration. Specific fiscal impacts (dollar amounts) were not specified during the hearing.