Ethics addressed finally!

The Senate Majority made a commitment to pass ethics legislation this session and we delivered on
that commitment. House Bill 109 is an omnibus bill that establishes new ethical standards for
members of the Alaska Legislature, executive branch employees and lobbyists. Here are some of the
highlights:
House Bill 109 improves laws affecting lobbyists by:
• Requiring ethics training for lobbyists and their employers
• Increasing restrictions on lobbyists’ gifts
• Barring persons with certain felony convictions from lobbying
• Barring spouses and domestic partners of legislators from lobbying for pay
• Prohibiting certain high-level executive branch officials from lobbying for one year after leaving
those positions
Improves disclosure laws by:
• Requiring electronic filing of campaign and financial disclosures
• Requiring legislators and legislative employees to disclose all boards on which they serve
• Requiring final financial disclosures from legislators, public officials, and others within 90 days of
leaving office
• Requiring more details in financial disclosures
• Requiring members of more executive branch boards to file financial disclosures
Improves executive branch ethics laws by:
• Increasing requirements for public officials’ blind trusts
• Specifying when a financial interest in a business is insignificant
• Increasing restrictions on employment after leaving service in the executive branch
• Barring political use of state aircraft except when that use is incidental
• Requiring the governor, before granting executive clemency, to disclose any interest in the matter
and obtain an ethics determination from the attorney general
Improves legislative ethics laws by:
• Requiring ethics training
• Increasing restrictions on gifts legislators and legislative employees may accept
• Prohibiting legislators from receiving outside compensation for legislative, administrative, or
political work
• Makes it a crime for public servants not to report bribery they know about
• Prohibits agreements to exchange campaign contributions to elected officials or candidates for
changing their votes or positions on a matter
• Provides for forfeiture of certain pension contributions when an official is convicted of a felony
such as bribery in connection with official duties

From Sen. Huggins newsletter