Title 24, Legislature and Lobbying

A legislative employee may not file a letter of intent to become a candidate or file a declaration of candidacy for the legislature.

(a) A legislator or legislative employee may not, directly or indirectly, subject a person to reprisal, harassment, or discrimination for reporting to the committee or another government entity conduct the person reasonably believes is a violation of this chapter or another state…

(a) A meeting of a legislative body is open to the public in accordance with the open meetings guidelines established in this section. A legislator may not participate in a meeting held in violation of these open meetings guidelines. (b) For purposes of the legislative open meeti…

(a) A legislator or legislative employee may not engage in acts of discrimination in violation of AS 18.80.220. (b) If a person files a complaint with the committee under AS 24.60.170 alleging a violation of this section, the committee may refer the complainant to the State Commi…

(a) A legislator or legislative employee, or a member of the immediate family of a legislator or legislative employee, may not be a party to or have an interest in a state contract or lease unless the contract or lease is let under AS 36.30 (State Procurement Code) or, for agenci…

(a) A legislator or legislative employee may, without disclosure to the committee, participate in a state benefit program or receive a loan from the state if the program or loan is generally available to members of the public, is subject to fixed, objective eligibility standards,…

(a) A legislator, legislative employee, or public member of the committee may not knowingly make an unauthorized disclosure of information that is made confidential by law and that the person acquired in the course of official duties. A person who violates this section is subject…

(a) A legislator or legislative employee shall disclose to the committee, which shall maintain a public record of the disclosure and forward the disclosure to the respective house for inclusion in the journal, the formation or maintenance of a close economic association involving…

(a) Notwithstanding AS 24.45.121 and AS 24.60.080, a person may give a compassionate gift to a legislator or legislative employee, and a legislator or a legislative employee may solicit, receive, or accept a compassionate gift from a person, subject to the limitations in (b) — (e…

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a legislator or legislative employee may not (1) solicit, accept, or receive, directly or indirectly, a gift worth $250 or more, whether in the form of money, services, a loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, promise, or other…

(a) A legislator or legislative employee may not (1) seek or accept compensation for personal services that is significantly greater than the value of the services rendered taking into account the higher rates generally charged by specialists in a profession; or (2) accept a paym…

(a) An individual who is related to a member of the legislature may not be employed for compensation (1) during the legislative session in the house in which the legislator is a member, (2) by an agency of the legislature established under AS 24.20, (3) in either house during the…

A legislator or legislative employee who represents another person for compensation before an agency, board, or commission of the state shall disclose the name of the person represented, the subject matter of the representation, and the body before which the representation is to …

(a) When a legislator or legislative employee is required to file a disclosure under this chapter and a date by which the disclosure must be filed is not otherwise set by statute, the deadline for filing the disclosure shall be 30 days after the commencement of the matter or inte…

(a) A legislative intern or legislative volunteer shall comply with AS 24.60.030 - 24.60.039, 24.60.060, 24.60.080, 24.60.085, and 24.60.155, and the committee shall apply AS 24.60.158 - 24.60.170, 24.60.176, and 24.60.178 to a legislative intern or legislative volunteer. (b) A l…

A person serving as a legislator, legislative employee, or public member of the committee shall, not later than 90 days after the person's final day of service as a legislator, legislative employee, or public member, file a final disclosure of every matter or interest, except for…

(a) There is established as a permanent interim committee within the legislative branch of state government the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics. (b) The committee consists of nine members, in two subcommittees, as follows: (1) the senate subcommittee, which consists of two…

(a) When appointing members of the legislature to serve on the committee under AS 24.60.130(b), the speaker of the house of representatives or the president of the senate, as appropriate, shall appoint an alternate member for each regular member. The alternate member shall have t…

(a) Except as provided in (c) of this section, in addition to complying with the other requirements of this chapter, a public member of the committee, an employee of the committee, or a person under contract to provide personal services to the committee may not, during the person…

(a) The senate subcommittee has authority over proceedings concerning conduct by a member or former member of the senate or a person employed by a member or a committee of the senate. (b) The house subcommittee has authority over proceedings concerning the conduct by a member or …

(a) The committee shall (1) adopt procedures to facilitate the receipt of inquiries and prompt rendition of its opinions; (2) publish annual summaries of decisions and advisory opinions with sufficient deletions in the summaries to prevent disclosing the identity of the persons i…

(a) A person who is a legislator, legislative employee, public member of the committee, legislative intern, or legislative volunteer shall complete a legislative ethics course administered by the committee under AS 24.60.150(a)(4) within 10 days of the first day of the first regu…

The committee shall authorize and train its staff to give oral advice and provide a written informal nonbinding advice letter to persons seeking guidance as to the spirit or legal requirements of this chapter, provided that the advice is given with the express stipulations that (…

(a) On the request of the committee, the Alaska Public Offices Commission, a person to whom this chapter applies, or a person who has been newly elected to the legislature, the committee shall issue an advisory opinion within 60 days as to whether the facts and circumstances of a…

The committee may not bring a complaint against a person based upon information voluntarily given to the committee by the person in connection with a good faith request for advice under AS 24.60.158 or 24.60.160, and may not use that information against the person in a proceeding…

(a) If the person found to have violated this chapter is or was a member of the legislature, the committee's recommendations shall be forwarded by the chair of the committee to the presiding officer of the appropriate house of the legislature. If the committee recommends sanction…

(a) If the person found to have violated this chapter is or was a legislative employee, the committee's recommendations shall be forwarded to the appropriate appointing authority which shall, as soon as is reasonably possible, determine the sanctions, if any, to be imposed. The a…

(a) When the committee finds that a person has violated this chapter, the committee may recommend appropriate sanctions, including sanctions set out in (b) of this section. (b) The sanctions that the committee may recommend include (1) imposition of a civil penalty of not more th…

A legislator, a public member of the committee, and a legislative director shall file a disclosure statement, under oath and on penalty of perjury, with the Alaska Public Offices Commission giving the following information about the income received or deferred income, earned or o…

(a) A person required to file a disclosure statement under AS 24.60.200 shall file an annual report with the Alaska Public Offices Commission, covering the previous calendar year, containing the disclosures required by AS 24.60.200, on or before March 15 of each year, except that…

The Alaska Public Offices Commission shall (1) adopt regulations to implement and interpret the provisions of AS 24.60.200 — 24.60.260; (2) prepare standardized forms on which the statements required by AS 24.60.200 shall be filed; and (3) examine, investigate, and compare all re…

A statement filed with the Alaska Public Offices Commission under AS 24.60.200 is a public record. A person is not required to comply with AS 24.60.200 to the extent that a court of competent jurisdiction of the state determines that legally privileged professional relationships …

A person required to file a disclosure statement under AS 24.60.200 who fails to file a properly completed report under AS 24.60.200 is subject to a civil penalty of not more than $10 a day for each day the delinquency continues as the Alaska Public Offices Commission determines,…

(a) In addition to the sanctions described in AS 24.60.260, if the Alaska Public Offices Commission finds that a candidate for the legislature who is an incumbent legislator has failed to file a report under AS 24.60.200 by March 15, the commission shall notify the candidate that…

(a) A person may file a written complaint alleging a violation of AS 24.60.200 — 24.60.260 has occurred or is occurring. (b) Complaints filed under (a) of this section must be filed within five years after the date of the alleged violation. (c) If a member of the Alaska Public Of…

(a) A person required to make a disclosure under this chapter may not knowingly make a false or deliberately misleading or incomplete disclosure to the committee or to the Alaska Public Offices Commission. A person who files a disclosure after a deadline set by this chapter or by…

The attorney general may independently bring civil actions relating to violations under this chapter regardless of the outcome or settlement of a charge before the committee. This section does not prohibit the attorney general from bringing an action under another civil or crimin…

Each agency of the executive branch of state government shall, to the extent permitted by state or federal law, cooperate fully with the committee or a subcommittee by providing information and assistance, including disclosure of financial material and other records relating to a…

(a) In this chapter, (1) “administrative action” means conduct related to the development, drafting, consideration, enactment, defeat, application, or interpretation of a rule, regulation, policy, or other action in a regulatory proceeding or a proceeding involving a license, per…

This chapter may be cited as the Legislative Ethics Act.