Constituent Meeting - July 22nd

I invite all interior residents to an informal constituent meeting. I will report on recent legislative activity and would like to receive feedback from my constituents.

Bratwurst and Soda will be served at the McPeaks Badger Store parking lot on Friday, July 22nd from 5-7 PM.

If you have any questions or need directions please call 907-488-5725.

North Pole 4th of July Celebrations

On Independence Day I participated in the parade that the city of North Pole puts on. I drove a 1967 Cadillac Coup Deville through the parade. The crowd loved it. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of the car but I did get some other snapshots that are pretty good.


Pictured here are members of The North Pole Boy Scout Troop 49 preparing to walk through the parade.


Here is a picture of local North Polean's (Jim and Monta Faye Lane) having a good time at the 4th of July Block Party.

I had a nice time talking with my constituents and look forward to doing it agains soon.

Bill signing ceremony

House Bill 53 - The Family Rights Act

This legislation goes a long way to protect and preserve families in Alaska and make government accountable for its actions when children are in State custody. HB 53 gives preference for placement of children with relatives. In the past family members were forced to prove they were suitable alternatives for adoption. Now the state must prove the family members are not suitable alternatives. One of the most significant changes is that the Child in Need of Aid (CINA) process is now transparent.

This event is the culmination of over a year's work by many lawmakers to ensure that Alaska's families are protected and show that the government is committed to providing the best possible services to Alaska's children and doing its part to preserve Alaskan families.

The governor issued a press release on this legislation you can view it here:
http://www.gov.state.ak.us/news.php?id=1805



Governor Murkowski also signed HB 91 a bill which Debbie Joslin from Delta brought to my attention. She is pictured above with Governor Murkowski on the left and Lt. Garrett of the Alaska State Troopers on the right. HB 91 makes repeat convictions of indecent exposure within the observation of a person under the age of sixteen a felony.

Repeated offenses of indecent exposure carried no greater penalty no matter how many times an individual was convicted. Our children must be protected, and there needs to be severe consequences for repeat offenders.



Dr. Dave Eichler (pictured above) was instrumental in bringing HB 181 to my attention. HB 181 was introduced to eliminate the possibility of a professional licensee losing his or her license, while serving on active duty, because of a failure to fulfill statutory requirements for continuing education.

Many professional license holders are full-time active duty military, or members of reserve or auxiliary components of the armed forces. Oftentimes the men and women serving our country no longer have access to the classes or material necessary to fulfill the educational requirements to maintain their specific license, permit or certificate.

HB 181 provides a waiver of the educational requirements and allows the licensee to return to Alaska and within a specific period of time fulfill the continuing education requirements.


If you have any comments or suggestions on these pieces of legislation please let me know. If you have encountered a law with regards to Child in Need of Aid laws and in protecting our children from sexual predators that is less than ideal - please contact me or my staff and we will look into drafting legislation to address the problem.

Your input is encouraged.

Intro

Just by way of introduction - My name is John Coghill. I am a state legislator from North Pole, Alaska. You can find out more about me on my website at www.johncoghill.com