(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 members of the senate, one of whom shall be a member of the minority organizational caucus, if any, appointed by the president of the senate with the concurrence by roll call vote of two-thirds of the full membership of the senate, and includes the five public members appointed under (3) of this subsection;
(2) the house subcommittee, which consists of two members of the house, one of whom shall be a member of the minority organizational caucus, if any, appointed by the speaker of the house with the concurrence by roll call vote of two-thirds of the full membership of the house, and includes the five public members appointed under (3) of this subsection; and
(3) five public members who are selected by the Chief Justice of the Alaska Supreme Court and who are ratified by two-thirds of the full membership of the senate and two-thirds of the full membership of the house.
(c) No more than one public member may be a former legislator and no more than two public members of the committee may be members of the same political party.
(d) The members of each subcommittee shall elect a chair and a vice-chair, who serve a term of two years. Neither a chair nor a vice-chair may be a member of the legislature. An officer may not hold the same office for more than two consecutive terms. The vice-chair shall act as chair in the absence of the chair. The chair selected by the senate subcommittee shall chair the full committee beginning the first day of the regular session in odd-numbered years and the chair selected by the house subcommittee shall chair the full committee beginning the first day of the regular session in even-numbered years.
(e) Except as provided in this subsection, a vacancy on the committee shall be filled under (b) of this section. An individual who is appointed to fill a vacancy that occurs during the last 10 days of the first regular session of a legislature or during the interim between regular sessions of that legislature serves without concurrence or ratification through the 10th day of the second regular session of the legislature. An individual who is appointed to fill a vacancy that occurs during the last 10 days of the second regular session of a legislature or during the interim after the second regular session serves without concurrence or ratification through the convening of the first regular session of the next legislature.
(f) The committee may contract for professional services and may employ staff as it considers necessary. A committee employee, including a person who provides personal services under a contract with the committee, may not be a legislator, an elected or appointed official of a state or local governmental entity, an officer of a political party, a candidate for public office, or a registered lobbyist. The legislative council shall provide office space, equipment, and additional staff support for the committee. The committee shall submit a budget for each fiscal year to the finance committees of the legislature and shall annually submit an estimated budget to the governor for information purposes in preparation of the state operating budget. Public members of the committee serve without compensation for their services, but are entitled to per diem and travel expenses authorized for boards and commissions under AS 39.20.180.
(g) Each legislative member serves for the duration of the legislature during which the member is appointed. Each public member serves for a term that commences on the date the member is ratified and ends on the first day of the third regular session that follows the ratification. A public member whose term has expired continues in office until a successor has been appointed and ratified or until the 30th calendar day of the first legislative session that follows the successor's appointment, whichever is earlier. A member of the committee may be removed from membership on the committee for failure to carry out the person's duties as a member of the committee. A legislator may be removed with the concurrence by roll call vote of two-thirds of the full membership of the house of the legislature to which the member belongs. A public member may be removed with the concurrence by roll call vote of two-thirds of the full membership of each house of the legislature.
(h) A member is disqualified from participating as a member in any proceeding before the committee involving a complaint against the member or an employee whose work is supervised by the member or an advisory opinion requested by the member. If a regular legislative member of the committee is disqualified under this subsection from participating in a proceeding involving a complaint, the member's alternate shall be designated under AS 24.60.131.
(i) A quorum of the committee consists of a majority of the members and must include at least two legislative members and three public members. A quorum of a subcommittee established under this section consists of a majority of the members of the subcommittee and must include at least one legislative member and three public members. A vote of a majority of the members appointed to the committee or a subcommittee is required for official action.
(j) Except to the extent that a provision would prevent the committee from complying with the confidentiality provisions of this chapter, the committee is subject to AS 44.62.310 - 44.62.319 (Open Meetings Act) and to the procurement provisions adopted by the legislative council under AS 36.30.020. In this subsection, “committee” includes a subcommittee.
(k) A member or an employee or contractor of the committee may obtain access to closed committee files containing information that is made confidential by law only if the committee determines that the person has a need to obtain access to the closed files that relates to the official duties of the committee and the person seeking access.
(l) The committee or a subcommittee shall meet at the call of the chair or a majority of the members. The committee or a subcommittee may meet by teleconference.
(m) Except as provided in (b)(1) and (2) of this section, a member may not be a legislator, a legislative employee, an elected or appointed official required to make disclosures under AS 39.50 (public official financial disclosure), an officer of a political party, a candidate for public office, or a registered lobbyist.
(n) [Repealed, § 18 ch 45 SLA 2012.]
(o) Notwithstanding (h) of this section and AS 24.60.131, if a complaint before the committee alleges a violation of this chapter by a group of legislators that includes a legislative member of the committee and that member's alternate, the member and alternate member are disqualified from serving on the committee with regard to the complaint. If the two disqualified members of the committee are members of the majority organizational caucus, the presiding officer of the house in which the two disqualified members serve shall appoint from that house an alternate to serve with regard to the complaint. If one of the two disqualified legislative members of the committee is not a member of the majority organizational caucus, the leader of the minority organizational caucus with the greatest number of members shall appoint from that house an alternate to serve with regard to the complaint. If a complaint alleges a violation of this chapter that includes all legislative members of the majority organizational caucus of one house, the presiding officer of that house shall appoint from the other house an alternate to serve with regard to the complaint. If the complaint alleges a violation of this chapter that includes all legislative members of a minority organizational caucus of one house, the leader of that minority organizational caucus shall appoint from the other house an alternate to serve with regard to the complaint.
(p) In this section,
(1) “majority organizational caucus” means a group of legislators who have organized and elected a majority leader and constitute more than 50 percent of the total membership of the house or senate, as appropriate;
(2) “minority organizational caucus” means a group of legislators who have organized and elected a minority leader and constitute at least 25 percent of the total membership of the house or senate, as appropriate.