Entering the Alaska State Capitol may soon be a lot like going to court or taking a flight due to security screening measures scheduled to be considered by the Alaska Legislature’s Legislative Council on Thursday.
Steps toward implementing the measures, including signs designating separate entrances at the front for legislative officials who don’t need screening and visitors who do, have been in the works at the Capitol for months. The Legislative Affairs Agency published a notice in October seeking unarmed security screening personnel, with bids due last Monday in anticipation of a contract being awarded at Thursday’s meeting.
Signs placed at the front entrance of the Capitol since the end of this year’s legislative session already specify the rightmost of three doors is designated for legislators and staff, with the public directed past the middle door to the furthest door on the left.
But state Sen. Jesse Kiehl, a Juneau Democrat who is a member of the Legislative Council, said Sunday it isn’t a certainty new security measures will be approved as written at Thursday’s meeting, if they are approved at all, and he has concerns about the perceived need for the measures and their practical impacts.
“I have some concerns about whether Alaskans need this much security at the Capitol,” he said. “There are, I think, some arguments for a couple of additional tools, but this seems extremely dramatic.”
“I think it has the potential to really snarl up and to leave the school kids and the senior citizens out in the sleet while somebody gets their bags checked.”
A sign at the front entrance of the Alaska State Capitol indicates the door for members of the public. The Legislative Council is scheduled to consider new rules Thursday that will subject all such visitors to security screenings similar to those at airports. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Only seven states, including Alaska, weren’t using any security screening in their capitols as of February of 2024, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. However, state Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson, an Anchorage Democrat who chairs the Alaska Legislature’s Legislative Council, said Sunday such measures have been discussed by council members and other officials at the Capitol during the past two years.
The request for bids “was requested by Legislative Security Services,” according to Jessica Geary, director of the Legislative Affairs Agency (LAA), in an email to the Alaska Beacon in October. Geary, in a Dec. 5 memo to Grey-Jackson, also requested the Legislative Council authorize moving the Capitol mailroom — currently on the ground floor next to the front entrance — “to an offsite location equipped with advanced screening capabilities as recommended by a recent security assessment.”
“The proposal to relocate the Capitol mailroom to an offsite facility is a critical step in addressing existing vulnerabilities and ensuring the safety and continuity of government operations,” Geary wrote.
The Legislative Council in October also voted to ban large signs in the Capitol following protests about education funding during the most recent session, including an April 4 protest by a large group of local students that swarmed through the Capitol.
The Capitol already has armed security officers, plus a surveillance station at the entrance where happenings throughout the building can be monitored. The LAA bid documents state those officers may assist the unarmed security screeners when necessary.
”The Successful Bidder shall provide two uniformed unarmed Security Screeners, Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., during the regular legislative session and all special sessions, including all State of Alaska and federal holidays during the session or special sessions,” the LAA bid request states. A supplemental document notes “the Agency will provide the magnetometer, x-ray machine, and handheld metal detectors that will be used at the Capitol, as well as provide training on said equipment.”
Students climb the stairs at the Alaska State Capital on Thursday morning after marching from Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé as part of a statewide protest on April 4, 2024, calling for more public school funding. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
The proposed policy the Legislative Council will consider Thursday exempts people with a valid Alaska State Legislature Blue Identification Badge or State of Alaska ID/Access Badge,” plus law enforcement officers and first responders, who can use separate entrances. Other visitors — including people working in the building such as lobbyists, media members and vendors who will be issued badges in colors other than blue — will be required to go through a designated front entrance door.
”All visitors will be screened by a magnetometer,” the proposed rules state. “However, visitors may opt-out of the magnetometer and receive a pat-down screening.”
All carried items will be x-rayed. Prohibited items include “weapons, firearms, explosives, and knives (except pocketknives with blades under 3 inches and knives used by the legislative lounge staff to prepare or serve food)” as well as “items deemed dangerous by security (e.g., fireworks, flammable substances, and corrosive materials).”
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
