WELCOME
Letter from the Chairman
BY PAUL THOMAS | CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
The start of the first regular session of the 33rd legislature is now underway . This is the first year , in many , that the rewrite of Title 04 will not be one of our legislative priorities . But your Government Affairs Committee will still have its hands full . By the time this is published , we will have already met at least twice to review pre-filed bills for this legislative season , as well as working on reviewing the first of many draft regulations projects that will be coming
“ out to support and define the new Title 04 legislation passed last year . An easy way to keep up on current regulation projects your Government Affairs committee is working on and any current advisories , is through the AMCO website . You can also sign up for email updates on the Alcohol Statutes and Regulations page under the Regulations Projects heading .
REMEMBER , AS CHARR MEMBERS , YOU ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE SYSTEM
Remember , as CHARR members , you are an integral part of the system that allows us to stay on top of crucial topics for our industry . While our CHARR staff and lobbyist are always diligently working to keep tabs on new legislation and regulation projects to provide input at the earliest stages , often , our members are the INDUSTRY . first to see or hear trends or movements that can lead to subsequent important industry developments . If you have information that you think CHARR should be aware of , please pass it on to your local state board member or the Alaska CHARR staff . Part of CHARRs effectively protecting and supporting our industry is being able to be at the table in the earliest stages .
THAT ALLOWS US TO STAY ON TOP OF CRUCIAL TOPICS FOR OUR
As part of that effort , your CHARR board and other members will soon be in Juneau for our next board meeting and CHARR Legislative Summit . This will allow us to meet with the many new and returning legislators at our legislative reception and visit the hill to see individual local representatives . It should be an interesting year with 19 first-year representatives and seven first-year senators . I ’ m sure there will be many new ideas , and we will be working hard to ensure that legislation that affects the industry will stay on a positive track .
As the new regulation projects are adopted and more pieces of the new Title 04 become active , we will see AMCO staff out in our businesses more regularly , contacting industry members , catching up on inspections , and starting compliance checks again . Now , it is easier than ever to keep TAP cards current and receive new required signage to make those inspections go as smoothly as possible . With TAP online available for registration on the CHARR website and in-person classes in many communities , finding a class to get that TAP card is easier than ever . While checking your employees ’ TAP expiration dates , check your own too , and don ’ t forget to do a quick walk-through and check that you have all the required signage up too and replace it if it ’ s getting old and worn by requesting new ones from the AMCO office or your local AMCO enforcement officer .
I look forward to the continued improvements , challenges , and clarifications that the upcoming regulations projects will bring to our industry and your involvement and input into this significant effort .
ALASKA CHARR MAGAZINE | 2