(a) All bills passed by the legislature become law upon the governor’s signature or upon the governor’s veto being overridden or, when the governor allows a bill to become law without signature, on the day after expiration of the period allowed for gubernatorial action by art. II, Sec. 17 of the Alaska Constitution. Acts become effective 90 days after becoming law, unless the legislature, by concurrence of two-thirds of the membership of each house, provides for another effective date.
Terms Used In Alaska Statutes 01.10.070
action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
state: means the State of Alaska unless applied to the different parts of the United States and in the latter case it includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
Veto: The procedure established under the Constitution by which the President/Governor refuses to approve a bill or joint resolution and thus prevents its enactment into law. A regular veto occurs when the President/Governor returns the legislation to the house in which it originated. The President/Governor usually returns a vetoed bill with a message indicating his reasons for rejecting the measure. In Congress, the veto can be overridden only by a two-thirds vote in both the Senate and the House.
(b) The actual effective date of an Act having no effective-date provision is determined by starting with the day after it is signed by the governor or the day after the governor’s veto is overridden or the day after expiration of the period allowed for gubernatorial action by art. II, Sec. 17 of the Alaska Constitution, and counting 90 calendar days, the Act becoming effective at 12:01 a.m., Alaska Standard Time on the 90th day.(c) The actual effective date and time of an Act having an immediate-effective-date provision is 12:01 a.m., Alaska Standard Time, on the day after it is signed by the governor or on the day after the governor’s veto is overridden or on the day after expiration of the period allowed for gubernatorial action by art. II, Sec. 17 of the Alaska Constitution.(d) An Act that specifies a definite effective date becomes effective at 12:01 a.m., Alaska Standard Time, on the date specified. However, if the specified definite effective date is on or before the day the governor signs the Act, the day the governor’s veto is overridden, or the last day of the period allowed for gubernatorial action by art. II, sec. 17, Constitution of the State of Alaska, as applicable, the Act becomes effective at 12:01 a.m., Alaska Standard Time, on the day after the governor signs the Act, the governor’s veto is overridden, or the period allowed for gubernatorial action by art. II, sec. 17, Constitution of the State of Alaska, expires, as applicable.(e) When the governor allows a bill to become law without signature, the governor shall give written notice of that fact to the legislature. The date of this notice does not affect the date the bill becomes law or the date the Act takes effect.(f) In this section
(1) “Act” means a bill which has become law;(2) “bill” means a legislative document proposing an Act;(3) “becomes effective” means becomes applicable; “effective date” does not mean date of enactment (or date of becoming law), although the two will coincide when a bill which has an immediate-effective-date provision is allowed to become law without the governor’s signature;(4) “becomes law” means is enacted; “enactment” occurs when any one of the following takes place:
(A) a bill which is passed by the legislature is signed by the governor;(B) the period specified in art. II, Sec. 17 of the Alaska Constitution expires without gubernatorial action;(C) the legislature overrides the governor’s veto of a bill;(5) “passed by the legislature” means that the required majority of each house of the legislature has taken final action in approving the same version of a bill.
