2022 Alaska Statutes
Title 26. Military Affairs, Veterans, Disasters, and Aerospace
Chapter 23. Disasters
Article 5. General Provisions.
Sec. 26.23.900. Definitions.

In this chapter,

(1) “commission” means the Alaska State Emergency Response Commission;

(2) “disaster” means the occurrence or imminent threat of widespread or severe damage, injury, loss of life or property, or shortage of food, water, or fuel resulting from

(A) an incident such as storm, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, avalanche, snowstorm, prolonged extreme cold, drought, fire, flood, epidemic, explosion, or riot;

(B) the release of oil or a hazardous substance if the release requires prompt action to avert environmental danger or mitigate environmental damage;

(C) equipment failure if the failure is not a predictably frequent or recurring event or preventable by adequate equipment maintenance or operation;

(D) enemy or terrorist attack or a credible threat of imminent enemy or terrorist attack in or against the state that the adjutant general of the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs or a designee of the adjutant general, in consultation with the commissioner of public safety or a designee of the commissioner of public safety, certifies to the governor has a high probability of occurring in the near future; the certification must meet the standards of AS 26.20.040(c); in this subparagraph, “attack” has the meaning given under AS 26.20.200;

(E) an outbreak of disease or a credible threat of an imminent outbreak of disease that the commissioner of health or a designee of the commissioner of health certifies to the governor has a high probability of occurring in the near future; the certification must be based on specific information received from a local, state, federal, or international agency, or another source that the commissioner or the designee determines is reliable; or

(F) a cyber attack or serious cyber incident that affects critical infrastructure in the state, an information system owned or operated by the state or a political subdivision of the state, information that is stored on, processed by, or transmitted on an information system owned or operated by the state or a political subdivision of the state, or a credible threat of an imminent cyber attack or serious cyber incident that the commissioner of administration or commissioner's designee certifies to the governor has a high probability of occurring in the near future; the certification must be based on specific information that critical infrastructure in the state, an information system owned or operated by the state or a political subdivision of the state, or information that is stored on, processed by, or transmitted on an information system owned or operated by the state or a political subdivision of the state may be affected; in this subparagraph,

(i) “critical infrastructure” means systems and assets, whether physical or virtual, so vital to the state that the incapacity or destruction of the systems and assets would have a debilitating effect on security, state economic security, state public health or safety, or any combination of those matters;

(ii) “serious cyber incident” means an incident that has a confirmed effect on the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of systems and data, has legal or privacy implications, affects other agencies, or requires security experience or resources not otherwise available;

(3) “disaster emergency” means the condition declared by proclamation of the governor or declared by the principal executive officer of a political subdivision to designate the imminence or occurrence of a disaster;

(4) [Repealed, § 22 ch 179 SLA 2004.]

(5) “hazardous substance” has the meaning given in AS 46.03.826;

(6) “major disaster” has the meaning given in 42 U.S.C. 5122;

(7) “political subdivision” means

(A) a municipality;

(B) an unincorporated village; or

(C) another unit of local government;

(8) “temporary housing” has the meaning given in the federal Disaster Relief Act as amended;

(9) “unorganized militia” means all persons comprising that component of the militia of the state, as described in AS 26.05.010.