Letter to the Editor: A bigger dividend creates problems

Earlier this month, the Alaska Legislature gaveled out of its third special session. During the special session, we discussed the recommendations of the Comprehensive Fiscal Plan Working Group, weighed the merits of a COVID-19 bill, and passed an $1,100 dividend.

We also considered Senate Bill 3006, a health care bill aimed at providing temporary telehealth and flexible background checks for our hospitals. However, after additional amendments drew concerns from health care providers, the bill did not pass. As our communities fight against this current surge of cases, please make decisions that will benefit your health and the health of your neighbors.

The Legislature’s primary win of this session was the passage of an $1,100 dividend. This is the second time this year that we have passed a dividend of that amount. When we passed it in July, Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed it. He did not veto this September dividend amount, and dividends should be distributed mid-October.

Dunleavy has called us into a fourth special session to begin early October. His goal is for the Legislature to agree to overdrawing the Permanent Fund in order to pay out an additional $1,250 (on top of the $1,100) in PFD payments.

While everyone in the Legislature fully understands that there are many Alaskans who are economically struggling right now, there are long term negative impacts of drawing an additional $850 million from the Permanent Fund. It would cost the Permanent Fund roughly $60 million per year every year into the future in lost earnings if we were to overdraw the additional dividend amount now.

Spending the additional money now would also create a greater likelihood that the Legislature would have to adopt either a statewide sales tax and/or income tax.

Rep. Dan Ortiz

Ketchikan and Wrangell

 

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