Juneau Report 1:1 Adam Wool PFD

WHILE THE LAW IS STILL ON THE BOOKS THAT THE STATE HAS TO GIVE OUT A P-F-D DEMONSTRATED TO BE UNSUSTAINABLE - SOME LEGISLATORS FEEL THIS WILL BE ANOTHER YEAR A PARTIAL P-F-D IS CUT. WE SPOKE TO FAIRBANKS REPRESENTATIVE ADAM WOOL WHO SITS ON THE HOUSE FINANCE COMMITTEE IN AN EXCLUSIVE ONE-ON-ONE TO FIND OUT HIS OPINION ON WHAT ALASKANS WANT.

 THE LEGISLATURE INITIALLY SET UP THE P-F-D TO GIVE ALASKANS $50 FOR EVERY YEAR THEY HAD BEEN IN ALASKA - WITH A CAP AT A THOUSAND DOLLARS. TWENTY YEARS AGO THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR THE PERNAMENT FUND RECOMMENDED CHANGING TO A PERCENT OF MARKET VALUE OR POMV APPROACH OF MANAGING THE FUND. IF EITHER OF THESE MEASURES HAD BEEN FOLLOWED TODAY THE STATE WOULD HAVE ROBUST FUNDING FOR SERVICES WITH THE CITIZENS ENJOYING A HEALTHY PFD.

Alaska Supreme Court Rules In Favor Of Governor Bill Walker On PFD Disbursements

The Alaska Supreme Court ruled Friday, August 25th, that the State of Alaska is well within it’s rights to dictate the amount of the PFD annually distributed to Alaskans.

Alaska state senator Bill Wielechowski joined with two former state legislators – Rick Halford and Clem Tillion –  to sue the State of Alaska over the 2016 reduction in the amount of the Permanent Fund Dividends driven by Governor Bill Walker.

The legislators sought for a court ruling that the dividend program statutes contain a constitutionally permissible revenue dedication “automatically” transferring prescribed revenues from the earnings reserve to the dividend fund without need for legislative appropriation and not subject to the governor’s veto.

The court disagreed with the legislators, a move Wielechowski feels Alaskans will feel an immediate effect from should the Governor call the legislature back in session in October.

Bill Wielechowski

Senator Bill Wielechowski (D D-H): “The Legislature can do whatever they want.  The governor can set the PFD at whatever level he wants.  He can eliminate it. The Legislature can eliminate it. They can do whatever they want. It’s a very dangerous precedent.”

In an interview with KSRM, Wielechowski said that the Plaintiff’s aren’t taking this decision sitting down.  He had just spoken to Halford and Tillion, and they felt the decision would galvanize Alaskans around the PFD.

Former Senator Clem Tillion: “It’s a disappointment to me, but that just means we are going to have to gather signatures and put it on the ballot.”

Wielechowski says that he didn’t think arbitrary  PFD disbursements were  intended by the legislature that created the PFD program,  and that it was time to take the matter to a vote of the people.

In it’s ruling the court noted that the permanent fund was proposed by then-Governor Jay Hammond to save for future generations a percentage of revenue generated from nonrenewable resources, and Hammond also sought to curb wasteful government spending of expected increased revenues.

Story as aired on KSRM News:

www.radiokenai.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Dorene-on-Alaska-Supreme-Court-rules-in-favor-of-governor-bill-walker-on-pfd-disbursements.mp3

Legislators Feel October Special Session More Likely To Be A PFD Grab Than New Taxes

Courtesy of Ron Niebrugge

With Friday’s ruling by the Alaska Supreme Court granting full discretion to the Governor and the Legislature as to how much, if any, of the permanent fund is distributed to Alaskans in an annual dividend – some say that income taxes and sales taxes are going to be thrown off the table should Governor Bill Walker call the legislature back into a Special Session in October, and discussions will instead center around using the earnings from the fund to keep Alaska’s budget in the black.

Senator Bill Wielechowski (D D-H) “The governor is potentially going to call us back in October, and this will be a point of discussion – the PFD.”

In an interview with KSRM News, Wielechowski’s fellow Senator Donald Olson of Nome expressed his belief that the PFD will stay around a thousand to fifteen hundred dollars, and any additional earnings past funding dividends would be considered for revenue enhancement.

Senator Donald Olson (D D-T): “There are a fair number of people that are in the majority that are trying to make sure that we did not have anything like an income tax.  In order to do that, in order to fund government, you would have to be taking money from the permanent fund earning reserve, and then could have an effect on the permanent fund dividend – the size of it.”

Senator Donny Olson

House Majority Member Scott Kawasaki of Fairbanks says having legislators running for office will make it difficult to get any new revenue generating taxes passed, as members will not be wanting to tell potential voters that their pocketbooks are going to be lighter next year.

Representative Scott Kawasaki (D D1): “It starts to get legislators to do what they think they should do. I suspect there won’t be any action, at least until late next summer.”

Representative Chris Tuck

The House Majority Leader Chris Tuck of Anchorage strongly feels that the House will look further than the permanent fund for revenue.

House Majority Leader Representative Chris Tuck (D D-23): “The House isn’t going to just do a permanent fund only plan, because that is unfair to rural Alaskans, that is actually unfair to low income Alaskans as well, and it doesn’t do anything in capturing out-of-state workers who are benefiting tremendously with the high paying jobs here in Alaska.”

Story as ran on KSRM News:

http://www.radiokenai.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Dorene-on-Lwegislators-feel-october-special-session-more-likely-to-be-a-pfd-grab-than-new-taxes.mp3