JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The House Finance Committee last week fell short of the votes needed to advance a compromise bill calling for limited Alaska Permanent Fund dividend checks to counter the state’s multibillion-dollar fiscal shortfall.
A deeply divided committee voted 5-6 on June 17 to move the bill to a full vote on the House floor as the special session winds down.
The new version of the bill rejected by the 11-member committee called for limiting dividend payouts to $1,500 for residents this year and next to help counter the fallout of low oil prices. The previous version, which passed the Senate, limits distributions to $1,000 the next three years.
Rep. Tammie Wilson, R-North Pole, echoed what many of the other no votes expressed, that she couldn’t support the legislation with a lack of buy-in from her constituents.
“This is Alaskans’ money,” Wilson said. “And I am not going to take it from them.”
Committee co-chair Mark Neuman said he personally was opposed to the bill, but felt it needed to go to a full vote.
In voting yes, committee chair Steve Thompson noted the proposed $1,500 dividend amount would still be larger than four of the last six yearly dividend payouts to residents. He also noted the issue would be revisited in three years.
“This to me is a part of what we need to get done,” he said.
Before the vote, Revenue Commissioner Randall Hoffbeck told committee members that passing the bill would put the state in a better place, because it would be only 20- to 25 percent reliant on oil to fund state government. Alaska has long relied heavily on oil revenue. In recent years, it provided about 90 percent of the money available for lawmakers to spend. That’s down to about 75 percent, the state Revenue department says.
Hoffbeck also warned that if no action is taken this year, the problem will only get worse..
The vote was taken after committee members noted Gov. Bill Walker has indicated the likelihood of calling for another special session following the current one, which ends Tuesday.
A spokeswoman for Walker did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.
The measure has been the centerpiece of Gov. Bill Walker’s fiscal plan and would roughly halve Alaska’s more than $3 billion deficit.
The state is expected to run out of saving by 2022 if the deficit is not cut down in the next few years. The impact could result in an end to the dividend program within five years and force the state to impose harsh budget cuts or steep tax hikes.
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