Editorial

"Permanent Fund Dividend" by John Davis - KSRM, Radio Kenai - Think About It…. February 20, 2002

Surprising to some in the state, is that most Alaskans now appear to be resigned to the apparent legislative design to take back our Permanent Fund Dividend, one way or another.

The legislature has done its collective best to lead Alaskans to accept the feeling of most legislators and the Governor that it is just not possible to reduce the cost of government and make cuts in any of our current government programs, sufficient to balance the budget.

This has been accomplished, by calling in a host of experts to work on designing the best way to raise the dollars needed to sustain our present level of government expenditure. And that, of course, is around $3500. for each man, woman and child in the state and the highest level per capita in the country. The next highest level of government expenditure is in Hawaii with about $2600.per capita and the national average is just under about $1800 per person.

Week after week, the work goes on in Juneau about what kind of taxes would best raise the money needed to fill the budget gap and how it is just not in the best interest of our state to reduce the cost of government and its programs. One way or another, a majority
of the legislature is determined to get their hands on our permanent fund. If Alaskans won’t stand for taking it directly, then they want to get it back with some kind of tax. Income Tax, Sales Tax, user taxes….whatever, they are dedicated to designing some way to get it back..

Alaskans appear to have accepted this mentality. Certainly you see no ground swell of opposition or any statewide movement to save our permanent fund earnings and to keep our Permanent Fund Dividend.

The situation is certainly a lot different than last fall in Tennessee, when that state’s legislature passed the first income tax Tennessee in decades. What a ground swell of protest that was. The day before the governor was to sign the Income Tax measure
Tennessee residents stormed the capital building, coming in human wave after wave, breaking out windows and overwhelming police. The Governor contained the situation by tearing up the Income Tax bill and refusing to sign it.

This is a critical year in Alaska’s history. It a year when, either one way or another the legislature will get their hands on the peoples nest egg and take away the PFD or get serious about cutting the cost of government and government programs. And unless,
something our of the ordinary happens, its obvious in Juneau, right now, that we Alaskans can kiss our permanent fund dividend, our Permanent Fund earnings and eventually the Permanent Fund itself, goodbye.

Think About It….. JCD - 2/20/02
 

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