The Senate has passed the state’s operating budget — including a $1,150 Permanent Fund Dividend with $150 in energy relief — and sent it to the House for a concurrence vote Thursday, rejecting a last-ditch push by the Minority for a full statutory payout more than three times larger.
JUNEAU, Alaska - The Senate has passed the state’s operating budget — including a $1,150 Permanent Fund Dividend with $150 in energy relief — and sent it to the House for a concurrence vote Thursday, rejecting a last-ditch push by the Minority for a full statutory payout more than three times larger.
Of the eight amendments proposed, four passed the Senate Thursday, all sponsored by Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel, the Senate Finance Co-Chair. Because the Senate changed the bill, it now returns to the House for a concurrence vote. If it is unable to pass the chamber, the House Speaker and Senate President each appoint three members to negotiate a resolution.
When the bill left the House, lawmakers appropriated a $1,500 PFD set to deliver to Alaskans, but members of the slim House majority said it was likely to be decreased further. Recipients will also receive a $150 energy relief component in addition to the dividend due to rising prices across the nation.
Supporters say the extra funding isWhen it came to a vote, the 14-member majority, joined by three minority members, rejected it and sent a unified message: a full PFD comes at a steep price. , asked.
“The thing is that when we fund our government with revenue sources that people don’t see, we don’t have that discussion primarily. We have the discussion of what we want, not what are we willing to pay for? ” “I want to talk about what this looks like if this passes today,” Sen. Robert Yundt, R-Wasilla, said.
“If we lay off every single state trooper, every single village public safety officer, every single fishing team officer, we shut down the entire department of law, we get rid of the entire DOT transportation road maintenance ... we’re still not even close. “To bridge the gap, you then have to turn around and close down half of the schools in the state of Alaska. And I’m not just talking brick and mortar neighborhood schools,” Yundt added.
Senate Minority Leader Mike Cronk, R-Tok/Northway, also maintained it’s unrealistic.
“I’ve always asked people where we cut that and there’s nothing but crickets because it really is not possible to cut our government down to where we can pay a $2.5 billion dividend and then actually function as a state. Vetoed elections items work way into budgetSen.
Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, said much of what was included in the amendment would have been included in the vetoed elections bill.appropriates $1 million for a 30-day special session, which lawmakers have begun to expect as the session begins to wrap up. Lawmakers are tracking the governor’s position as they move quickly to pass bills the administration says are critical to creating the decades-long proposed LNG pipeline.
On Wednesday, the House Resources committee moved the governor’s LNG property tax bill out of its committee, the first LNG bill to do so.said this week that they aren’t certain they’ll be able to pass legislation on the issue by the end of session.of the Senate Resources version of the bill, which is different than the version passed out of the House, but has an Alternative Volumetric Tax higher than what Glenfarne President Adam Prestidge said was viable for the project.
“Why would I put a bill into law if it doesn’t work? ” the governor answered a question from Alaska’s News SourceMonday.
“Why would I pass a bill if we have experts saying, that’s not going to work? That doesn’t make any sense at all. We’re going to work to get a bill that works. ”Plane crashes near Knik Glacier, pilot seriously injuredAnchorage woman appears in court on murder charge in mother’s deathHalong relocation: Citing bureaucratic confusion, future homes of Kipnuk, Kwigillingok remains uncertain‘Bodies may be found, but the trauma never, ever ends’: Alaska delegation announces MMIP task force
2026 Pfd Permanent Fund Dividend How Much Is The 2026 Pfd How Much Is The Alaska Oil Check Pfd Amount 2026 Amount Ktut Ktuu Alaska News Ktvf
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