JUNEAU – In a recent radio interview, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy said he will not approve new taxes without a statewide vote on one of his proposed constitutional changes.
Barring sharp increases in oil prices, the abolition of the Permanent Fund dividend or unprecedented cuts to state services, Dunleavy’s position means at least two more years of deficit spending by the state.
“I’m not going to support new income. I’m not going to support the taking of money from Alaskans unless they have the opportunity to vote on their constitutional change, ”Dunleavy said in a talk-radio interview on Thursday.
“If tax changes are not made prior to the constitutional change, then indeed there will be a deficit for a few more years,” said Corey Allen Young, a spokesman for the governor.
“We know and recognize that the timing of the implementation of the major structural change that is needed will take time,” said Young. “There is no way to completely make up for the deficit in one year.”
On Tuesday, the Alaska Senate’s State Affairs Committee approved three constitutional amendments proposed by the governor, but committee chairman Mike Shower, R-Wasilla, said all three still have a long way to go. To become effective, each must be considered by multiple committees in the House and Senate, and must receive highest majority votes in both halves of the legislature before being ratified in the next general election of the state.
Dunleavy’s statement on Thursday contradicted a 10-year tax plan published by the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget late last year. That plan requires $ 1.2 billion from “other sources of income” to balance the budget from next year.
With Alaska’s available savings accounts nearly used up, the state’s deficits can be covered with additional cash from the Alaska Permanent Fund. Revenues already account for more than 70% of the state’s annual revenue.
Getting more out of the Permanent Fund will reduce the amount of money available for services and dividends going forward, and Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. Director Angela Rodell. told the House Finance Committee Tuesday that the company does not recommend exceeding an exceeded sustainable spending limit. in 2018.
Three floors below that meeting, the Senate State Affairs Committee heard a public testimony about the governor’s constitutional amendments and advanced it without making any changes.
• The first amendment would require a statewide vote before tax increases take effect.
• The second would tighten the existing state spending ceiling.
• The third would change the traditional formula for paying the Permanent Fund dividend and enshrine the dividend in the Constitution.
This year, the traditional formula would result in a payout of about $ 3,170 per person. The new formula would pay approximately $ 2,380, based on 630,000 applicants and the next scheduled permanent fund transfer.
Shower said amendments are possible in the Senate Judiciary Committee, the next panel scheduled to examine the ideas.
Two years ago, when Dunleavy proposed similar amendments, Shower’s committee received a tsunami of public testimony. This time, there were fewer than 10 callers for each proposal, despite advertisements from the governor and lawmakers on the committee.
“I think with everything else going on, it got a little bit lost in the shuffle,” Shower said during a pause in the committee process.
“Seven people thought it was important to testify – it’s crazy,” said Sen. Scott Kawasaki, D-Fairbanks and the minority committee member.