Alaska House approves broader list of Permanent Fund dividend exceptions

Members of the federal government’s ocean-mapping corps and Alaskans training for the merchant marine would continue to receive Permanent Fund dividends while away from the state, under a bill approved last week by the Alaska House of Representatives.

House Bill 75, from Rep. Jeremy Bynum, R-Ketchikan, is the first piece of legislation from a freshman lawmaker to pass either the House or Senate this year.

If approved by the Senate and signed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy, it would create new exceptions to the requirement that Alaskans be within the state in order to receive the dividend.

HB 75 would keep college students’ spring breaks and fall breaks from counting against their allowable absences from the state, and members of the “uniformed services,” rather than just the U.S. military, would receive exceptions as well.

That changed definition would allow members of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Corps, which operates the federal government’s fleet of mapping ships and conducts other scientific missions, to continue receiving dividends even if deployed away from the state.

HB 75 also allows the Permanent Fund Dividend Division to fingerprint its employees for federal criminal background checks and allows the general public to opt out of paper mailers for notices.

The House passed the bill 35-5, with five members of the Republican House minority opposed. None explained their reason during an eight-minute-long bill debate. It advances to the Senate for consideration.