Alaska Legislature starts budget process facing historically volatile oil prices

this legislative session. Neither have agreed on a new dollar amount for schools, with the Senate Education Committee set to hold its first hearing Monday.Thursday about increasing the per student funding formula known as the Base Student Allocation. House Speaker Cathy Tilton, R-Wasilla, said a conversation about that should take place, but that “there could be other options and alternatives.”

A complicating factor will be the size of the capital budget. Last year, it was more than $700 million, largely to pay for an expanded Port of Nome and to rebuild the crumbling Port of Alaska. Before 2021, the capital budget had been closer $100 million annually for several years with strained state finances.

The largest single outlay in Dunleavy’s budget proposal is for a statutory Permanent Fund dividend at a cost of $2.5 billion. If approved, eligible Alaskans would receive a record-high PFD of roughly $3,900. “We can cross our fingers and pray for oil to go up and stay up, but that’s not a fiscal plan and it’s not a strong future for the state,” he said.

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