Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks about state revenue during a press conference on Tuesday, March 15, 2022 in Juneau, Alaska. (Screenshot)

Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks about state revenue during a press conference on Tuesday, March 15, 2022 in Juneau, Alaska. (Screenshot)

Citing spike in oil prices, Dunleavy urges $3,700 PFD

Dunleavy said oil prices are still up overall and high inflation demands action

Citing a spike in oil prices, Gov. Mike Dunleavy during a press conference Tuesday in Juneau announced a projected $3.6 billion surplus in state funding and teased $3,700 in Alaska Permanent Fund dividend payments. Dunleavy called the projection “really good news” for Alaska and encouraged the Legislature to greenlight higher PFD payments.

Acknowledging the price of oil is “volatile” and that prices are down this week compared to a couple of weeks ago, Dunleavy said oil prices are still up overall and high inflation demands action. Dunleavy proposed putting what isn’t used for PFD payments into savings.

“We’re seeing inflation like we’ve never seen before,” Dunleavy said Tuesday. “We can afford — I repeat, we can afford — a much higher PFD than people have been contemplating. We need to help the people now.”

Even with a $3,700 PFD, Dunleavy said, Alaska is still looking at a $3.4 billion surplus. That payment, he said, reflects a retroactive dividend payment from 2021 as well the 2022 payment under a fifty-fifty plan. That plan splits permanent fund earnings equally between dividend payments and state services.

Alaska Department of Revenue Deputy Commissioner Brian Fechter said during Tuesday’s press conference that the state’s economic research group uses a five-day median of the futures market to calculate revenue projections. A release from Dunleavy’s office says that the forecast is based on Alaska North Slope crude oil prices.

The oil price forecast, which is based on futures markets prices through fiscal year 2029, forecasts oil prices of $91.68 in fiscal year 2022 and $101.00 for fiscal year 2023, to then stabilize at $77 by fiscal year 2031. Those numbers assume prices will increase with inflation.

“Based on the higher forecasted oil prices, petroleum is once again expected to be the largest source of (Unrestricted General Fund) revenue for FY 2022 and FY 2023, contributing over 50% of expected UGF in each of those two years,” the Alaska Department of Revenue’s Spring 2022 Revenue Forecast says.

As it relates to the PFD, Dunleavy emphasized that the Alaska Legislature will have the final say. He urged the body to support the $3,700 in payments and said his department is “looking forward” to start working on the issue.

The department’s full forecast can be accessed at tax.alaska.gov. Dunleavy’s full Tuesday press conference can be viewed on the governor’s Facebook page.

Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

The Kenai Peninsula College main entrance on Aug. 18, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Chiappone and Dunstan to speak at the KPC Showcase

Kenai Peninsula College continues its showcase with two new speakers this week and next

U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, talks about issues of concern regarding the proposed merger of supermarket chains Kroger and Albertsons during a floor speech in the House chamber on Wednesday. (Screenshot from official U.S. House of Representatives video feed)
Begich leads in early results, but Alaska’s U.S. House race won’t be immediately decided

About 245,000 ballots had been counted by 11:32 p.m., and Peltola trailed by about 5 percentage points

The Alaska governor’s mansion on Wednesday. Gov. Mike Dunleavy is considered a contender for a post in Donald Trump’s second presidential administration. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Election summary: Trump wins, GOP takes over U.S. Senate, Alaska may get new governor

Begich and repeal of ranked choice voting narrowly lead; GOP may lose control of state House.

Nesbett Courthouse in downtown Anchorage on Oct. 7, 2024. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Voters line up at the polling site at Anchorage City Hall on Nov. 4, 2024. City Hall was one of the designated early voting sites in Alaska’s largest city. It is not a designated site for Election Day voting. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Alaska Republicans lose two seats in state House, increasing odds of leadership switch

Rural Alaska precincts had reported few results by 11:30 p.m. Tuesday night.

Donald Trump won or was leading as of Wednesday morning in all seven swing states in the 2024 presidential election. (Doug Mills / The New York Times)
Donald Trump returns to power, ushering in new era of uncertainty

He played on fears of immigrants and economic worries to defeat Vice President Kamala Harris.

A voter is handed as ballot at Woodworth School in Dearborn, Mich., on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. One of the most consequential presidential elections in the nation’s modern history is well underway, as voters flocked to churches, schools and community centers to shape the future of American democracy. (Nick Hagen/The New York Times)
Trump verges on victory, picking up Pennsylvania

Donald Trump has captured Pennsylvania, the biggest prize of the seven battleground… Continue reading

Signs and supporters line the Kenai Spur Highway in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Update: Unofficial results for the 2024 general election

Preliminary, unofficial election results as of 9:55 p.m.

Poll worker Carol Louthan helps voters submit ballots at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Update: Bjorkman, Ruffridge, Elam and Vance lead in election night results

Several residents said that they came out to vote because they knew this election was “a big one.”

Most Read