By Quinn Townsend – Alaska Policy Forum
With revenue forecasts as dismal as this year’s have been, the legislature’s passage of a very large budget for fiscal year 2024 (FY 2024) is unfortunate. In this coming fiscal year, legislators plan on spending over $8 billion in state funds on government operations and capital projects (not including Permanent Fund Dividend payments).
In the end, officials plan to spend $8.06 billion in state funds, which includes Undesignated General Funds, Designated General Funds, and “Other” State Funds, but excludes the Permanent Fund Dividend payments. This is $353 million above Alaska Policy Forum’s Responsible Alaska Budget (RAB) of $7.71 billion and 9.7% more than last year’s budget. The RAB represents a strong fiscal rule that sets a maximum budget amount based on the previous year’s budget adjusted for inflation and population growth. Abiding by the RAB limit, $7.71 billion for FY 2024, would have prioritized the needs of Alaskans without excessively growing government.
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Alaska needs to recover from the economic challenges of the last few years, even while continuing to recover from a decade of excessive government spending from 2004 to 2015. More widespread government spending makes the second problem worse while doing nothing to address the first.
On a positive note, policymakers are not expecting to draw any money from the state’s savings accounts. For this, we applaud the legislature.
Rather than showing fiscal restraint during a time when Alaskan families are having to tighten personal budgets, legislators unnecessarily increased the state’s budget. Moving forward, Alaska Policy Forum will continue to call for a Responsible Alaska Budget that grows only by annual population growth and inflation, as well as advising adoption of a meaningful constitutional spending limit, and broader fiscal restraint.
Alaskans deserve fiscal responsibility.
The views expressed here are those of the author.
9 Comments
Legislature’s we have in Juneau what a joke.
A budget for just in case? do the right thing cut the spending.
Remember it’s the law to a full PFD
I have said it several times, as have a lot of other folks.. They need to be relocated from Juneau, whether they like it or not, to the mainland where the citizens can have access to, and confront then over this stupidity. Every time they look in the mirror, they see.. “PFD”.. ” IT’S MINE”.. “YEAH” !!!!
Everyone of these legislators that voted for this over bloated need to be voted out. Follow the law. If you cant get a fiscal plan and get the PFD off the table after 7 years in the 90 days session instead of going to Juneau and wasting time. Resign . Dan
Gotta look and see if any Alaskans are on Russia’s list of banned people from their country! Obama is on that list!
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/saraharnold/2023/05/20/russia-bans-barack-obama-from-entering-country-n2623495
Dunleavy is on the list of banned from the valley! Demboski is next!
Off topic: US Senators offered satellite phones! https://www.westernjournal.com/us-senators-issued-satellite-phones-preparation-disruptive-event/
https://americanmilitarynews.com/2023/05/us-senators-issued-satellite-phones-for-emergency-communication-report/
let the fireing begin! TOTALLY feels like a slap in the face, these people aren’t in it for We the people, their in it for greed & money!
How many of Alaska’s Legislators hold valid Oath of Office?
‘Attorney Todd Callender reveals Biden officials are IMPOSTORS who swore no oaths to America’
https://www.brighteon.com/e7bffb6c-2064-41c4-ae05-e9d75d1c0098