Rep. Chris Tuck

I introduced amendment #1 to the operating budget to restore the full Permanent Fund Dividend to all Alaskans – and it passed 21 to 19.
Today, against my objections, my amendment was amended down to a smaller dividend amount. This is very disappointing.
I agree with former Governor Hammond’s arguments.

Tomorrow, the House Finance Committee will be taking public testimony on a proposal to place the Permanent Fund Dividend into the Constitution. The committee meeting starts at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, March 12, and public testimony will be taken following an explanation of the resolution. Depending on the amount of testimony, it may be continued in the evening and the following day.

The last several weeks have been busy for all of us as budget subcommittees have been meeting to review the Governor’s proposed FY19 operating budget.

Yesterday, the House finalized the budget subcommittee process and passed our recommendations for each government department to the full Finance Committee. This year, I served on the budget subcommittees for Administration, Commerce Community & Economic Development, Governor, Legislature, University of Alaska, and Military & Veterans’ Affairs.

I want to hear from you, so I can serve you better in the Alaska Legislature! Come for a legislative update and have an opportunity to discuss issues and ideas on how we can improve services for our neighborhoods and state.

Thank you to everyone who has contacted my office this legislative session. I always appreciate talking and discussing issues with as many people as possible. My goal is to find and apply real workable solutions that put Alaskans back to work and help make Alaska a better place to live. In pursuing these goals, I want to share a few reports that paint a picture of Alaska’s economic situation.