Politics

Alaska senator to file lawsuit challenging governor's PFD veto

Anchorage Democratic Sen. Bill Wielechowski said he will file a lawsuit Friday challenging Gov. Bill Walker's veto of part of Alaskans' Permanent Fund dividend checks.

The legal challenge comes a month after Wielechowski sent a formal letter to Angela Rodell, the chief of the state-controlled Permanent Fund Corp., asking her to ignore Walker's veto and follow a law that requires the transfer of half of the corporation's available income at the end of each year into a dividend account.

The letter, which was disregarded by the corporation, was a required procedural step before Wielechowski could file a lawsuit, he said.

Walker said his veto — which will reduce but not eliminate dividends — was necessary to preserve state savings amid a massive budget deficit, and his administration maintains that Walker's constitutional veto power supersedes the law cited by Wielechowski.

The amount of the dividend is usually announced by administration officials in September and the first payments to residents occur in October.

Nathaniel Herz

Anchorage-based independent journalist Nathaniel Herz has been a reporter in Alaska for nearly a decade, with stints at the Anchorage Daily News and Alaska Public Media. Read his newsletter, Northern Journal, at natherz.substack.com

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