Alaskans have until Sunday, March 31 to apply for a 2024 Permanent Fund Dividend.
According to the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend Division’s website, more than 565,000 dividend applications have been filed as of Thursday, March 28. Alaskans have until 11:59 p.m. on March 31 to file an online application.
Division Director Genevieve Wojtusik said on March 28 that application rates have been “pretty much on track” this season, with staff at the division’s offices handling an anticipated last-minute surge.
“We’ve helped over 1,000 people a day every day this week, either by in-person (service) in Juneau, Anchorage, or Fairbanks, or on our phone queue statewide or email system statewide,” Wojtusik said.
The division’s Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau offices are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Wojtusik said no extended or weekend hours at those locations are planned this week. She also encouraged people applying in person to have identification, as well as supporting documents.
“We appreciate them bringing a form of ID and if it’s their first time filing, they’ll need to provide a birth certificate or passport. But they don’t need to do that by March 31,” Wojtusik said. “We just encourage everyone to apply now; we can get supporting documentation later.”
The amount of this year’s dividend is still being hammered out during a contentious session of the Alaska Legislature. Lawmakers have been pushing back against Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposed budget, which calls for a $3,300 dividend and no increase in the state’s base student allocation to schools. Last week, the Legislature narrowly failed to override Dunleavy’s veto of an education bill featuring a BSA increase.
RELATED: Alaska House debates constitutional amendment guaranteeing Permanent Fund dividend payment
Last year’s dividend amount was $1,312.
Copyright 2024 Alaska Public Media. To see more, visit Alaska Public Media.