“Permanent Fund Day” Comes and Goes – Alaskans Rejoice

October 4, 2019

Alaskans celebrate some unique formal and informal days throughout the year.

There’s Seward’s Day – the last Monday in March each year – celebrating the day then-Secretary of State William Seward penned an agreement with Russia in 1867 to transfer the Alaskan territory to the US for a paltry sum (even then!) of $.02 per acre.

There’s Alaska Day – October 18^th – celebrating the formal transfer from Russia to the United States later in 1867.

There’s Elizabeth Peratrovich Day – February 16^th – celebrating the Tlingit civil rights leader who helped pen the US’s first statewide anti-discrimination laws in 1945 (14 years before Alaska became the US’s 49^th state).

And then there’s “Permanent Fund Day”, where every eligible man, woman and child in Alaska receives an annual check – varying between $386 and $2,062 since its inception in 1982. 

Yesterday, October 3^rd, checks totaling $1,606 – $1.013 billion in all – were deposited into the hands of Alaskans.  This money will be spent on bills, vacations, college savings, investments and donated to non-profits across Alaska.  The dividends are a payout of a portion of the returns of the $67 billion fund.

To the Alaskans who received their checks yesterday, let’s make sure to celebrate the Fund’s success, as well as shout a big “thank you” to the men and women in the energy and resource development sectors of our state’s economy.  Why? Because the Permanent Fund grows not only from solid investment decisions, but also because of oil and gas production.  If Alaska was suddenly to lose its ability to responsibly develop its oil and gas reserves, the Permanent Fund would look dramatically different than it does today.

Power The Future is bullish on the prospects for long-term responsible resource development in Alaska, excited about the thousands of jobs that will be made available as future projects are approved for extraction, and look forward to hearing about future PFDs that exceed what was deposited this year.