Governor signs budget that has $1,718 Permanent Fund dividend, extra funds for schools

On the last business day of the fiscal year, Gov. Mike Dunleavy signed the 2025 state operating and capital budgets.

The operating budget is $12.2 billion, and the capital budget is $3.5 billion line-item vetoes reduced the operating budget by $105.7 million and the capital budget by $125.3 million.

A day earlier, the governor signed Senate Bill 22 in a private, unannounced ceremony, making June 19th a paid state holiday starting next year in honor of the ending of slavery in the United States. The cost to the state of Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson’s signature legislation is nearly $1 million a year, mostly for overtime for public safety and other workers who must work on state holidays. State employees now have 12 paid holidays and most also have three weeks of personal leave.

The FY2025 budget funds state government from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025.

In the budget, there’s a $1,718 Permanent Fund dividend for every eligible Alaskan.

“The framers of Alaska’s Constitution codified a strong chief executive to ensure responsible budgeting. This budget reflects their intentions. By maintaining focus and fiscal discipline, this budget increases funding where it is needed most while at the same time reducing total Unrestricted General Fund spending,” Dunleavy said. “It provides additional funding to school districts needed to address the cost of inflation and provides additional targeted funding for programs that will improve student outcomes. We also are making essential investments in energy that will lay the groundwork for more reliable and affordable energy for Alaskans for decades to come. As has been the case every year I’ve been Governor, we are ensuring our Alaska State Troopers and Village Public Safety Officers have the resources they need to protect Alaskans, and through the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation we are helping more Alaskans be able to buy their own home and find quality housing.”

Vetoes include added funds for public broadcasting, marketing money for Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, and various other line items.

View the operating budget veto list here.

View the capital budget veto list here.

Key items in the FY2025 budget include:

Education

• $174.6 million one-time $680 Base Student Allocation (BSA) increase
• $7.3 million one-time Pupil Transportation increase
• $62.8 million for School Major Maintenance, Relocations, Renovations, and Replacements 
• $87.5 million for University of Alaska operations and deferred maintenance

Energy

• $23.0 million for the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation Energy Efficiency Research and Energy Weatherization
• $10.5 million for the Renewable Energy Grant Fund
• $11.1 million to the University of Alaska Fairbanks for Alaska Railbelt Carbon Capture & Sequestration Project

Public Safety

• $3.5 million for ten additional Village Public Safety Officer (VPSO) positions and VPSO salary increases
• $700 thousand for investigations, outreach, and education on missing and murdered Indigenous persons 
• $9.5 million for replacement of a patrol vessel for southeast Alaska to respond to emergencies, search and rescue operations, and enforce laws and regulations protecting Alaska coastline communities

Affordability

• $53.2 million for Alaska Housing Finance Corporation housing programs for home buyers, owners, and renters to provide safe, quality, affordable housing
• $2.8 million for the Alaska Addiction Rehabilitation Services residential expansion project
• $1.5 million for the for a Denali Commission housing program

Since FY2019, budget growth has averaged 1.2 percent annually, the governor’s office said.

Click here for Office of Management and Budget FY2025 budget documents.