IT’S COMPLICATED BY ALASKA STATUTE
A lawsuit is claiming the State of Alaska is denying a woman an Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend because she is in a same-sex marriage to a member of the military and is out of state.
Denali Nicole Smith, whose Alaska voter address is in District 20 in downtown Anchorage, says she was told by someone at the Permanent Fund Division that she would have qualified for her oil wealth dividend if she had been married to a man, rather than a woman.
Smith is said to be in a marriage with Miranda Murphy, a member of the military who is stationed in Jacksonville, Fla. The two evidently married in Florida this year, although MRAK is not able to verify when.
Alaska’s constitution defines marriage as a sanctioned relationship between one man and one woman. That provision was struck down as unconstitutional in 2015 by the U.S. Supreme Court, which effectively legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states.
Spouses who are with their military husbands or wives while stationed out of state are entitled to their dividends. Smith wants to be treated the same as a heterosexual spouse, and is asking that the state not only pay her the dividend from this year, but also pay the dividends of any other same-sex Alaskans in the same situation, essentially treating those marriages the same as heterosexual marriages.
But it’s unclear if the two were actually married during the relevant timeframe in 2018. In a First Coast News segment in Jacksonville in June of 2019, her spouse Miranda Murphy tells the reporter that she’s at the firing range because she’s the only woman in her house.
[View that news segment at this link]
The two are, in fact, listed as co-owners of a house in Jacksonville, Fla. as of March, 2019, when they purchased it from a management holdings company.
“The State of Alaska denied Plaintiff’s eligibility for the 2019 Permanent Fund Dividend because she is a woman married to a woman who is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States who would, if married to a male member of the Armed Forces of the United States, be categorically eligible for the 2019 PFD,” according to the lawsuit.
“PFD Division representatives also verbally explained to Denali that if she were married to a man, she would not be denied her PFD,” her lawsuit states.
The story was reported first by Steve Quinn at KTVA.
“someone at the Permanent Fund Division that she would have qualified for her oil wealth dividend if she had been married to a man, rather than a woman.”
Yea, and “someone” at the PFD office told me I would be eligible for back PFD’s for years that I didn’t live in Alaska.
If you believe that, I have a bridge for sale you might be interested in.
Maybe when these people stop using their gender or sexual orientation as their weapons in every thing they do they will be seen as adults. Rules are rules. If you want to be a part of the dividends then maybe she should have read the requirements about it. But true to the libtards nature they think all rules can be busted apart in the name of same sex discrimination. Read the qualifications of things before you do things like sue. Just because you choose to be outside the lines, it does not mean the state has to accommodate you. Ridiculous law suit I hope gets thrown out.. Its a disgusting way to attempt to get your way.
The rules say she is eligible.
She is only eligible if they were married prior to filing for the PFD in 2018. If they weren’t married before the deadline for the filing, then she isn’t elgibile for a PFD this year.
Guess what the are both from Alaska !
Well,
If it is true that this was the only reason for denying her PFD, then it will be found invalid as per the 2015 Supreme Court’s decision there is NO distinction b/w man and women or “same sex” marriage in the U.S.
Don’t you have to have a physical address and ACTUALLY live in Alaska to qualify for the PFD?
Why should the State Of Alaska abide by the SCOTUS decision re same sex marriage when it doesn’t abide by the SCOTUS decision on mandated government union membership?
Actually, we are the first State to be going with Scotus on the union dues thing. MRAK just published an article on this, I believe.
Mainstream news media is reporting this as a Dunleavy decision.
Horrible optics for the governor. If you’re going to pick a hill to die on, maybe don’t choose one that the Supreme Court has already decided on?
Who is handling our governors PR?
The reason for denial (same sex marriage) appears unsupportable given court decisions at both the state and federal levels.
The facts in this case are:
Denali moved from Alaska to Florida as an unmarried person.
Denali willingly left the state.
Denali is ineligible for the PFD due to absence unless she qualifies for one of the allowable exemptions (being married to an active duty Alaska resident who was unwillingly transferred out of state being one).
Denali was not married to an active duty Alaskan when she willingly left the state.
The real question is does getting married (in a different state) to an active duty Alaskan after you’ve already decided to leave the state and have otherwise lost your eligibility for a PFD suddenly reinstate your eligibility?
Unless you’re gay, then everyone pays…you.
Given that the Left has declared that gender is not biological, and that you can be any gender you, on a whim, declare yourself to be, why didn’t she simply head it off by declaring that she identified as a man, and was the husband of the military spouse?
Pfd does what ever they want. They have to way too much power. They have to be liberal. Let’s blame everything on the governor. Does that sound familiar? Next it will be Trump’s fault. Let’s impeach him and the governor. Alaska democrats are an embarrassment. The the media and ADN are clowns.
Alaska’s attorney general says a woman who alleged she was wrongly denied her Permanent Fund dividend check because of her same-sex marriage is eligible.
Kevin Clarkson in a tweet called Denali Nicole Smith’s lawsuit “pointless.” He says her application for the check is listed as eligible but hasn’t been paid because of an address issue.
They need an address to send the check to.
I don’t care who she is married to. To be eligible for any given year’s PFD, they would have had to have been legally married at the time of the filing for the 2018 PFD. If they weren’t then she is not entitled to a PFD this year – plain and simple.
It’s only plain and simple , until you announce you’re gay. Then it’s complicated. Because anything that doesn’t go your way is automatically discrimination based on what gender (however it’s defined these days) you have sex with.
It used to be, “Stay out of our bedroom.”
Now it’s, “In your face and pay up!”
I don’t think many of us care what a person does in their bedroom. But we care when we are accused of discrimination at every turn.
Btw, she got her check before she filed her suit.
Gosh, this is really boring.
I was literally able to find her wife’s address in 3 minutes. They shouldn’t post so many details on here.
Thought doing anything to establish residency elsewhere, e.g., registeringvto vote, registering your vehicle, BUYING a house, would make you ineligible?
And nothing at all wrong in the Army either….
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