It has been announced that the residents of Alaska would be receiving their stimulus check payments from the government up to a sum of around $3,200. Interestingly, the stimulus payments for this state are not really stimulus payments, but would rather constitute themselves as annual dividends that the state usually pays out.
The Governor of the state, Mike Dunleavy, did approve this stimulus payment in the early part of the year, and most of the eligible residents are expected to get the payment as soon as this month. In the month of May, the Governor and the state legislature went on to approve the annual budget. This budget also included a provision that would deliver payment of $3,200 to eligible residents before the year expires.
For those who are unaware, the stimulus check payment for Alaska construes an annual dividend that the state pays to residents to share the wealth of the oil that is present in the state. The state will be using the Alaska Permanent Fund, which was created previously in 1982- to fund the dividend payment. The Governor stated that the budget was not just a spending plan- rather it was a blueprint for the future of Alaska. This budget would be reflecting the ambitions and values of the people that this is designed for. He further mentioned that the legislation would definitely accomplish this- as he believes.
Stimulus Check To Be A Big Part Of Alaska’s Revenue
Initially, the Senate of the state went on to propose an oil-wealth stimulus check payment of $5,000 to the eligible residents. Yet, as further negotiations came forward, the result was a decrease in the amount to a sum of $3,200, according to Alaska Public Media. Still, this payment has the distinction of being the second largest payment in the history of the state. One important point that they need to remember is that the check for this year also combines two different checks, where one of which is the usual dividend check of $2,550, and the other is the energy relief payment of $650.
Citizens who have been deemed eligible should ideally expect the oil-wealth stimulus check payments to be issued in their bank accounts on the 20th of September. Residents who have chosen to receive their payments through paper checks will have to wait till October. It has been noted that Alaska usually pays all of its dividends in October, but this year has seen lawmakers deciding to move the payment forward in order to help those who were struggling with the high price of gasoline and energy. Just this year, the payment saw itself being expedited due to the pandemic.
In a tweet put out the previous month, Governor Dunleavy mentioned that he was quite happy to announce that the PFD deposit day would be much earlier this year- on the 20th of September. He also mentioned that the dividend was expected to go beyond a sum of $3,200 per person. According to the Department of Revenue for the state, it had been processing close to 78,000 applications that would determine the eligibility of an individual for their stimulus check payment. Interestingly, applicants can also check the status of their application through the Department of Revenue in Alaska.
As it stands, Alaska has not been the only state which would be seeing a stimulus check payment. It has been informed that Tom Wolf, the Governor of Pennsylvania, and state legislators, have committed themselves to providing direct stimulus payments to the residents throughout the state. This would allow them to cope with the increasing prices of food, gas, and consumer products.
Back in February, the Governor had already announced the PA Opportunity Program, which was a scheme that was worth $500 million. This scheme would be sending $2,000 checks to every citizen of the state that earns below a sum of $80,000. This scheme, nevertheless, hasn’t yet won any major support from the Republic end, but the Governor has refused to back down.
Pennsylvania Struggling To Arrive At A Decision Regarding Stimulus Check Payments
The Governor reiterated his decision to continue pushing for the proposal for another stimulus check payment despite a lack of support from the Republicans in the state legislature. This confirmation came this week in a press conference with State Representative Sara Innamorato at the Roots of Faith ministries in Sharpsburg.
This is also precisely the place where he called on the Republican-controlled General Assembly to pass this proposal. He went on to state that sometimes in politics, just a little bit of persistence does make a major difference. He further claimed that this was not a partisan issue. As it stood, people needed help after the pandemic, and the government certainly had the ability to do that.
Despite the increasing clamors for a stimulus check payment, the critics haven’t been silent. Desmond Lachmann, the former deputy director at the International Monetary Fund and a Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, does mention that more stimulus payments at this point may not be the wisest decision. He stated that he believed that the main economic problem for the country was that the rate of inflation was at a multi-decade high and amidst an overheated economy. In order to address this issue, one would need money as well as budget policy restraint.
The author further warned that stimulating the economy further through stimulus check payments could increase the pressure on the Federal Reserve to increase the rate of interest in order to get inflation under control. Needless to say, this is one concern that the Republicans share in Pennsylvania. This week, Clint Owlett, the Republican State Representative went on to note that direct stimulus payments have proven to be a major cause of inflation over the last couple of years. Back in July, Jerome Powell- the Fed Chair- informed reporters that the central bank would definitely like to witness the demand going down for a sustained period to create slack in this economy.
