Testimony on PFDs
Dear Editor: This Thursday at 6 p.m., Sitkans can object to the massive PFD payments that Gov. Dunleavy wants to hand out at the expense of our schools, ferry system, and other essential services. These are payments in excess of the current year’s PFD.
The state Senate is seeking your opinion on this matter during a hearing on Senate Bills 23 and 24. You can: 1) testify in person at the Legislative Information Office in Totem Square where a live feed will connect you to the senate meeting in progress, 2) email Senator Mike Shower (Senate State Affairs Chair) at Senator.Mike.Shower@akleg.gov and reference SB 23 and 24.
We suggest both live and written testimony, but an email is fine if you aren’t able to visit the LIO. Your message can be simple: I oppose additional PFD payments from previous years and support using that revenue for education, the ferry system, and other essential services.
How can we keep Gov. Dunleavy’s budget from crippling Alaska? That was the question 115 Sitkans – Democrats, Republicans and Independents – asked JKT when he spoke in town last Friday. The answer to this question is action from every concerned citizen. Saying “no” to additional PFD payments this Thursday is the place to direct your energy right now. Testimony starts at 6 p.m., but you are welcome to arrive 15 minutes early and get your name near the top of testimony list.
For more information, call Beth at 738-9942 or Ken Fate at the Legislative Information Office at 747-6276.
Beth Short-Rhoads, Ariel Starbuck,
Emily Demmert, Collauna Marley,
KK Prussian, Stephen Courtright,
Kate Johnson, Pat Heuer,
and Bridget Hitchcock,
Families for Schools
