Governor Mike Dunleavy announced that the 2022 Permanent Fund Dividend will be $3,284.00, which marks this year’s PFD, the largest in the program’s 41-year history. Alaskans who selected direct deposit on their application will receive their dividend beginning on Tuesday, September 20. All other applications and disbursement methods that have been determined by September 28, which includes applicants receiving a paper check, will be distributed starting the week of October 6.
In a press conference on Thursday, Gov. Dunleavy said:
“So, it’s $3,284. So, for a family of five, it’s over $16,000 that’s going to help pay for a lot of things. Everything from fuel, food, medical bills, car repairs, rent, you name it, it’s going to help. Again, this is not something that just occurred this year. This is an Alaska institution. There are a lot of states in this country right now that are jealous of Alaska, but I want to thank those folks many decades ago that saw the wisdom of putting this together so that future Alaskans can partake in this.”
The early release of the PFD was done to help alleviate inflationary concerns that Alaskans have been struggling with all year long. Additionally, the 2022 PFD will inject $2.1 billion into the state’s economy. For small business owners, it would bring a spike in economic activity for the remainder of the year.
Alaskans are encouraged to use the state’s website, www.pfd.alaska.gov to check the status of their PFD application. The 2022 Permanent Fund Dividend amount was announced at the Three Bears Alaska store in Palmer.
Additionally, the amount of this year’s Permanent Fund Dividend includes the Energy Relief Payment. The Division states on their website that the Dividend and Energy Relief will be combined as one payment, per the passage of House Bill 281. The Energy Relief portion will also be applied to deductions of an applicant’s Dividend, which could include charitable contributions, Alaska529 college savings, backup withholding, garnishments, and/or assignments.
The governor earlier this year asked the State Legislature to help alleviate the economic hardship for Alaskans by paying every eligible resident a PFD this year of at least $3,700.
