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PFD lawsuit moves to Alaska Supreme Court

Members of the Alaska Supreme Court today reversed the lower court’s decision and reinstated Dean Westlake as the winner of the Democratic primary in House District 40. (Photo by Rachel Waldholz/Alaska’s Energy Desk)
Members of the Alaska Supreme Court. (Photo by Rachel Waldholz/Alaska’s Energy Desk)

The state Supreme Court will decide if Alaskans’ Permanent Fund dividends this year were the right amount.

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That’s after Senator Bill Wielechowski and two former lawmakers filed an appeal on Dec. 20, asking the court to overrule a Superior Court judge.

Wielechowski, Rick Halford and Clem Tillion argued that the Permanent Fund Corporation should have transferred the full amount for dividends -- which would have yielded checks worth more than two thousand dollars.

But the corporation only enough money to cover about half that amount, after Governor Bill Walker vetoed the other half. The dividend in October was $1,022.

Anchorage Superior Court Judge William Morse ruled in November that Walker had the authority to veto the money.

Andrew Kitchenman is the state government and politics reporter for Alaska Public Media and KTOO in Juneau. Reach him at akitchenman@alaskapublic.org.