Typical (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Wasilla: sex offender, crime rate, felons)

[Metlakatla]

This illustrates my point about how no politician who takes a realistic look at "the check" stands a chance of getting reelected.

http://www.ktva.com/dividend-tax-pro...ator-says-658/

There are so many families that depend on this check each year!! It's just plain crazy!!!

"The check" wasn't meant to support families. So sick of the sense of entitlement. I realize that "the check" isn't welfare (yet), but according to the last census, Alaska has the highest rate of welfare per capita than any other state in the U.S. I sometimes wonder if that isn't because "the check" attracted a considerable amount of people with entitlement mentalities.

[AK76]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

This illustrates my point about how no politician who takes a realistic look at "the check" stands a chance of getting reelected.

Dividend tax proposed as stopgap measure, legislator says | KTVA Anchorage CBS 11



"The check" wasn't meant to support families. So sick of the sense of entitlement. I realize that "the check" isn't welfare (yet), but according to the last census, Alaska has the highest rate of welfare per capita than any other state in the U.S. I sometimes wonder if that isn't because "the check" attracted a considerable amount of people with entitlement mentalities.

I think it more directly related to the bush populations and subsequent lack of economy in those places, and those who leave the bush for the city then end up homeless and/or taking advantage of public assistance.

I do agree with your premise, to some degree.

[Metlakatla]

I'm not sure that bush populations are large enough to have that much of an impact. The welfare rate seems to have grown proportionately w/population growth. It was only a couple of years ago that both Wasilla and Fairbanks were among the fastest-growing cities in the country. If anything, that influx of supposedly working people would have brought the per capita welfare rate down, but it doesn't seem to have happened that way.

[ffaemily]

I feel like the reason Alaska attracts a lot of criminals is because they think they can escape from it all in this state, and where criminals come so do welfare leachers.

[rntim]

I just read an article in the local paper that actually PFD applications are lower this year statewide.

[Metlakatla]

I wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that Alaska's population has declined in the last couple of years (the population growth I mentioned earlier wasn't really specific to this decade but rather to the years between the pipeline rush and maybe 2010).

[Dakster]

I was thinking the same thing Met. Another facet is that it takes a couple of years for new comers to get the PFD, so even if more people came to the state today, the PFD fillings would take a couple of years to catch up.

I did see a proposed 35% tax on the PFD check going thru the legislature.

Passed groups of people lobbying for their candidate today as I drove around Anchorage to my various doctor appointments....

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by ffaemily

I feel like the reason Alaska attracts a lot of criminals is because they think they can escape from it all in this state, and where criminals come so do welfare leachers.

Unfortunately, I think that's historically been the case. Alaska had some sort of loophole concerning sex offender reporting that makes it attractive to offenders from other states -- we even had one posting here a few years ago. Something about him was extremely off, especially after he posted a link to his website. After a little stalking, we discovered he was a serious sex offender from LA/FL. And...well, I've seen a lot of people come and go who were trying to get away from something. I will say, though, that at one time I lived between two convicted felons (one of for drugs and the other killed a guy), and they were both excellent neighbors.

[AK76]

Originally Posted by ffaemily

I feel like the reason Alaska attracts a lot of criminals is because they think they can escape from it all in this state, and where criminals come so do welfare leachers.

Those days are in the past, well coming to Alaska to avoid detection by law enforcement, that is. Law enforcement agencies have wised up the past couple decades and are much more likely to send feelers out here, now.

[keyman51]

Even though I live in the bush, I support that tax on the PFD if it were going to be the only tax that we would need to get us out of the hole. I know that there are a large amount of people here and in other villages that rely on it, but the state also wants to remove or lower profit sharing and PILT in villages. In our village this money is used to buy fuel to operate our city vehicles and help with heating our city building. Most villages and even cities get some profit sharing $, Anchorage got 14,000 last year. This is not much for Anchorage, but it could mean the difference between less road maintenance and maybe even no more running water because people would not be able to pay the water rates. Water rates here are $100 a month just to have running water, then you pay .02 per gallon of water on top of that. The state says that the villages get so more things, but our village has lost many full and part time state jobs in the last couple of years. We lost probably 10% of our population and 20% of the $ spent within the village. There is discussion of closing all schools that have less than 20 kids (it is now 10) This would mean half of the schools in our district and 60 within the state. Many villages would slowly depopulate and eventually turn into ghost towns. I have only lived here 7 years, but I have seen alot of changes. Our village is one of the better thriving ones. We have a sit down restaurant, and it only costs around $400 for a round trip ticket to Anch. We have almost no crime rate (even within families). Many people here could afford to leave if things get bad, but this could leave those remaining with a much harder time.