Back to the future, 2050, the state of Alaska is in financial crisis. The federal government has taken over running the state of Alaska. Reserves are gone, the PFD is gone, credit rates are “poor risk or worse.” Alaska’s schools are the worst in the nation. So, what went wrong in 2016? Let’s set the DeLorean for 2016 and go back to find out.
The Alaska Legislature refused to restructure the PFD. A state income tax, which had been abolished during the time the state was flush with oil, was not reinstituted. Some legislators were more worried about getting re-elected than making tough decisions to save the state; they put themselves before the people of Alaska’s future. Too bad there isn’t anything the public can do.
Gary Miller,
Juneau