Alaska governor’s budget plan includes roughly $3,400 checks for residents and deficit of nearly $1B

By BECKY BOHRER
Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy has unveiled a budget plan that would pay residents an oil-wealth dividend of about $3,400 next year and use savings to plug an estimated $990 million deficit. The proposal does not include an increase in the per-student K-12 school funding formula, though Dunleavy says he expects education to be at the fore of discussions when lawmakers convene for their new legislative session next month. He says one proposal he’d like lawmakers to consider would provide bonuses to teachers as a way to help recruit and retain them.