Application period open for 2015 Permanent Fund Dividends

MAT-SU — Shortly before 3 p.m. Monday, the fourth day of Permanent Fund Dividend application season, a counter on the state website that handles applications noted that 65,305 Alaskans had applied for the yearly check.

The website reported traffic was hampering its speeds.

Yes, it’s that time again to fill out the forms and gather up your documents. Last year’s check was $1,884.

Pick.Click.Give., the state program that helps connect dividend recipients with charitable organizations that could use a donation, says predictions for the 2015 dividend are looking good.

“Experts predict PFDs will increase slightly again this year,” the organization said in a press release sent out the day before the Jan. 1 start of the application period.

Though the fund has its genesis with oil revenue and oil prices are currently in the toilet, the money in the fund is invested and residents are paid a share of the amount earned. The exact amount is based on an average of five years of investments.

Pick.Click.Give. urges Alaskans to consider donating at least a part of their check to charity.

To boost participation, for the second year running, Pick.Click.Give is offering a chance to be one of 10 Alaskans awarded a second dividend. To enter the Double Your Dividend Sweepstakes, either make a non-anonymous donation to a charity through the program or submit an entry form directly to the Alaska Community Foundation.

Last year, residents set a Pick.Click.Give record, with 26,773 Alaskans donating $2.7 million to charities selected from a list of 540 that participate in the program from 51 Alaskan communities.

Locally, animal charities are perennial favorites for charitable giving from the program. A Frontiersman story detailing donations from 2013 noted that Alaska Dog and Puppy Rescue, Alaska Assistance Dogs, Advocates for Puppy Wellness and Alaska Wildbird Rehabilitation Center all placed in the top 10 for Valley charities receiving donations from the program.

The Food Pantry of Wasilla came in at No. 2 behind Alaska Dog and Puppy Rescue.

This year as in years past, the list of Valley charities registering through the program is diverse geographically.

In Wasilla there are rescue groups dedicated to rescuing both cats — AK CAT — and horses — Alaska Equine Rescue — as well as children in need of help with attachment and bonding. Alaskans for the Palmer Hay Flats also operates with a Wasilla address.

Two dog and puppy groups list Palmer addresses — Alaska Dog and Puppy rescue and Advocates for Dog and Puppy Wellness. Also in Palmer are the Alaska Farmland Trust Corporation, Alaska Bible College, and Alaska Family Services.

In Sutton, the Alpine Historic Society has registered and Houston has the Alaska Wildbird Rehabilitation Center.

According to the state’s Permanent Fund Dividend Division website, to receive a dividend, a person must have been an Alaska resident for the entire calendar year preceding his or her application date. The application period is open until March 31. More information is available online at pfd.alaska.gov.

Contact Andrew Wellner at 352-2270 or andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com.