Permanent fund check amount announced

Wilson Condon, Alaska's Department of Revenue commissioner, announced Wednesday in Juneau that the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend will be $1,540.76 this year. The amount is $310 less than last year, reflecting the weak stock market of the past two years, according to a department release. The total of the disbursement will be $911.42 million.

"We can expect smaller dividends for the next few years," Condon said. "The dividend is based on the fund's average earnings over five years, and it will take awhile to overcome these low market years in that average."

The fund's total market value at the end of Fiscal Year 2002, on June 30, was $23.5 billion, down from $26.5 billion on June 30, 2000.

Alaskans who requested direct deposit of their dividends will see their money in their accounts Oct. 9. The Dividend Division will start mailing checks Oct. 17 to applicants who did not select direct deposit. It will take a couple weeks to mail all of the checks, according to the release.

Approximately 591,000 Alaskans will receive dividend's this year, an increase from 2001's 586,052 recipients.

Division personnel are still working on about 7,700 applications in review, and expect to issue decisions on those cases by early January.

To check the status of an application online, go to www.pfd.state.ak.us.