Dunleavy fails on budget once again, proposing nearly $1.5 billion deficit that will only grow

Gov. Mike Dunleavy had a choice to make on the budget. True to form, he made the wrong one, proposing a $1.5 billion deficit. It will probably top $2 billion in a couple of months.

Dunleavy promised a Permanent Fund Dividend of $3,650 per person that he has no intention of delivering. It’s a fraud, just like the unpaid $15,000 or so per person he has promised in years past.

Dunleavy promised to reveal a secret fiscal plan in January, a scheme that includes no income tax, no sales tax, no increase in oil taxes, no increase in mining taxes, no increase in fish taxes, no nothing. He suggests that businesses that don’t exist yet will somehow fill the gap.

Dunleavy promised that his secret no-tax plan, founded on magic beans and hallucinations, will create $1.5 billion to $2 billion a year in new revenue starting in 2027 and continuing for many years to come.

Dunleavy claims to have a plan to generate $15.3 billion in imaginary money between 2027 and 2036.

There is no source given for the miraculous new revenue, which will wipe out the deficit and allow big dividends for many years to come.

Any state employee who takes this deceitful presentation and tries to defend it as a solid public policy plan is either a liar or a fool. It should embarrass everyone who works at the Office of Management and Budget.

This is the alleged 10-year plan, which contains the $15.3 billion in imaginary money.

There is every reason to believe that Dunleavy has learned nothing about budgets and state finances during his time as governor.

He blames “politicians” for Alaska having the “most unstable fiscal approach in the country,” without admitting that he is the politician who deserves the most blame for inaction since 2019.

One thing is for sure. Dunleavy is against new taxes or increased taxes, two things that must be a part of a real fiscall plan, not the Dunleavy delusion.

“Raising taxes on the people and businesses that are already here is anti-growth. Instead, my fiscal plan will focus on predictable revenues built on a stronger private sector, restraining the growth of government, and capitalizing on the many incredible opportunities in front of us. My plan will also incentivize diversifying the economy that we’re not just reliant on oil,” Dunleavy’s office quoted him as saying.

He is recycling the same gibberish he unveiled in 2019 and abandoned when his proposals to make new taxes and tax increases nearly impossible failed to win popular approval.

The secret Dunleavy fiscal plan will meet the same fate in 2026.

Referring to the secret fiscal plan, Dunleavy’s budget office said, “This fiscal plan will not be a ‘tax and spend’ approach, but one that transforms Alaska into a competitive choice that attracts new residents and businesses.”

Your contributions help support independent analysis and political commentary by Alaska reporter and author Dermot Cole. Thank you for reading and for your support. Either click here to use PayPal or send checks to: Dermot Cole, Box 10673, Fairbanks, AK 99710-0673.