00 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 273(STA) 01 "An Act relating to the dividends of certain individuals claiming allowable absences; 02 and providing for an effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 43.23.005(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) An individual is eligible, or conditionally eligible under AS 43.23.009, to 06 receive one permanent fund dividend for each year in an amount to be determined 07 under AS 43.23.025 if the individual 08 (1) applies to the department; 09 (2) is a state resident on the date of application; 10 (3) was a state resident during the entire qualifying year; 11 (4) has been physically present in the state for at least 72 consecutive 12 hours at some time during the prior two years before the current dividend year; 13 (5) is 14 (A) a citizen of the United States; 01 (B) an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the 02 United States; 03 (C) an alien with refugee status under federal law; or 04 (D) an alien that has been granted asylum under federal law; 05 (6) was, at all times during the qualifying year, physically present in 06 the state or, if absent, was absent only as allowed in AS 43.23.008 and met the 07 requirements of AS 43.23.009; and 08 (7) was in compliance during the qualifying year with the military 09 selective service registration requirements imposed under 50 U.S.C. App. 453 10 (Military Selective Service Act), if those requirements were applicable to the 11 individual, or has come into compliance after being notified of the lack of compliance. 12 * Sec. 2. AS 43.23.008(a) is amended to read: 13 (a) Subject to (b) and (c) of this section, an otherwise eligible individual who 14 is absent from the state during the qualifying year remains eligible, or conditionally 15 eligible under AS 43.23.009, for a current year permanent fund dividend if the 16 individual was absent 17 (1) receiving secondary or postsecondary education on a full-time 18 basis; 19 (2) receiving vocational, professional, or other specific education on a 20 full-time basis for which, as determined by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary 21 Education, a comparable program is not reasonably available in the state; 22 (3) serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the 23 United States or accompanying, as that individual's spouse, minor dependent, or 24 disabled dependent, an individual who is 25 (A) serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of 26 the United States; and 27 (B) eligible for a current year dividend; 28 (4) serving under foreign or coastal articles of employment aboard an 29 oceangoing vessel of the United States merchant marine; 30 (5) receiving continuous medical treatment recommended by a 31 licensed physician or convalescing as recommended by the physician that treated the 01 illness if the treatment or convalescence is not based on a need for climatic change; 02 (6) providing care for a parent, spouse, sibling, child, or stepchild with 03 a critical life-threatening illness whose treatment plan, as recommended by the 04 attending physician, requires travel outside the state for treatment at a medical 05 specialty complex; 06 (7) providing care for the individual's terminally ill family member; 07 (8) settling the estate of the individual's deceased parent, spouse, 08 sibling, child, or stepchild, provided the absence does not exceed 220 cumulative days; 09 (9) serving as a member of the United States Congress; 10 (10) serving on the staff of a member from this state of the United 11 States Congress; 12 (11) serving as an employee of the state in a field office or other 13 location; 14 (12) accompanying a minor who is absent under (5) of this subsection; 15 (13) accompanying another eligible resident who is absent for a reason 16 permitted under (1), (2), (5) - (12), or (14) of this subsection as the spouse, minor 17 dependent, or disabled dependent of the eligible resident; 18 (14) for any reason consistent with the individual's intent to remain a 19 state resident, provided the absence or cumulative absences do not exceed 20 (A) 180 days in addition to any absence or cumulative absences 21 claimed under (3) of this subsection if the individual is not claiming an absence 22 under (1), (2), or (4) - (13) of this subsection; 23 (B) 120 days in addition to any absence or cumulative absences 24 claimed under (1) - (3) of this subsection if the individual is not claiming an 25 absence under (4) - (13) of this subsection but is claiming an absence under (1) 26 or (2) of this subsection; or 27 (C) 45 days in addition to any absence or cumulative absences 28 claimed under (1) - (13) of this subsection if the individual is claiming an 29 absence under (4) - (13) of this subsection. 30 * Sec. 3. AS 43.23 is amended by adding a new section to read: 31 Sec. 43.23.009. Dividends of individuals with allowable absences. (a) 01 Notwithstanding other provisions regarding eligibility for and payment of dividends 02 and except as provided in (e) of this section, the dividend of an individual who was 03 absent from the state during the qualifying year as allowed in AS 43.23.008(a)(1) - (8) 04 or (10) - (13) shall be paid to that individual on the first subsequent year that the 05 individual is eligible for a dividend without claiming an allowable absence under 06 AS 43.23.008(a)(1) - (8) or (10) - (13). 07 (b) If an individual who is conditionally eligible for a dividend that has not 08 became payable under (a) of this section fails to be eligible for a subsequent year 09 dividend, the individual's conditional eligibility for the dividend that has not become 10 payable under (a) of this section is terminated, and that dividend may not be paid. 11 (c) If an individual who is conditionally eligible for a dividend that has not 12 become payable under (a) of this section dies before conditional eligibility for the 13 dividend is terminated under (b) of this section, the department shall pay the dividend 14 to a personal representative of the estate. 15 (d) Notwithstanding other provisions, a dividend that has not become payable 16 to an individual under (a) of this section is not subject to levy, execution, garnishment, 17 attachment, or any other remedy for the collection of debt until that dividend becomes 18 payable or is paid to the individual. 19 (e) The dividend for a current year and for the year immediately following the 20 current year shall be paid to an individual each of those years under AS 43.23.055(2) 21 if 22 (1) without claiming an allowable absence under AS 43.23.008(a)(1) - 23 (8) or (10) - (13), the individual was eligible for a dividend for the year immediately 24 preceding the qualifying year for the current year; 25 (2) the individual was absent from the state during the qualifying year 26 for the current year as allowed in AS 43.23.008(a)(1) - (8) or (10) - (13); and 27 (3) the individual is otherwise eligible for the dividend. 28 * Sec. 4. AS 43.23.025(a) is amended to read: 29 (a) By October 1 of each year, the commissioner shall determine the value of 30 each permanent fund dividend for that year by 31 (1) determining the total amount available for dividend payments, 01 which equals 02 (A) the amount of income of the Alaska permanent fund 03 transferred to the dividend fund under AS 37.13.145(b) during the current year; 04 (B) plus the unexpended and unobligated balances of prior 05 fiscal year appropriations that lapse into the dividend fund under 06 AS 43.23.045(d); 07 (C) less the amount necessary to pay prior year dividends from 08 the dividend fund in the current year under AS 43.23.005(h), 43.23.009, and 09 under AS 43.23.055(3) and (7); 10 (D) less the amount necessary to pay dividends from the 11 dividend fund due to eligible applicants who, as determined by the department, 12 filed for a previous year's dividend by the filing deadline but who were not 13 included in a previous year's dividend computation; 14 (E) less appropriations from the dividend fund during the 15 current year, including amounts to pay costs of administering the dividend 16 program and the hold harmless provisions of AS 43.23.075; 17 (2) determining the number of individuals eligible to receive a 18 dividend payment for the current year and the number of estates and successors 19 eligible to receive a dividend payment for the current year under AS 43.23.005(h); and 20 (3) dividing the amount determined under (1) of this subsection by the 21 amount determined under (2) of this subsection. 22 * Sec. 5. This Act takes effect January 1, 2007.