HB 295: "An Act relating to allowable absences for eligibility for a permanent fund dividend; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 295 01 "An Act relating to allowable absences for eligibility for a permanent fund dividend; 02 and providing for an effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 43.23.008(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) Subject to (b) and (d) of this section, an otherwise eligible individual who 06 is absent from the state during the qualifying year remains eligible for a current year 07 permanent fund dividend if the individual was absent 08 (1) receiving secondary or postsecondary education on a full-time 09 basis; on a break or holiday from a secondary or postsecondary educational institution 10 during an academic year, not including summer break, if the individual is enrolled in 11 and attends the educational institution on a full-time basis before and after the break or 12 holiday; or in an orientation program required as a condition of the secondary or 13 postsecondary education and the individual immediately begins the education on a 14 full-time basis after the completion of the orientation;
01 (2) receiving vocational, professional, or other specific education on a 02 full-time basis for which, as determined by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary 03 Education, a comparable program is not reasonably available in the state; on a break or 04 holiday from the vocational, professional, or other specific training, not including 05 summer break, if the individual is enrolled in and attends the training on a full-time 06 basis before and after the break or holiday; or in an orientation program required as a 07 condition of the vocational, professional, or other specific training and the individual 08 immediately begins the training on a full-time basis after the completion of the 09 orientation; 10 (3) serving on active duty as a member of the uniformed services of 11 the United States or accompanying, as that individual's spouse, minor dependent, or 12 disabled dependent, an individual who is 13 (A) serving on active duty as a member of the uniformed 14 services of the United States; and 15 (B) eligible for a current year dividend; 16 (4) serving under foreign or coastal articles of employment aboard an 17 oceangoing vessel of the United States Merchant Marine or attending a vocational 18 program that 19 (A) trains students for a career in the United States Merchant 20 Marine; 21 (B) provides seagoing service that meets the requirements of 22 the United States Coast Guard for United States Merchant Marine 23 credentialing; and 24 (C) is approved by the United States Coast Guard; 25 (5) receiving continuous medical treatment recommended by a 26 licensed physician or convalescing as recommended by the physician who treated the 27 illness if the treatment or convalescence is not based on a need for climatic change; 28 (6) providing care for a parent, spouse, sibling, child, or stepchild with 29 a critical life-threatening illness whose treatment plan, as recommended by the 30 attending physician, requires travel outside the state for treatment at a medical 31 specialty complex;
01 (7) providing care for the individual's terminally ill family member; 02 (8) settling the estate of the individual's deceased parent, spouse, 03 sibling, child, or stepchild, provided the absence does not exceed 220 cumulative days; 04 (9) serving as a member of the United States Congress; 05 (10) serving on the staff of a member from this state of the United 06 States Congress; 07 (11) serving as an employee of the state in a field office or other 08 location; 09 (12) accompanying a minor who is absent under (5) of this subsection; 10 (13) accompanying another eligible resident who is absent for a reason 11 permitted under (1), (2), (5) - (12), (16), or (18) [(17)] of this subsection as the spouse, 12 minor dependent, or disabled dependent of the eligible resident; 13 (14) serving as a volunteer in the federal peace corps program; 14 (15) because of training or competing as a member of the United States 15 Olympic Team or a United States national team for an Olympic sport; 16 (16) participating for educational purposes in a student fellowship 17 sponsored by the United States Department of Education or by the United States 18 Department of State; 19 (17) serving as a pilot for a United States airline certified as an air 20 carrier by the Federal Aviation Administration; 21 (18) for any reason consistent with the individual's intent to remain a 22 state resident, provided the absence or cumulative absences do not exceed 23 (A) 180 days in addition to any absence or cumulative absences 24 claimed 25 (i) under (3) of this subsection if the individual is not 26 claiming an absence under (1), (2), or (4) - (17) [(4) - (16)] of this 27 subsection; or 28 (ii) under (5) of this subsection if the individual is not 29 claiming an absence under (1) - (4) or (6) - (17) [(6) - (16)] of this 30 subsection; 31 (B) 120 days in addition to any absence or cumulative absences
01 claimed under (1) - (3) of this subsection if the individual is not claiming an 02 absence under (4) - (17) [(4) - (16)] of this subsection but is claiming an 03 absence under (1) or (2) of this subsection; or 04 (C) 45 days in addition to any absence or cumulative absences 05 claimed under (1) - (17) [(1) - (16)] of this subsection if the individual is 06 claiming an absence under (4) - (17) [(4) - (16)] of this subsection. 07 * Sec. 2. This Act takes effect January 1, 2027.