The House State Affairs Committee on Tuesday voted its approval of a bill to restore the Permanent Fund Dividends of the Fairbanks Four and others found innocent of serious crimes after conviction.
Under existing state law, anyone in jail for a felony cannot collect a dividend. Earlier this year, four Fairbanks men convicted of killing Fairbanks teenager John Hartman had their convictions thrown out by the state after a nearly two-decade campaign. The decision was hailed across Alaska, and Rep. Bob Lynn, R-Anchorage, introduced House Bill 243, which would restore the Permanent Fund Dividends of the four wrongfully convicted men and others like them.
Under the bill, anyone whose conviction is “vacated, reversed, or dismissed” has 120 days to apply to receive all the dividends they missed as a result of their conviction.
The House State Affairs Committee’s approval of the bill means it now heads to the House Finance Committee. If approved there, it would be scheduled for a vote of the full House and head on to the Senate and its committee process.
In other business Tuesday, the committee also approved bills dealing with an “American Idol”-style design contest for Alaska license plates, and a measure that would allow the state of Alaska to share voter registration information with other states to ensure a voter isn’t registered elsewhere at the same time he or she registers to vote here.
Senate Bill 9, which passed the Alaska Senate last year, was originally drafted to remove the ability of political parties to advertise in the state’s voter pamphlet, which is created by the Alaska Division of Elections each election as a free guide to candidates and their positions. The provisions for information sharing were added in the state affairs committee.
Under those provisions, the state will be able to share voter registration information with a nonprofit organization created by several states interested in pooling their registrations.
SB 9 now goes to the House Rules Committee to be scheduled for a vote of the entire House. If approved by the House, it must return to the Senate for a vote to confirm the addition of the data-sharing provision.
