Initiative group tops half-million dollars in oil tax battle contributions

Backers of the ballot initiative to increase taxes on Alaska’s petroleum industry reported that it raised nearly a quarter-million dollars in contributions in the second quarter of 2020. That brings the total amount raised by Alaska’s Fair Share to $664,330 from 393 individual Alaskans, according to David Dunsmore, the organization’s campaign manager.
    “By contrast, our opponents have literally received contributions from three flesh and blood Alaskans,” Dunsmore said.
    Of course, those opponents have deep pockets, and Dunsmore is under no illusion that those opposed to the initiative, also known as Ballot Measure 1, will outspend Alaska’s Fair Share.
    “The other side is still going to outspend us significantly,” Dunsmore said. “But, as we've seen in the past, they got less bang for the buck because they're not organic.”
    A similar initiative was narrowly turned back at the polls by voters in 2014.
    Ballot Measure 1 seeks to undo the tax scheme enacted under 2013’s Alaska Senate Bill 21, which Dunsmore says heralded a decline in jobs and the state’s current recession.
    “You know, it's really important that we do this now. These are tough times for Alaskans,” Dunsmore said. “SB- 21 has just shown to be a job killer. It's killed jobs all across the state, forced Alaska into a recession, and now we have the opportunity to take action and fix it.”
    The financial report for “Vote Yes for Alaska’s Fair Share” can be found on the State’s Alaska Public Offices Commission website.