UAA economist's take on oil influence covered by the 'Juneau Empire'

Scott Goldsmith of UAA's Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) presented his research and recommendations at a public lecture March 8. The Juneau Empire's Jonathan Grass covered the event. Goldsmith's speech discussed petroleum's overall impact to the state and whether or not that impact can last another 50 years or more.

Here's an excerpt from that article:

Goldsmith presented a wealth preservation strategy by thinking of oil wealth as an asset. He said this involves capping oil spending at $5 billion a year to preserve it for future generations.

"If we really believe what (the state) Constitution says, it's for the benefit of all Alaskans," he said.

He said spending has gone above that, using general funds and permanent fund dividend financing generated from petroleum. He said higher than anticipated oil prices generated by luck have kept the state on a sustainable spending path for now.

He said, however, if Alaska wants a greater level of public spending to maintain this path, it would involve new management and budgeting away from current petroleum revenues, likely involving higher taxes.

"This would be incredibly challenging because no one wants to pay taxes when the state is accumulating a growing saving account," he said.

Read the full article on the Juneau Empire website.