Rachel Waldholz explains in the Alaska Public some of the reasoning behind the Permanent Fund and Dividend. Some quotes from Alaska Gov. Jay Hammond (who was responsible) “You’ve got to remove the money” “Put it behind a rope, where you cannot utilize it for flamboyant expenditures.” “I wanted to transform oil wells pumping oil for a finite period, into money wells pumping money for infinity.”
Jay Hammond penned chapter 2 of this book explaining his motivations in detail. The chapter is titled : “Diapering the Devil: How Alaska Helped Staunch Befouling by Mismanaged Oil Wealth: A Lesson for Other Oil Rich Nations.” Recommended read.