 Since January 1, 2007, Alaska has provided some limited benefits to the same-sex partners of state employees.In 2019, an Alaska woman, Denali Nicole Smith, filed suit in district court alleging that the state was unlawfully enforcing statutes barring the recognition of same-sex marriages.Attorneys for Smith say that she was denied application for a state oil-wealth fund check, the Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD), because of her same-sex marriage.