PA Gas Industry Under Siege from Leftists

Member Group : Jerry Shenk

Regrettably, I don’t own acreage in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale region.
But, then, neither do most Pennsylvania legislators, public employees or citizens. Few Pennsylvanians have paid a dime for the private land under which energy assets lie, or for exploration, leases, development, drilling, extraction, royalties, transporting or distributing the natural gas the region produces.

Some of us purchase Marcellus Shale natural gas to provide heat and hot water, but, even then, we don’t pay for it until it’s been metered, burnt and invoiced.
The gas industry pays the same Pennsylvania taxes every other business does, plus it pays a two-year-old impact fee on natural gas drilling, a majority going to local governments. Most gas companies in the Marcellus zone have proven to be good neighbors.

Clearly, they must be punished.

Many, mostly left-wing, collectivist Pennsylvanians say the Marcellus energy assets are "ours," and demand that gas producers be taxed even more than other businesses. As Pennsylvania’s hottest industry and employer, Marcellus gas is a visible, easy target.

But, by that logic, there are other easy targets.

Why not also consider, among other popular, visible activities, an extra tax on ice cream parlors, but only on hot days, on tickets to only blockbuster movies or on seats to see the Phillies and Pirates — only in seasons when they make the playoffs. But, then, because the tax is built into the prices of those products, many low income Pennsylvanians couldn’t enjoy ice cream, see popular movies or go to the ballpark. Taxes drive up prices, erode customer bases and, eventually, destroy some enterprises.

The natural gas market is no different.

Some partisan Harrisburg hacks and hangers on insist we must levy gas extraction taxes to balance the budget — cleverly labeling them extraction "fees." But, make no mistake, they’re taxes.

Why throw more tax money at the same crowd who squandered billions upon billions in tax money with which they¹ve already been foolishly entrusted? Why not pressure them to make some hard decisions and straighten out the mess they’ve already created?

Despite decades of paying high gasoline taxes, Pennsylvanians recently suffered a tax increase on motor fuel for long-neglected infrastructure improvements and upkeep. Who believes that a natural gas tax will be spent more responsibly or effectively?

The gas industry gets bad press because it gives politicians campaign cash. So do a lot of other industries and, especially, unions.

But, there’s a difference. The gas industry fears that, facing revenue shortfalls and special interest demands for more funding, kick-the-can-down-the-road, money-grubbing, profligate state politicians will pillage them.

In the case of natural gas producers, think of campaign contributions as protection money. Think of it the way a small bar owner or grocer in a mob-controlled neighborhood would when a mob capo enters his business, looks around and says, "Nice place you got here. It’d be a shame if something happened to it."

Protection is a "service" gas companies don’t want to buy. In fact, the only thing that prevents the political threat of punitive, discriminatory taxation from being properly identified as extortion is the political immunity assumed by public "servants" who insult our intelligence by telling us, "It’s for the children."

It’s not for the children. It never is. It’s for the adults, or, at least, some adults, especially those holding public office and their cronies.
For years, Pennsylvania politicians in both parties have overcommitted and overspent. Now they’re deceiving us about the reasons for and solutions to Pennsylvania’s financial problems.

In Washington, in state capitals like Harrisburg and in municipalities, raising taxes has become a reflexive response to excessive spending, a decision made by weak people, and an act that only worsens economic uncertainty and deepens the problems we face.

It¹s past time to try something different.

Abolishing prevailing wage laws would save loads of money on infrastructure improvements.

Pennsylvania owns more than four million acres of land. Selling leases on state land in the Marcellus zone would provide more royalty revenues.

For that matter, why does Pennsylvania own so much land? Why not sell some of it to close budget shortfalls?

That way, at least, when the hacks run out of land to sell, they¹ll be forced to begin solving the problems they should have addressed in the first place.

http://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2014/06/pas_gas_industry_is_under_sieg.html#incart_river

http://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2014/06/pas_gas_industry_is_under_sieg.html#incart_river