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Corbett Will Look At Marcellus Shale Community Impact Fee Proposals
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Gov. Tom Corbett this week said he would listen to proposals for enacting a Marcellus Shale drilling impact in response to reporters' questions, as long as those proposals do not send money to the state's General Fund. "First off, I would have to see what they would propose and where the money would go," said Gov. Corbett. "Money just to the General Fund? No. Money to the locals? Money to the county? I'd sit down and listen to them."
He followed up by saying reporters should not "confuse an impact fee with a tax."
His comments came after yet another poll this week showed 70 percent of those polled supported a Marcellus Shale natural gas production tax. Last week another poll showed 62 percent of those polled supported the production tax.
This, however, was not the first time Corbett Administration officials said they would consider fees related to Marcellus Shale gas development.
This week and last week in response to questions from the Senate and House Appropriations Committees, Acting Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Krancer said if there is a need for more staff in his agency to oversee Marcellus drilling, increases (in permit fees) will be made in response to an increased need.
In a separate story on WITF radio, Drew Crompton, Chief of Staff for Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson), said Senate Republicans are "encouraged" by Corbett's comments and look forward to discussions with the Administration on what the fee could look like.
“We…believe that a portion of the money should be used for Growing Greener, for cleanup projects, perhaps for hazardous site cleanups,” said Crompton. “There’s a variety of environmental concerns that could be very important recipient – or important recipients of any local impact fee.” Other Reaction
“Gov. Corbett and Republicans in the legislature are trying to do an end run around his pledge to not raise taxes,” Sen. Jim Ferlo (D-Allegheny) said. “His call to impose a ‘local fee’ would not address the myriad impacts that the deep well drilling industry brings to our Commonwealth.
“At the state level we have a responsibility to protect the peoples’ right to clean air, pure water and to preserve the natural, scenic, historic and aesthetic value of our environment. A local fee would not accomplish this.”
Sen. Ferlo noted just a few of the many financial burdens on the state that a local fee would not account for, such as water monitoring throughout the state, erosion and sediment control, road and infrastructure maintenance outside of communities where wells are located, emergency response measures, programs to reclaim well sites and other environmental concerns.
Senate Bill 680 (not online yet) would impose a 24-cent-per-MCF tax to fund local infrastructure repairs, economic development activities, environmental programs and emergency response training and equipment purchase.
“The gas drilling industry is going to leave scars on the Pennsylvania landscape that will place a cost on state government,” Sen. Ferlo added. “A severance tax is uniform and fair, and is not unreasonable when you compare it to our competitor states. We should enact a severance tax now to make sure that we are not making other state taxpayers pay for the impacts of the drilling industry.”
Sen. Ferlo has also proposed a one year moratorium on drilling throughout the state in order to permit the updating of state statutes and local ordinances to reflect the impact of the new industry. He said the state’s Oil and Gas Act and many community ordinances are badly out of date and narrowly written to address only shallow wells.
“A new industry is entering our state to a lot of excitement and expectations because of the promise of great economic opportunity, but it is clouding our judgment,” Sen. Ferlo said. “We need to take a step back and reexamine the impact this new activity is going to have on our environment, our state’s tourism industry, our labor force, our water resources, and on our communities and residents.”
NewsClips: Corbett Favors Impact Fee On Drilling
Corbett Opens Up To Marcellus Fees Corbett Opens Shale Fee Window A Crack Corbett Says He Will Listen To Proposals For Drilling Fees Poll: 70% Support Marcellus Shale Natural Gas Severance Tax
Blog: Poll Shows Solid Support For Shale Tax Blog: Has Corbett Opened The Door To Impact Fee For Shale? |
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3/28/2011 |
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