Could Alaska end tax breaks for Big Oil?
A major tax break for oil companies signed into law in May is now the heart of a battle between industry-friendly politicians who say the tax break will boost sluggish production and citizens who are demanding a refund.
A citizen group has gathered 50,000 signatures to repeal the May tax break鈥攅nough to place a repeal of Senate Bill 21 on the August 2014 primary ballot.
Republicans in Alaska have long argued that only a massive tax break would give oil companies the certainty necessary to ramp up production to bolster the state economy. That鈥檚 one side of the story. The other side is that of citizens backed by Democrats who feel this was a simple giveaway of the state鈥檚 oil wealth and that they won鈥檛 see much in return.聽(Related Article:聽)
Here鈥檚 the backstory. In May, Alaska Governor Sean Parnell signed the聽, which passed in an 11-9 Senate vote. The legislation reversed the progressive tax system that raised taxes along with rising oil profits, which had been put into effect under Parnell鈥檚 predecessor, Sarah Palin. (According to聽, two of the majority yes voters work for ConocoPhillips.)聽
The general consensus now is that the oil lobbyists might have taken things a bit too far鈥攁nd might have benefited from some more subtlety. Now the legislation is in danger of being overturned, so the major victory big oil has won in Alaska may indeed be short-lived.
鈥淭oo much was given up in that bill in exchange for too little, Alaska Senator Hollis French, a Democrat, wrote in an op-ed piece in the. 鈥淎laskans simply saw about $4.5 billion of money that would have been used to build roads and educate our children over the next five years given over to three of the richest corporations in the world.鈥� French has been calling for Alaskans to appeal the legislation since May.
鈥淲hat has happened now with the new law, to the best of my knowledge, is, number one, the credits that were incentives to have small companies explore have been eliminated, and that turns basic control back over to the three majors again. And that鈥檚 not the way to get more oil production underway,鈥澛犅爍uoted Dick Waisanen, one of those who volunteered to gather signatures to have the issue put on the next state election ballot.
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