I'm not buying into any Dem talking points. Year after year, have watched another group of state legislators submit another tax plan that further reduces the taxes. I guess we should just give the oil away to them, have all kinds of state taxes upon taxes and be happy.
I never thought much about the oil taxes until a brother-in-law who was head of test engineering at a big United Technology plant that built turbines for oil industry got into it with me over oil industry. I mean this guy traveled all over the world, knew his stuff. He believed the oil industry controlled everything. I remember him telling me about one company paying off all their corp debt in 6 months of high prices. So now, I keep an open mind about what I see & hear when it stinks.
Do you all remember when Phony Tony the dem gov wanted to build a nat gas pipeline with 20 billion of pfd money, for the oil companys.
Just my opinion, Palin seemed to concur too.
I think that a big part of the problem is that the degree of government involvement in the oil business in AK is extremely high, almost to the point one could consider it state-run. I’ve heard plenty of people who work internationally make that analogy. Its easy for politicians to stir the pot claiming that people are being taken advantage, especially when gas prices are soaring.
In my opinion, levying steep tax hikes on an industry or individuals claiming you’re stepping up to a demon and have the best interest of the public at heart is misleading. The consequences to the public are far worse. If a company was tapping wells outside outside of a lease and profiting as a result, that would be a different story but is not the case.
When regulations and taxes prevent a business from being profitable they move elsewhere. The AK state taxes, combined with the fed, put Alaska near the bottom of the ladder globally in terms of doing business. Another problem in the US as a whole, is I don’t think people have a good understanding of what it takes to produce oil. A 2” valve can cost over $1000, which pales in comparison to building lines and drilling wells.
I don’t mean for any of this to be personally, and it is not directed that way. As much as I’d love for the economic slide drive the Anchorage populatioin down, I can’t claim its a realistic or worthy expectation:-)