This is a tough one because most of the land there is federal land so the principle comes down to should the government be a revenue generating business or should the revenues made on federal land be returned to the taxpayers. The problem there is that the Republicans in Alaska for a long time were part of a good-old-boys network in with the oil companies and the taxpayers didn’t reap anything from this profit made on federal land.
The Dems wanted to hurt the oil companies.
Palin wanted to return the revenue to the taxpayers.
This is an issue other States don’t have so I don’t think everyone has the full perspective on it.
“This is an issue other States don’t have so I don’t think everyone has the full perspective on it.”
And to be clear, the natural resources belong to the people of the State of Alaska (the only state that is like that IIRC). But, the Federal Land above those resources (like ANWR) have been called off-limits by the Feds - something that Palin and the rest of the residents there are not too happy about.
“This is a tough one because most of the land there is federal land so the principle comes down to should the government be a revenue generating business or should the revenues made on federal land be returned to the taxpayers.”
As I understand it, the federal government owned land in Alaska does not carry with it the mineral rights. They are reserved to the state.