Decision to invest is private concern not government.
Would you say it is not appropriate for the government to provide maps for navigable waterways?
Wind Speed Maps or Seismic maps for Building and Structure designs?
This isn’t about making the decision, it is providing data to the public which spurs private investment and grows our economy.
Not to mention, the industry pays far more in taxes and fees than it receives in services.
“Decision to invest is private concern not government.”
I tend to agree.
I am obviously no expert in these (water, petroleum, etc.) industries. In the past, I might have assumed that an industry in America was largely free market. Now my general assumption is that an industry is significantly regulated.
I’m thinking about water access. I assume much water comes from government controlled dams. If I were in charge, I might charge everyone the same rate for a gallon of water and leave it up to consumers, farmers, heavy industry, and others to buy as much or as little water as they choose.
But I no longer assume that market allocation is the major way business is done in America. I suspect that committees meet to discuss and decide how to allocate water. These committees are influenced by political clout. As decisions have cash value, there is the possibility of corruption in the form of paying for policy, or using insider knowledge.
I have little problem with government paying for studies and making the results available for all. There are significant fixed costs in research, but the marginal cost of distributing it can be very low.