Dear Friends,
I realize it's been several weeks since my last post. First it was due to a tropical vacation, then the holidays hit, and before I knew it, it was mid-January. My apologies for seeming to drop into a black hole. Lately, however, I've struggled with what to post.
I started this blog a little more than a year ago, when gas drilling operations in my area began to overwhelm the landscape. As I watched what was happening around my beloved hometown, I wrestled to find a way to deal with my feelings of helplessness. To my dismay, many area residents seemed resigned to what was happening. After a few months of gas drilling on my mind (and in my hearing, in my sights....), it occurred to me that I didn't have to feel helpless--there *was* something I could do.
I put to use my skills as a librarian and created this site to be a sort of "one stop shop" for people like me--people who were concerned about what was happening, wanted to educate themselves about natural gas drilling and network with similar-minded folks. My goal was to reach the widest possible audience and to make the information easily accessible. I spent a considerable amount of time researching and identifying authoritative local, state and national resources. When I started this process, I didn't know beans about fracking, the current means by which natural gas is extracted. Now, I know more than I wish I did.
I had also never built a blog or linked it to other social media sites, so I had to educate myself on that too. I created links to other topical blogs and made it easy for visitors to find and contact their legislators or locate the latest information in their newspapers (you don't even have to do the search--click on the link and it's done for you!)
But over the course of the past year as the number of blog/Facebook fans grew, so did the number of drill sites in my area. Don't get me wrong. I'm not against gas drilling. Many people I know are finally out of debt or at the very least, aren't living paycheck to paycheck since they leased their mineral rights or allowed compressor stations to be built on their property. I'm thankful for that. But I'm increasingly frightened at the cost of this new-found wealth.
I'm for responsible gas extraction; unfortunately fracking is not a responsible means by which to extract gas. It's quicker and cheaper. It also negates the entire marketing campaign by which gas companies insist natural gas is a "cleaner, greener" fuel. I can assure anyone who believes that piece of fiction that it's just that: fiction. Anyone who doubts it need only live next to a drill site...or two. Or three.
The cost of this new-found wealth is steep and the repercussions far-reaching. As drilling activity increased, more of our roads were destroyed by the constant stream of heavy equipment and trucks that come with it; state police stings netted hundreds and hundreds of gas truck violations. More leaks, explosions and "accidents" occurred. A resident was murdered by a gas company worker. Jobs were promised; instead hotels were booked solid and new ones built to accomodate workers from out of state. Hunters were warned they could be stopped and questioned if they inadvertently stepped on land under development by gas companies. Even our state parks were not immune to the onslaught of the drills. Then came the recent state elections. Incredibly, PA residents elected a new governor and other legislators who were "gas friendly" and had received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign donations. Either people voted against their own self interests...or apathy prevented them from voting at all.
Perhaps I was fooling myself into thinking that I could actually make a difference. As I look at what's happening around me, it's hard not to feel that the gas companies have won. And dear readers, I'm having a really hard time coming to terms with that.
Showing posts with label election. Show all posts
Showing posts with label election. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Just how much did the gas industry spend on buying the election?
[Posted on philly.com, 11.4.2010]
Natural gas industry spent heavily on Pennsylvania Republican candidates
By John P. Martin, Inquirer Staff Writer
On the day Pennsylvanians elected Republican Tom Corbett governor, his campaign logged four donations.
Two came from individuals, a third from the state Republican Party. The fourth, campaign reports show, was $1,000 from the natural-gas driller Range Resources.
For a candidate who raised nearly $30 million, that $1,000 from the Texas company was a drop in the bucket. But it underscored the role the natural-gas industry played, even at the closing moments, in an election critical to its future.
The gas firms, their employees, or others who stand to gain as Marcellus Shale drilling expands put more than $500,000 into Pennsylvania candidates' coffers since September, state reports show. Much of the money came in donations of five figures or greater; most of it went to Republicans; and all of it was legal in a state with no contribution limits.
At the same time, drillers' lobbyists spent hundreds of thousands trying to shape the debate as lawmakers in Harrisburg weighed new taxes and regulations.
For them, the season could not have had a better ending. First, Gov. Rendell and legislators failed to reach a promised deal on a natural-gas tax. Then Republicans captured the General Assembly and governor's office.
Corbett has pledged not to impose any new taxes, making it unlikely drillers will face anything close to the 5 percent tax on gas revenues Rendell once proposed.
The industry had backed Corbett from the outset, giving his campaign $835,000 through mid-October, according to an analysis by the watchdog group Common Cause. As the race entered its last week, Corbett took in nearly $200,000 more from drilling interests.
That included a $100,000 check from Lance Shaner, the newly appointed chief executive officer of Rex Energy, which has permits for 57 wells and more pending. Also on the list was $15,000 from Michael Radler, an executive at Chief Oil & Gas, which has nearly 200 permits and which had already given Corbett's campaign $53,000.
In addition, $50,000 came from Kentucky businessman Richard Corman, whose rail company serves drilling sites.
Christine Torretti, chief executive at S.W. Jack Drilling, chipped in $4,997, upping to $250,000 her two-year total to the state GOP and its top nominee. That included covering about $15,000 in air fare and hotels for Corbett's campaign.
And on Monday, Corbett collected $10,000 from Frac Tech Solutions, a Cisco, Texas, firm specializing in hydraulic fracturing, the process of retrieving gas from the shale.
Bill Hicks, general counsel for Frac Tech, said there was nothing significant about the donation's timing. He said the company employs 100 people in Pennsylvania and has had projects here since 2007.
"We believe Tom Corbett would work to encourage further development of the Marcellus Shale in a sensible way," Hicks said Wednesday.
Corbett wasn't the only beneficiary of such largesse. Senate President Pro Tem Joseph Scarnati (R., Jefferson), a key figure in the tax stalemate with Rendell, accepted more than $100,000 between June and October from individuals or groups with ties to energy companies, his campaign reported.
Scarnati doesn't face reelection for two years. He passed much of the money to Republican candidates who needed it.
That meant $50,000 each to Jim Cawley, the Bucks County commissioner who was Corbett's running mate and is now lieutenant governor-elect, and Sen. Bob Mensch (R., Montgomery), who was fighting to keep the seat he won in a special election last year. And $10,000 to buy video services for Kris Vanderman, who lost a GOP Senate bid in Washington County.
Scarnati's campaign also gave $280,000 to the Senate Republican Campaign Committee. Scarnati's top aide, Drew Crompton, said there was nothing improper about the GOP leader's passing his contributions to other campaign committees.
He also dismissed as "totally reprehensible" any suggestion that the gas donations bought influence or access. Crompton said Scarnati worked hard toward brokering a severance tax when some in the industry wanted no tax at all.
"He had every intention of getting the package done by Oct. 1," Crompton said Wednesday. "It wasn't like we were just talking about a tax."
Beyond the campaign contributions, drillers increased their lobbying efforts in Harrisburg. An early glimpse at lobbying reports due this week shows that energy concerns spent more than $2.1 million lobbying in the quarter than ended Oct. 1.
To read the remainder of the article in its entirety, please click HERE.
Natural gas industry spent heavily on Pennsylvania Republican candidates
By John P. Martin, Inquirer Staff Writer
On the day Pennsylvanians elected Republican Tom Corbett governor, his campaign logged four donations.
Two came from individuals, a third from the state Republican Party. The fourth, campaign reports show, was $1,000 from the natural-gas driller Range Resources.
For a candidate who raised nearly $30 million, that $1,000 from the Texas company was a drop in the bucket. But it underscored the role the natural-gas industry played, even at the closing moments, in an election critical to its future.
The gas firms, their employees, or others who stand to gain as Marcellus Shale drilling expands put more than $500,000 into Pennsylvania candidates' coffers since September, state reports show. Much of the money came in donations of five figures or greater; most of it went to Republicans; and all of it was legal in a state with no contribution limits.
At the same time, drillers' lobbyists spent hundreds of thousands trying to shape the debate as lawmakers in Harrisburg weighed new taxes and regulations.
For them, the season could not have had a better ending. First, Gov. Rendell and legislators failed to reach a promised deal on a natural-gas tax. Then Republicans captured the General Assembly and governor's office.
Corbett has pledged not to impose any new taxes, making it unlikely drillers will face anything close to the 5 percent tax on gas revenues Rendell once proposed.
The industry had backed Corbett from the outset, giving his campaign $835,000 through mid-October, according to an analysis by the watchdog group Common Cause. As the race entered its last week, Corbett took in nearly $200,000 more from drilling interests.
That included a $100,000 check from Lance Shaner, the newly appointed chief executive officer of Rex Energy, which has permits for 57 wells and more pending. Also on the list was $15,000 from Michael Radler, an executive at Chief Oil & Gas, which has nearly 200 permits and which had already given Corbett's campaign $53,000.
In addition, $50,000 came from Kentucky businessman Richard Corman, whose rail company serves drilling sites.
Christine Torretti, chief executive at S.W. Jack Drilling, chipped in $4,997, upping to $250,000 her two-year total to the state GOP and its top nominee. That included covering about $15,000 in air fare and hotels for Corbett's campaign.
And on Monday, Corbett collected $10,000 from Frac Tech Solutions, a Cisco, Texas, firm specializing in hydraulic fracturing, the process of retrieving gas from the shale.
Bill Hicks, general counsel for Frac Tech, said there was nothing significant about the donation's timing. He said the company employs 100 people in Pennsylvania and has had projects here since 2007.
"We believe Tom Corbett would work to encourage further development of the Marcellus Shale in a sensible way," Hicks said Wednesday.
Corbett wasn't the only beneficiary of such largesse. Senate President Pro Tem Joseph Scarnati (R., Jefferson), a key figure in the tax stalemate with Rendell, accepted more than $100,000 between June and October from individuals or groups with ties to energy companies, his campaign reported.
Scarnati doesn't face reelection for two years. He passed much of the money to Republican candidates who needed it.
That meant $50,000 each to Jim Cawley, the Bucks County commissioner who was Corbett's running mate and is now lieutenant governor-elect, and Sen. Bob Mensch (R., Montgomery), who was fighting to keep the seat he won in a special election last year. And $10,000 to buy video services for Kris Vanderman, who lost a GOP Senate bid in Washington County.
Scarnati's campaign also gave $280,000 to the Senate Republican Campaign Committee. Scarnati's top aide, Drew Crompton, said there was nothing improper about the GOP leader's passing his contributions to other campaign committees.
He also dismissed as "totally reprehensible" any suggestion that the gas donations bought influence or access. Crompton said Scarnati worked hard toward brokering a severance tax when some in the industry wanted no tax at all.
"He had every intention of getting the package done by Oct. 1," Crompton said Wednesday. "It wasn't like we were just talking about a tax."
Beyond the campaign contributions, drillers increased their lobbying efforts in Harrisburg. An early glimpse at lobbying reports due this week shows that energy concerns spent more than $2.1 million lobbying in the quarter than ended Oct. 1.
To read the remainder of the article in its entirety, please click HERE.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Where's the nearest brick wall??
So let me get this straight. The gas companies spend nearly a million dollars to make sure their guy wins the gubernatorial race and the citizens of PA actually bought the snow job? Check out this map on MSNBC's site. Scroll down to see county by county results. In nearly every single county struggling with the repercussions of drilling in their backyards, 2 and 3 times the number of people voted AGAINST THEIR OWN INTERESTS by choosing Corbett as their governor. Where's the nearest brick wall???
Do not forget to vote today!
So very much rests on the decision you make today. It's your privilege and your right. Use it.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Great move, but a little late
Given that three quarters of a MILLION acres in PA state forests are already under lease which could ultimately produce 1,000 well pads--each with 6-10 wells....
Let's pause here and let this sink in: 6,000 to 10,000 wells...in state forests. I'm still stunned this could even happen. Why designate land a state forest to be enjoyed by hikers & campers, for hunting & fishing--if it's not a protected resource? I don't get how this is even legal. Regardless, there's not a thing that can be done about it now but (1) hope the gas companies won't drill there on moral grounds (ahem) or (2) slap them with a tax on gas extraction to clean up the mess they're going to make of a beautiful natural resource and to replace all the lost tourism revenue PA will be seeing in the not too distant future. Every other state with gas drilling imposes severance taxes...except PA.
So Gov. Rendell has decided to put a moratorium on future gas drilling in state forests now that he lost the recent battle on imposing a severance tax for gas extraction. After 700,000 acres in state forests have already been leased and two months before he leaves office. Really? If Corbett, who has received nearly $1 million in campaign donations from gas companies, wins the gubernatorial election on November 2, what do you think his first move is going to be?
Corbett thinks the tax will send "thousands of jobs elsewhere." The last time I checked, the Marcellus Shale isn't going anywhere. Does he really think the companies will just not drill in an area that's been described as the "Saudi Arabia of natural gas?" And as for those jobs, my general observation in my own neck of the woods is that the large percentage--and I mean 80-90%--of those jobs are being filled by company men from out of state. These companies are building entire hotels--or buying existing ones as has been rumored--to house their workforces; traffic in town(s) is now gridlock much of the time; and most of the pickups I'm seeing all have out of state plates. But again, this is my own general observation.
At any rate, read all about the moratorium in yesterday's article posted on (Pittsburgh's) postgazette.com:
Rendell to order halt to gas wells
Plans moratorium on state forests after losing battle to enact gas tax
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
By Tom Barnes, Post-Gazette Harrisburg Bureau
HARRISBURG -- "Gov. Ed Rendell plans a moratorium on further leasing of state forest land for natural gas drilling after losing a grueling battle to enact a Marcellus Shale tax and watching Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Corbett -- who opposes a tax -- take in campaign cash from natural gas companies.
The Democratic governor will hold a news conference today in his hometown of Philadelphia, where he will "sign an executive order instituting a strategic moratorium on future drilling operations in the state," according to a news release.
However, a future moratorium wouldn't stop natural gas drilling planned for 700,000 acres of state forest land located in the vast areas of Marcellus Shale -- land that has already been leased to private companies. There have been two lease sales since 2008, bringing in a total of $296 million for the state's Oil and Gas Fund.
Only 25 wells are now producing gas on that forest land, but eventually 1,000 "well pads," each with six to 10 wells, could be located there, according to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
Mr. Rendell will leave office in January, so whether a moratorium on leasing forest land would continue beyond January would be up to either Mr. Corbett or Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dan Onorato. They'll face off in the Nov. 2 election.
As for Mr. Corbett, a new report by Marcellusmoney.org, compiled by Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania and Common Cause/Pennsylvania, listed his political contributions from the gas drilling industry at $856,220 over the last 10 years, with most of the money coming in over the last two years.
The new Corbett total is up from the $700,000 reported a few weeks ago and the $373,000 reported in June. Mr. Onorato has received significantly less in the last decade -- $124,300. Mr. Onorato favors a severance tax on Marcellus Shale gas, while Mr. Corbett does not.
"In the last weeks before the election, drilling industry CEOs went all out for Tom Corbett because he thinks that ordinary Pennsylvanians should pay to clean up the messes that their drills leave behind,'' claimed Josh McNeil of Conservation Voters.
Mr. Corbett said the natural gas industry is just in the beginning stages in this state and he doesn't want to impose a tax that could send thousands of jobs elsewhere. He said his policies will not be swayed by campaign contributions.
The Marcellus Shale, a rock bed a mile or more beneath three-quarters of Pennsylvania and parts of New York, Maryland, Ohio and West Virginia, contains as much as 363 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The extraction process involves a high-pressure procedure that pumps up to 8 million gallons water and chemical additives into the wells to fracture the shale and release the gas.
Also in Philadelphia today, Mr. Rendell will continue his criticism of Senate Republicans for their "unwillingness to enact a severance tax on the natural gas industry." He said Monday the Legislature is displaying "recklessness" regarding a projected $3 billion or more budget shortfall in 2011 by its failure to enact a gas severance tax.
He claimed it's "senseless" for Pennsylvania to ignore the $100 million or more that could be generated by imposing a "fair'' extraction tax on the thousands of cubic feet of natural gas being extracted from Marcellus Shale.
He said he had offered a compromise tax plan that is reasonable for both the drillers and the state, one that's less burdensome than his original severance tax plan, proposed in February and modeled on the tax used in West Virginia.
He criticized legislators for taking large campaign contributions from the shale drillers, claiming there is "no question'' that those donations have led to the Legislature's reluctance to enact a shale tax.
Senate Republicans favor a tax of 1.5 percent on the selling price of gas at the wellhead for the first five years of a well's life, then rising to 5 percent. Mr. Rendell favors a 3 percent tax the first year, rising to 4 percent the second year and then 5 percent thereafter.
Senate President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, who has gotten $143,000 from the gas industry, said the drilling industry has created many jobs in his district, especially in Tioga County, and he doesn't want drillers to go to other states if Pennsylvania enacts too high a tax.
Mr. Rendell said all other states with Marcellus Shale drilling have an extraction tax. He said it makes no sense for Pennsylvania to be the only state without such a tax, especially when the state faces a large budget shortfall next year. He called on Senate leaders to return to session after the Nov. 2 election to work on a shale tax, saying, "I will negotiate night and day.''
But GOP Senate leaders say they won't meet during the "lame duck'' session after the election. The Democrat-led House plans to come back for a few days in November, but without the Senate, no tax bill could get final action.
This version corrects details of Republicans' gas tax proposal. Harrisburg Bureau Chief Tom Barnes: tbarnes@post-gazette.com or 1-717-787-4254."
You may also read the article as it appeared by clicking HERE.
Let's pause here and let this sink in: 6,000 to 10,000 wells...in state forests. I'm still stunned this could even happen. Why designate land a state forest to be enjoyed by hikers & campers, for hunting & fishing--if it's not a protected resource? I don't get how this is even legal. Regardless, there's not a thing that can be done about it now but (1) hope the gas companies won't drill there on moral grounds (ahem) or (2) slap them with a tax on gas extraction to clean up the mess they're going to make of a beautiful natural resource and to replace all the lost tourism revenue PA will be seeing in the not too distant future. Every other state with gas drilling imposes severance taxes...except PA.
So Gov. Rendell has decided to put a moratorium on future gas drilling in state forests now that he lost the recent battle on imposing a severance tax for gas extraction. After 700,000 acres in state forests have already been leased and two months before he leaves office. Really? If Corbett, who has received nearly $1 million in campaign donations from gas companies, wins the gubernatorial election on November 2, what do you think his first move is going to be?
Corbett thinks the tax will send "thousands of jobs elsewhere." The last time I checked, the Marcellus Shale isn't going anywhere. Does he really think the companies will just not drill in an area that's been described as the "Saudi Arabia of natural gas?" And as for those jobs, my general observation in my own neck of the woods is that the large percentage--and I mean 80-90%--of those jobs are being filled by company men from out of state. These companies are building entire hotels--or buying existing ones as has been rumored--to house their workforces; traffic in town(s) is now gridlock much of the time; and most of the pickups I'm seeing all have out of state plates. But again, this is my own general observation.
At any rate, read all about the moratorium in yesterday's article posted on (Pittsburgh's) postgazette.com:
Rendell to order halt to gas wells
Plans moratorium on state forests after losing battle to enact gas tax
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
By Tom Barnes, Post-Gazette Harrisburg Bureau
HARRISBURG -- "Gov. Ed Rendell plans a moratorium on further leasing of state forest land for natural gas drilling after losing a grueling battle to enact a Marcellus Shale tax and watching Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Corbett -- who opposes a tax -- take in campaign cash from natural gas companies.
The Democratic governor will hold a news conference today in his hometown of Philadelphia, where he will "sign an executive order instituting a strategic moratorium on future drilling operations in the state," according to a news release.
However, a future moratorium wouldn't stop natural gas drilling planned for 700,000 acres of state forest land located in the vast areas of Marcellus Shale -- land that has already been leased to private companies. There have been two lease sales since 2008, bringing in a total of $296 million for the state's Oil and Gas Fund.
Only 25 wells are now producing gas on that forest land, but eventually 1,000 "well pads," each with six to 10 wells, could be located there, according to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
Mr. Rendell will leave office in January, so whether a moratorium on leasing forest land would continue beyond January would be up to either Mr. Corbett or Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dan Onorato. They'll face off in the Nov. 2 election.
As for Mr. Corbett, a new report by Marcellusmoney.org, compiled by Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania and Common Cause/Pennsylvania, listed his political contributions from the gas drilling industry at $856,220 over the last 10 years, with most of the money coming in over the last two years.
The new Corbett total is up from the $700,000 reported a few weeks ago and the $373,000 reported in June. Mr. Onorato has received significantly less in the last decade -- $124,300. Mr. Onorato favors a severance tax on Marcellus Shale gas, while Mr. Corbett does not.
"In the last weeks before the election, drilling industry CEOs went all out for Tom Corbett because he thinks that ordinary Pennsylvanians should pay to clean up the messes that their drills leave behind,'' claimed Josh McNeil of Conservation Voters.
Mr. Corbett said the natural gas industry is just in the beginning stages in this state and he doesn't want to impose a tax that could send thousands of jobs elsewhere. He said his policies will not be swayed by campaign contributions.
The Marcellus Shale, a rock bed a mile or more beneath three-quarters of Pennsylvania and parts of New York, Maryland, Ohio and West Virginia, contains as much as 363 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The extraction process involves a high-pressure procedure that pumps up to 8 million gallons water and chemical additives into the wells to fracture the shale and release the gas.
Also in Philadelphia today, Mr. Rendell will continue his criticism of Senate Republicans for their "unwillingness to enact a severance tax on the natural gas industry." He said Monday the Legislature is displaying "recklessness" regarding a projected $3 billion or more budget shortfall in 2011 by its failure to enact a gas severance tax.
He claimed it's "senseless" for Pennsylvania to ignore the $100 million or more that could be generated by imposing a "fair'' extraction tax on the thousands of cubic feet of natural gas being extracted from Marcellus Shale.
He said he had offered a compromise tax plan that is reasonable for both the drillers and the state, one that's less burdensome than his original severance tax plan, proposed in February and modeled on the tax used in West Virginia.
He criticized legislators for taking large campaign contributions from the shale drillers, claiming there is "no question'' that those donations have led to the Legislature's reluctance to enact a shale tax.
Senate Republicans favor a tax of 1.5 percent on the selling price of gas at the wellhead for the first five years of a well's life, then rising to 5 percent. Mr. Rendell favors a 3 percent tax the first year, rising to 4 percent the second year and then 5 percent thereafter.
Senate President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, who has gotten $143,000 from the gas industry, said the drilling industry has created many jobs in his district, especially in Tioga County, and he doesn't want drillers to go to other states if Pennsylvania enacts too high a tax.
Mr. Rendell said all other states with Marcellus Shale drilling have an extraction tax. He said it makes no sense for Pennsylvania to be the only state without such a tax, especially when the state faces a large budget shortfall next year. He called on Senate leaders to return to session after the Nov. 2 election to work on a shale tax, saying, "I will negotiate night and day.''
But GOP Senate leaders say they won't meet during the "lame duck'' session after the election. The Democrat-led House plans to come back for a few days in November, but without the Senate, no tax bill could get final action.
This version corrects details of Republicans' gas tax proposal. Harrisburg Bureau Chief Tom Barnes: tbarnes@post-gazette.com or 1-717-787-4254."
You may also read the article as it appeared by clicking HERE.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Will the PA Senate heed Rendell's call tomorrow?
While the House passed a severance tax bill on gas companies prior to their self-imposed October 1st deadline, the Senate failed to follow suit. There are allegations the Senate let the clock run out in order to stall a decision until after the November 2nd election. If the GOP gubernatorial candidate, Tom Corbett, wins the election, any such tax will likely be far, far lower than the one passed by the House. Corbett is a proponent of the gas industry and is against taxing it at all. The natural gas industry has donated nearly $400,000 to Corbett's campaign; they're hedging their bets, however and have also contributed $75,000 to the Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Dan Onorato (see marcellusmoney.org/candidates for detailed info).
These donations are in keeping with the overall trend seen in the recent House vote on bill 1155. According to MarcellusMoney.org, the natural gas industry's donations to those in the House who voted *against* the bill were 3.5 times more than those who voted for it. While both parties have accepted donations from the industry, it's not a generalization in the least to say that Republican candidates overwhelmingly support the gas industry and are working hard to keep any such severance taxes exceedingly low--if not non-existent.
As Josh McNeil of Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania puts it, “It may not be in the interests of the gas industry, but a Marcellus Shale drilling tax is good for the Commonwealth, good for local communities, and good for the environment. When legislators take thousands of dollars from the gas industry, then vote to let that industry take our resources for free, we have to wonder whose interests they’re really serving.”
So Rendell is calling for the Senate to meet during tomorrow's scheduled holiday, Columbus Day, to debate the severance tax issue. What follows is an article by Angela Couloumbis as posted on Oct. 9, 2010 on Philly.com. Click on the title to read the article in full on Philly.com or read the opening paragraphs below.
Rendell calls for meeting on the Monday holiday to speed natural-gas tax negotiations
HARRISBURG - Gov. Rendell is haranguing legislative leaders to return to work on Columbus Day and discover a route, at long last, to a tax on natural gas extracted from the Marcellus Shale.
At a news conference Friday, Rendell decried what he called a "preposterous" lack of substantive talks to establish a tax rate. He said he had organized a meeting for 1:30 p.m. Monday - a state holiday - with key legislators and industry representatives in the hope of reaching a deal.
"We made a promise to the people of Pennsylvania," he said, referring to his and legislators' midsummer vow to craft a natural gas tax by Oct. 1. "I intend to honor that promise."
But in a sign that such a tax may be delayed again, Republican leaders said they would gladly meet with the lame-duck Democratic governor Tuesday.
They also differed sharply with Rendell's framing of the issue, branding "absolutely untrue" his claim that they were stalling in hope of having a Republican governor by January.
For nearly two years, the natural-gas industry and its allies have staved off proposals to tax the wave of new drilling in the lucrative Marcellus formation. Over the summer, as part of negotiations on the annual budget, legislators promised to return to the Capitol this fall and enact a tax by Oct. 1.
Rendell said the House - where Democrats rule by a slim majority - held up its end with passage of a tax proposal last week. He said the GOP-controlled Senate had done nothing but "carp and criticize" in an apparent attempt to "run out the clock" in the hope that Republican Tom Corbett will be elected governor Nov. 2.
Corbett has said he is against imposing a tax on gas drilling.
"This is all B.S. right now," the governor said of the Senate's stance. Continue to read the remainder of the article by clicking here.
These donations are in keeping with the overall trend seen in the recent House vote on bill 1155. According to MarcellusMoney.org, the natural gas industry's donations to those in the House who voted *against* the bill were 3.5 times more than those who voted for it. While both parties have accepted donations from the industry, it's not a generalization in the least to say that Republican candidates overwhelmingly support the gas industry and are working hard to keep any such severance taxes exceedingly low--if not non-existent.
As Josh McNeil of Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania puts it, “It may not be in the interests of the gas industry, but a Marcellus Shale drilling tax is good for the Commonwealth, good for local communities, and good for the environment. When legislators take thousands of dollars from the gas industry, then vote to let that industry take our resources for free, we have to wonder whose interests they’re really serving.”
So Rendell is calling for the Senate to meet during tomorrow's scheduled holiday, Columbus Day, to debate the severance tax issue. What follows is an article by Angela Couloumbis as posted on Oct. 9, 2010 on Philly.com. Click on the title to read the article in full on Philly.com or read the opening paragraphs below.
Rendell calls for meeting on the Monday holiday to speed natural-gas tax negotiations
HARRISBURG - Gov. Rendell is haranguing legislative leaders to return to work on Columbus Day and discover a route, at long last, to a tax on natural gas extracted from the Marcellus Shale.
At a news conference Friday, Rendell decried what he called a "preposterous" lack of substantive talks to establish a tax rate. He said he had organized a meeting for 1:30 p.m. Monday - a state holiday - with key legislators and industry representatives in the hope of reaching a deal.
"We made a promise to the people of Pennsylvania," he said, referring to his and legislators' midsummer vow to craft a natural gas tax by Oct. 1. "I intend to honor that promise."
But in a sign that such a tax may be delayed again, Republican leaders said they would gladly meet with the lame-duck Democratic governor Tuesday.
They also differed sharply with Rendell's framing of the issue, branding "absolutely untrue" his claim that they were stalling in hope of having a Republican governor by January.
For nearly two years, the natural-gas industry and its allies have staved off proposals to tax the wave of new drilling in the lucrative Marcellus formation. Over the summer, as part of negotiations on the annual budget, legislators promised to return to the Capitol this fall and enact a tax by Oct. 1.
Rendell said the House - where Democrats rule by a slim majority - held up its end with passage of a tax proposal last week. He said the GOP-controlled Senate had done nothing but "carp and criticize" in an apparent attempt to "run out the clock" in the hope that Republican Tom Corbett will be elected governor Nov. 2.
Corbett has said he is against imposing a tax on gas drilling.
"This is all B.S. right now," the governor said of the Senate's stance. Continue to read the remainder of the article by clicking here.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Weeklong radio series on all aspects of Marcellus drilling
This week, WHYY, a public broadcast network serving southeastern PA, southern NJ and all of Delaware, is running a series of discussions on all aspects of natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. According to their WEBSITE, the show airs weekday mornings and evenings from 10-12. If you aren't located in their broadcast area, fear not! You can listen live on your computer via streaming audio by clicking HERE. (Note that you may be prompted to install or update your computer's version of media software in order to listen). If you have Sirius-XM radio, the show will air on the Sirius-XM channel NPR Now 134 and NPR Talk Sirius 135. You may also download podcasts of the shows after they've aired via their WEBSITE. The site includes selected show summaries, selected transcripts, photographs, links for further research.
Topics for discussion are as follows:
Topics for discussion are as follows:
The Shale Game Part 1: County vs. County
Monday, September 27, 2010
Susan Phillips and Kerry Grens take you to two counties in northeastern Pennsylvania that have reacted to gas drilling in drastically different ways.
The Shale Game Part 2: Water
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Natural gas has been trapped deep below the surface of Pennsylvania for eons. But only in the past two years has the industry begun in earnest to tap the rich gas reserves of the Marcellus Shale — a layer of rock thousands of feet down that runs from New York to West Virginia. Gas companies sunk nine hundred wells into the Pennsylvania Marcellus this year. With this new area in play, residents have a lot of questions. The most frequently asked: what will be the impact on their water. In part two of our series The Shale Game, WHYY's health and science reporter Kerry Grens searches for the answer.
The Shale Game Part 3: Jobs
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Pennsylvania's natural gas rush has environmentalists and residents worried about contaminated drinking water wells, increased truck traffic, exploding well heads and potentially toxic spills. But the counterpoint all along has been jobs, jobs, jobs.
The Shale Game Part 4: Social services
Thursday, September 30, 2010
The Shale Game Part 5: Regulatory issues
Friday, October 1, 2010
Thanks to MH for passing along the info!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
PA: Vote, Baby Vote!
Take the time today to exercise your right to vote in PA's primary election. Who is for or against the natural gas drilling in PA? If this issue is important to you, then go into the voting booth knowing where your candidates stand.
The following are just a few resources:
Bucks County News Chart: Candidates for Governor & their stance on drilling
Senate candidates: PA the Saudi Arabia of natural gas?
Hoeffel and Sestak endorsed by "Protecting Our Waters."
Frack Mountain endorses Hoeffel & Sestak
The following are just a few resources:
Bucks County News Chart: Candidates for Governor & their stance on drilling
Senate candidates: PA the Saudi Arabia of natural gas?
Hoeffel and Sestak endorsed by "Protecting Our Waters."
Frack Mountain endorses Hoeffel & Sestak
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