PIOGA has released the following statement in response to Governor Tom Wolf’s proposed severance tax on natural gas production:

This governor is tone deaf to the depression of global oil and natural gas markets and is ignoring the very real challenges facing the industry in Pennsylvania.  Drilling a new Marcellus Shale well here at today’s commodity price is a money-losing proposition, and that reality is being reflected in layoffs and reduced capital investment in the Commonwealth.  It is important to remember that every piece of equipment used to drill a natural gas well can be put on a truck, and those trucks will be loaded up and on their way to points west and south as a result of this additional tax on energy production.  

There is no basis to the governor’s claim that West Virginia’s approach to a severance tax has resulted in a ‘healthy industry’ in that state.  The fact is that West Virginia’s rig count plummeted and natural gas production lagged far behind Pennsylvania’s after imposing an additional tax on the industry.

This proposal seems to make this administration’s goals for Pennsylvania clear:  to reduce the amount of clean energy we produce, kill high-paying jobs and stifle economic growth across huge areas of the state.