Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf unveiled a program dubbed Back to Work PA earlier this month in his budget proposal that would impose an extraction tax on natural gas in addition to the impact fee producers already pay to state and local governments, according to The Morning Call.
The proposed tax would produce an estimated $300 million a year, depending on the price of natural gas, to pay the principal and interest on a $3 billion bond issue over 20 years. Wolf also claims the tax would not fall entirely on in-state consumers as about 75% of the gas produced in Pennsylvania is exported.
The Marcellus Shale Coalition, an industry group for gas producers in Marcellus formation, said the impact fee has provided more than $2 billion for community and environmental programs across the state since 2012. It disputed Wolf’s statement that the tax would be 2.8%, putting the rate at more than 12%.
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