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| PA State Senator Jim Ferlo |
SB 906, which was introduced yesterday (April 4), would prohibit the drilling of any wells, including wells that have received prior DEP permits but where drilling has not yet begun.
The bill would establish a commission to study the environmental, social and economic impacts of drilling and recommend legislative changes.
Ferlo, who is in his second term in the state senate, previously served for 14 years on Pittsburgh's City Council. He sponsored similar moratorium legislation in the last legislative session.
Ferlo also is the sponsor of SB 680 which would impose a severance tax on natural gas drilling.
That measure would send 30% to fund local infrastructure repairs and economic development,
activities, 30% to the Environmental Stewardship Fund, 30% to the Hazardous Sites Cleanup
Fund, and 10% of emergency response training and equipment purchase.
"The gas drilling industry is going to leave scars on the Pennsylvania landscape that will place a cost on state government,” Ferlo said at the time of the bill's introduction.
“A severance tax is uniform and fair, and is not unreasonable when you compare it to our competitor states. We should enact a severance tax now to make sure that we are not making other state taxpayers pay for the impacts of the drilling industry."
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Interesting bill and potentially beneficial ways of allocating tax yield.
ReplyDeleteTX Environmental Attorney (as well as general practitioner) and Mediator and LinkedIn User
Two very reasonable, common sense bills that should receive widespread support.
ReplyDelete