WV OFS Cos. Call Gov. Justice Severance Tax Plan a Jobs Killer

In February West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice announced a plan to eliminate the state’s personal income tax. In order to replace the $2.1 billion received annually from the personal income tax, Justice would raise other taxes, including a tiered system that potentially raises the state’s oil and gas severance tax...potentially by a lot (see WV Gov. Floats Plan to Eliminate Income Tax, Raise Severance Tax). We were surprised to read the Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia (GO-WV), the leading trade group for our industry, seemed at least willing to entertain the graduated severance tax concept, not rejecting it out-of-hand (see WV O&G Keeping an Eye on Gov’s Plan to Increase Severance Tax). Two oilfield services companies clearly are not lining up with GO-WV, blasting Justice's plan to use a graduated severance tax as a jobs- and shale-industry killer.

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