Bill Denies PA Counties with Frack Ban from Receiving Impact Tax Rev

What's fair is fair. If a county blocks drilling under county-owned land, as the Allegheny County Council recently did (see Allegheny County Council Overturns Veto/Upholds Frack Ban in Parks), that county has declared it doesn't support Marcellus Shale drilling. So that county should not be the beneficiary of revenue raised by the impact fee (PA's equivalent of a severance tax) in other places that do support and allow drilling. That's just fair. You don't want drilling? Fine. Then you don't get to benefit financially from the drilling done in other places. State Sen. Gene Yaw is introducing a new bill in the Pennsylvania legislature that would do just that--deny counties (but not individual municipalities within the county) from receiving Act 13 impact fee revenue--IF that county blocks drilling under county-owned land. Brilliant! And fair.

---

To view this content, log into your member account. (Not a member? Join Today!)