A Citizen’s Guide

JUNEAU—A new attempt to break the Legislature’s stalemate over a revised oil production tax was introduced Monday.

It’s dubbed the “produce or pay” plan, and it would raise or lower oil companies’ production tax rates depending on the amount of new oil they develop.

The plan would separate existing oil production from new production, with a 25 percent tax on the profits on the former and a 15 percent profits tax on the latter.

That 15 percent rate on new production would start to rise .5 percent a year starting in 2012 until it matched the “base production” tax rate of 25 percent.

In the beginning, the combined, or “blended” tax rate, would be 22.5 percent of oil companies’ Alaska profits. Read the rest of this entry »

JUNEAU—Despite the push from Gov. Frank Murkowski to act now on the proposed gas pipeline contract and related legislation, Interior lawmakers have modest hopes for the current special session.

Many are limiting their expectations to reform of the state’s oil production tax.

“There are too many pieces out there on the contract to think that we’re going to get a contract done in the next two weeks,” said Sen. Gary Wilken, R-Fairbanks.

Murkowski has not been specific about a timeline but is pushing lawmakers to act quickly and has suggested he wants everything done before the session ends Aug. 10, less than two weeks from now. He has stated clearly that he wants the contract approved before the Nov. 7 election. Read the rest of this entry »

IRWIN COMMENTS: Gov. Frank Murkowski fired state Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Irwin nine months ago after the Fairbanksan raised questions about the administration’s proposed gas pipeline deal.

In Irwin’s famous memo, he detailed concerns about whether members of his department were being asked “to operate outside current law” in the negotiations with the oil companies. That was a pertinent question last October and it remains so now. Read the rest of this entry »

A vote for the proposal to put the pipeline contract on the November ballot appears to be a vote for the contract itself.

Sen. Ralph Seekins, who has supported the basic structure and provisions of the proposed contract, and Rep. Mike Kelly, who recently called the contract “incomplete,” have both said in so many words they wouldn’t want the public to vote on a contract they didn’t think was good.

Seekins said he wouldn’t let the May 10 version of the contract be the one people voted on and said he’d like to see changes to the contract, including stronger provisions for hiring Alaskans. Read the rest of this entry »

To the editor:

A basic premise for dealing with producers involved in developing Alaska natural gas should include, but not be limited to, the following considerations: Read the rest of this entry »

Despite being acknowledged for his study and understanding of the gas pipeline contract, Sen. Gene Therriault is not on the Senate committee reviewing the proposal.

But that doesn’t mean he’s sitting idle.

On Monday, Therriault submitted 51 pages of comments about the contract to the revenue commissioner.

On Wednesday, after watching some testimony by Pedro van Meurs, the governor’s lead adviser on oil and gas, Therriault sought information from the legislative consultants. Therriault does head the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee, which hired the consultants. Read the rest of this entry »