Gov. Bill Walker added House Bill 111, the oil and gas credit and tax bill, to his special session call June 22, but as this issue of Petroleum News went to print there had been no legislative action.
The bill passed both House and Senate, but the versions are very different and are in conference committee.
The primary item on the call, the state’s operating budget, passed both houses of the Legislature earlier June 22.
“I thank legislators for reaching a compromise on the operating budget to ensure government services continue after July 1,” the governor said.
He noted that earlier June 22 “legislators indicated in conference committee their intent to correct the state’s unsustainable oil and gas tax credit system. That’s why I am amending the call so legislators can complete work on House Bill 111.”
The governor said it was necessary to “immediately address the subsidies we can no longer afford. It is the next critical component of a much needed compromise fiscal plan, and it must be addressed this year.”
Walker said that with the reduction in the permanent fund dividend to $1,100, “we cannot continue to give out millions of dollars in subsidies to oil companies.”
The conference committee on HB 111 has not met since and the House and Senate have been holding technical sessions, which do not require legislators to attend.
On HB 111, while there appears to be agreement on ending cash credits, the House favors an immediate tax increase while the Senate wants to wait for input from newly contracted consultants.
- KRISTEN NELSON
