Kasich to Shale Drillers: Start Paying Your Fair Share

Ohio Gov. John Kasich discussed a plan to tax companies drilling for shale gas in Ohio during the CERA Week energy conference in Houston earlier this week.

During a press conference Wednesday, Kasich said:

In regards to shale, I will be unveiling a program soon that will provide an income tax cut to all Ohioans and particularly small businesses, and it will be paid for by a reasonable approach to our severance taxes in the state of Ohio. We will at the end of the day be very competitive in what we propose but over time make sure all Ohioans and small business are going to be incented so Ohio can be more competitive.

When asked whether he was worried the plan could discourage further investment in the state by oil and gas companies, Kasich responded:

A lot of people feel when they pay zero they want to continue to pay zero. That's not acceptable in this state, and I have told the industry clearly that our plan is fair and it will create long-term stability in the state. Right now, I don't know what oil is trading -- $107? A 20-cent tax on a $107 barrel of oil. 20 cents they pay on a $100 barrel of oil. You've gotta be kidding me. You think that's sustainable, fair or reasonable? It's not, so we're cool about it, but we're going to get this done. I'm going to get this done one way or another, and it will benefit the whole state and everybody will grow, and we'll be happy and we'll have our regs in place and our rules in place and we can have multigenerational growth in the energy industry in this state.

To read more from Kasich during CERA Week click here.