Judges to oppose natural gas tax increase | News

LITTLE ROCK - At its Winter Conference Friday, the County Judges’ Association of Arkansas unanimously passed a resolution to oppose the ballot initiative underway to raise the state’s severance tax on natural gas.

“We’ve seen firsthand the positive impact natural gas production has had on our counties, our communities, and on the lives of our citizens,” said Faulkner County Judge Preston Scroggin, president of the association.  “The industry has helped us weather the economic storm and has brought thousands of jobs to our state – jobs our folks have come to count on, and passing a tax increase would put all that in jeopardy.” 

The proposed ballot measure, the Natural Gas Severance Tax Act of 2012, would raise the state’s rate to a flat 7 percent, giving Arkansas one of the highest natural gas severance tax rates in the country and making it hard to compete with surrounding states for jobs and continued development. “We appreciate the leadership Judge Scroggin and the County Judges’ Association have shown in opposing this tax increase, which would be detrimental to jobs and economic development in our state,” said Randy Zook, Chairman of Arkansans for Jobs and Affordable Energy, the committee leading the effort to defeat the severance tax measure.  “We just want to make sure Arkansans know the truth about the harmful impact a tax rise would have on Arkansas,” said Zook.

The County Judges’ Association of Arkansas is made up of county judges from all 75 counties in the state.  The association’s three-day Winter Conference ended Friday.