February 21, 2017
Texas Oil and Natural Gas Industry Paid $9.4 Billion in Taxes and Royalties in 2016, Added Jobs Every Month September – December
Staples: ‘We can’t take for granted all that is possible in Texas because of oil and natural gas.’
AUSTIN – According to just-released data from the Texas Oil & Gas Association (TXOGA), the Texas oil and natural gas industry paid $9.4 billion in state and local taxes and state royalties in fiscal year 2016, the equivalent of $26 million a day to state and local revenue. As oil and natural prices stabilize, the Texas oil and natural gas industry added jobs every month between September and December 2016, with a total of 4,700 new jobs.
“We can’t take for granted all that is possible because Texas is the nation’s #1 state for oil and natural gas production, pipeline miles and refining capacity. Those accolades translate into jobs, tax revenue, financial security and personal well-being for all Texans,” said Todd Staples, president of TXOGA.
“Even in a down market during fiscal year 2016, the Texas oil and natural gas industry contributed an average of $26 million a day to state and local revenue. The oil and natural gas industry has paid $108 billion in state and local property taxes and state royalties since 2007– a figure that would finance the current annual state budgets for the University of Texas-Austin and Texas A&M University, combined, for well over 100 years.”
Staples noted that the oil and natural gas industry has a significant impact on the Texas budget because the industry pays nearly 6 times more in state and local taxes and state royalties on a per employee basis than other business sectors.
“Tax revenue from the Texas oil and natural gas industry directly funds our schools, universities, roads and first responders every year. Not just during record-breaking years,” he said. “Beyond dollars and cents for the State, Texas oil and natural gas is keeping energy local and electricity affordable for Texas families.” In 2015, the average American family enjoyed more than $1,300 in energy-related savings.
“Not everyone in America is enjoying inexpensive electricity because some people don’t have adequate access to pipeline infrastructure, the safest way to deliver oil and natural gas,” said Staples. “Residents in New England, for example, pay the highest electricity rates in the continental U.S. due in large part to a lack of pipeline infrastructure. During the winters of 2014 and 2015, residents there paid about $7 billion more than neighboring regions for electricity.”
Staples also noted that 1.2 billion people in the world do not have access to electricity at all – the foundation of safety and wellbeing.
“Given energy’s central role in basic health and safety, it’s clear that those who advocate for restricted access to reliable power or energy infrastructure are not advocates for the people,” said Staples. “In fact, anti-oil and natural gas activists’ efforts put people at risk, threaten jobs and pinch family budgets.”
“Families’ aren’t alone in savings made possible by oil and natural gas. The State’s Rainy Day Fund, funded almost exclusively by oil and natural gas severance taxes, has a current balance north of $10.1 billion,” said Staples. “Over the past five years, the oil and natural gas industry has contributed more than $8.3 billion to the Rainy Day Fund, providing a level of financial security that most states do not enjoy.”
Staples noted that local entities benefit from oil and natural gas tax revenue as well. In fiscal year 2016, Texas school districts received $1.7 billion in property taxes from mineral properties producing oil and gas, pipelines and gas utilities. Counties received $529.8 million in oil and natural gas mineral property taxes.
“What Texas needs now, as we ease out of this dramatic downturn, is for our lawmakers to look closely at what makes Texas a good place to do business,” said Staples. “Specifically, we hope lawmakers maintain their commitment to science-based regulations, reauthorize the Railroad Commission of Texas, properly fund the Railroad Commission and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, preserve a low tax environment and encourage the critical infrastructure development our growing state needs. All Texans benefit when our lawmakers embrace smart policy that allows the oil and natural gas industry to provide for Texas, securing our economy, our environment and our future.”
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