Ritter making the case to end oil and gas subsisides on West Slope

The Governor has traveled to the West Slope to make his case for ending our 30+ year giveaway to the oil and gas industr. This morning's Grand Junction Sentinel reports,

"Enough is enough.”

That’s the message Gov. Bill Ritter brought to Grand Junction on Thursday in his pitch for eliminating a lucrative tax credit Colorado’s oil and gas companies receive.

Ritter told The Daily Sentinel’s editorial board that abolishing Colorado’s “ad valorem” tax credit is a matter of “fairness.”

Ritter said the tax credit, which allows energy companies to subtract 87.5 percent of their property tax bills from the severance taxes they owe, has its roots in the late 1970s when Colorado wanted to help the energy industry establish itself in the state.

State economists have credited the subsidy with severely eating into the amount of money Colorado can use to confront the stresses energy development places on local governments and public infrastructure.

Ritter said the need for the credit is gone, given the health of the energy industry in Colorado.

“There is a time when a tax credit becomes obsolete as a matter of fiscal policy,” Ritter said.

A Smarter Colorado, the campaign behind the ballot question, estimates Colorado could take in more than $260 million in new revenues. Those funds would then be used to underwrite “Colorado Promise” scholarships, water projects and a series of other programs.

I've really come around on the Governor's proposal. I've always thought that ending the subsidies was the right thing to do. Anyone who has spent time looking at our severance tax and the surrounding issues quickly recognizes that our policies are antiquated and our enforcement is minimal. Something needs to change and the Governor should be applauded for taking on the oil and gas industry and doing the right thing.

I've knocked the Governor for his lack of action in other major policy areas but he has stood up to the oil and has industry since day one. He has reformed the oil and gas commission to ensure that it is protecting Colorado's natural resources and our local communities. Now he is going after the industry's sacred cow - their sweetheart tax deal. These are not moves that come without political risk, a bad loss on this ballot measure would not only be personally embarrassing but could also signal a "blood in the water" moment for Colorado Republicans.