Families Benefit from Natural Gas Without Tax

Of the many tax hikes in Gov. Wolf’s  budget proposal, the natural gas severance tax on the surface seems less damaging to Pennsylvania families. But a severance tax could hit families in a very personal way, their natural gas bill.

For now, Lancaster OnLine reports that the average residential heating bill of UGI Utilities’ customers has dropped nearly 46 percent since 2008. The latest reduction of 3.8 percent–attributed to abundant supplies of Marcellus Shale gas–was instituted March 1.

Stated in terms of dollars, the average monthly bill has gone from $151 to $82 in the past seven years for 391,000 customers in 15 counties.

Those are but the latest benefits added to the gas industry’s billions of dollars paid in wages, impact fees, leases, royalties, dividends and taxes – and just one more example of why state government should not hamper the industry with unnecessary levies such as the governor’s proposed severance tax.