Energy & Environment

February 26, 2018 by Sean O'Leary
Can WV Afford to Not Increase the Natural Gas Severance Tax?

Earlier this month, this blog post examined the impact of the booms and busts of the natural gas industry in the counties where it is most active, using some broad economic metrics. As it showed, despite producing billions of dollars in natural gas during the recent boom in production, there hasn't been a significant impact on…

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February 24, 2018 by Ted Boettner
Back to the Future: Can WV Avoid the Resource Curse?

WVCBP executive director Ted Boettner presented at the Appalachian Justice Symposium - West Virginia Law Review in Morgantown on the "resource curse" and how it has impacted the state's economy and workforce over the years. View Ted's presentation here.

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February 12, 2018 by Sean O'Leary
Booms and Bust: Natural Gas Update

On the eve of the Marcellus Shale boom, we at the West Virginia Center on Budget Policy released a report on the economic boom and bust cycles of West Virginia’s natural resource extraction economy. AS the report showed, counties in West Virginia with high concentrations of mining employment were particularly affected by the boom and…

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July 15, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Grading Places: Towards Tri-State Shale Policies for the Public Good

This report card evaluates the current policies of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia in a range of policy areas informed by the research of the Multi-State Shale Research Collaborative (MSSRC). It compares policies across the three states that address the social and economic issues that unconventional drilling delivers to the communities in which it occurs.…

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July 11, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Lessons for Gas Patch Communities: A Local Government Guide for Dealing with Drilling

This handbook provides recommendations to county and local governments, human and social services, police and emergency services, and other local officials dealing with unconventional gas drilling. These recommendations are based on previous research conducted by the Multi-State Shale Research Collaborative (MSSRC) to document the human and social service impacts of increased drilling. Read PDF of report. The MSSRC…

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September 23, 2015 by Sean O'Leary
A Win-Win Marcellus Shale Tax Incentive

The development of the Marcellus Shale has led to a boom in West Virginia’s natural gas production. But aside from the increase in drilling activity and state and local tax revenue, the natural gas boom has not brought with it the jobs and economic growth that many predicted. While the state’s natural gas production has…

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May 20, 2015 by Ted Boettner
Reverse the Curse: Fighting The Boom and Bust of Natural Resource Extraction

On May 20, 2015, WVCBP Executive Director Ted Boettner took part in a legislative briefing in Columbus, Ohio sponsored by the Multi-State Shale Research Collaborative and Ohio Assembly members Jack Cera (District 96) and Michele Lepore-Hagan (District 58) to discuss how Ohio can maximize benefits and minimize costs in shale drilling in Ohio.Ted's presentation explored how…

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November 19, 2014 by Ted Boettner
7 Things You Need to Know About Why Coal is Declining in West Virginia (4 of 7)

In the last post, we looked at how West Virginia - especially southern West Virginia -  is being out-competed by other coal regions because of the decline in coal mining productivity that makes it cheaper to produce coal in places like Illinois and Wyoming. Not only do West Virginia coal producers face stiff competition from…

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