Brownfield Funding Through the Proposed Natural Gas Severance Tax
Legislation voted out of the Pennsylvania House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee last week, House Bill 1489, which imposes a natural gas severance tax, will provide a dedicated funding stream for Pennsylvania's brownfield program. The legislation sets aside 4 percent of the severance taxes to the state's Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund, which is used in part to pay for the operation of the Land Recycling Program. Just last year, the HSCA Fund was going broke before the General Assembly appropriated additional money to keep the program running. The concern lingers that the most recently appropriated funding will eventually run out, absent a dedicated funding stream. Without offering any opinion on the wisdom of a natural gas severance tax, if there is going to be a severance tax, the idea of dedicating some of that money for the remediation of contaminated sites, including Pennsylvania brownfields, is an idea that should be supported. The legislation would also dedicate 15 percent of the taxes generated to the Environmental Stewardship Fund, which is the Growing Greener Program. The bill now goes to the full House.
