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Using some for higher education makes sense Durango Herald Editorial We think it is a fine idea to designate a portion of the gas tax revenues that come from drilling on the Roan Plateau in Northwest Colorado to a fund to support the state's colleges and universities. There is good logic behind putting revenues from a non-renewable resource into education, which is the underpinning of a healthy and livable state. And, considerable revenue could result. Rough estimates - very rough - are that as much as $1 billion dollars could come from leasing fees paid to the state, plus $100 million or so in royalties annually for 25 or 30 years.
The funding suggestion, made by two Western Slope Republicans, is to split the lease fees and the tax revenue streams between the communities that are affected by the drilling - their current use - and higher education. A percentage return on that endowment, plus the annual tax amounts, might make $100 million available annually to each higher education and the communities. That additional money would not cover all of Colorado's public college needs, but it would be very, very helpful. But supporting the use of new gas tax revenue for colleges does not mean the need to endorse drilling on the Bureau of Land Management controlled Roan Plateau at a wild and breakneck pace. If there are questions about the environmental impacts on the land and its inhabitants from the expected heavy drilling, and there are, they should be given a fresh look. Scars on the land cannot be undone; we know more today about how to practice environmentally sensitive drilling. The Legislature also has created a committee to take a look at how the state taxes energy extraction. There is the feeling that tax rates may be dated, while it is certain that tax collections are incomplete. That committee needs to complete its work, present its findings to the public and the Legislature, and let that elected body determine whether any changes in the law are needed. That is another significant reason not to race forward with the drilling. Putting taxes derived from energy extraction into the state's colleges and universities makes good sense, even if the revenues come from areas of the state beyond the Roan Plateau. But that can happen without a rush to drill. Gov. Bill Ritter is right to consider the environment, because after the wonderful gas is gone that is what we will have. |
