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Show Easy Money Speaking of lobbies, as we were above, there are probably prob-ably plenty of 'em badgering our state legislators right now over the so-called severence tax bill. The severence tax is one of those easy money deals. The theory behind it goes like this. Utah has a wealth of natural resources. When a natural resource is used, something some-thing is lost. Therefore a tax should be levied against the outfit which "severs" the natural resource. Not a bad theory. There's only one thing wrong with it. It ain't so. First: If a natural resource is never used it never has any value. Second: Utah's wealth in natural resources becomes actual, only as a result of work applied to those resources. Third: The initial step in working our natural resources re-sources or severence sets off the chain of real wealth-producing wealth-producing -activities that make jobs and income. Fourth: Put a penalty on the severence operation and you discourage the development of your natural resources and the attendant employment and income resulting therefrom. there-from. Easy money? Hardly. The severance tax is simply a blunt way of telling industry to stay out of Utah. |