Aces has nothing to do with who owns the resources, the resources were sold to the oil companies when they bought the leases to the oil fields.
What Aces is about is taxing the oil companies to the point that they have been investing elsewhere, and why Alaska is now the 4th largest producer of oil in the US, and has fallen behind California.
If Sarah was truly a conservative she would not be for taxing an industry to the point that it is not making new investments in the state, and that's exactly what ACES did. It's only since SB-21 that the oil companies have been beginning to invest in new projects.
Do not blame Sarah and what she accomplished in open meetings for what Gov. Parnell and his big oil buddies have done behind closed doors since Sarah was forced to resigned.
There were a record number of oil industry jobs in each year from 2007, when ACES was implemented, to 2009.
The number of oil companies filling taxes with the state of Alaska doubled between 2006 and 2009. This includes a number of independent and foreign oil companies.
Natural resources and logging jobs increased 13.7% during Governor Palin�s tenure according to Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development data.
Add this to all the other stuff Gov. Palin worked for and Standard & Poor�s raised Alaska�s credit rating from AA to AA+ in April, 2008 and to AAA in January 2011. Moody's when to AAA in November 2010.
Now the trend is all downhill.
Having worked in the oil industry in Alaska for 17 years I'd say I have a better grasp of the reality of the affect of aces than someone in the Ozarks.
The oil industry is like a large ocean going vessal, it takes time to change directions. Due to the pipeline failure and spill at the GC2 transit line, and ongoing projects, there were several years of construction that had already been engineered when Aces passed.
After Aces was passed, the engineering firms had a strong contraction, all the contractors that had been brought in to work those projects headed South, and all the engineers and designers struggled to keep employed during the downturn and many left the state.
Engineering has just started to rebound the last year or two and the next couple of years look promising. That means that module construction will start to pick up this year and next, and construction on the slope will pick up the following year and beyond.
How any "conservative" can beat the bandwagon about how wonderful high taxes are for the economy or jobs baffles me, but then again Sarah is anything but a conservative when it comes to business, taxes and government spending.
Says the man who works for Big Oil. Big Oil is out in full force pushing for the good old days.
"ConocoPhillips employees steer Alaska oil tax cut bill through Legislature�
Alaska Dispatch News7/14/14 �Much of the discussion surrounding our oil taxes is driven by emotion and ideology instead of facts. Most Alaskans want a vibrant oil industry that generates good paying jobs, keeps the oil flowing for years to come and provides Alaskans with a fair share of revenue. Here�s why voting to repeal SB 21 will jeopardize these goals.
My firm represents many of the independent oil and gas companies operating in Alaska.�
Oil boom bypassed Alaska because of ACES
By Harmon Hall As every business person knows, Alaska can be a tough place to do business.
Much of what makes it such a challenge here is out of our control: high costs, distant markets, harsh weather, small workforce. What we can control is how we treat our businesses � and that�s why it�s so important to vote NO on 1, Aug. 19.
However I do not believe Ivan Moore lives in the Ozarks...
THE MOORE REPORT: ACES High - Anchorage Press
May 23, 2014
Ivan Moore | Updated So far, the oil industry in Alaska has spent almost $10 million trying to convince Alaskans to vote against their interests by saying no to the repeal of SB21.
Their return from this investment? In February, a national polling firm called PPP did a poll in Alaska and found the repeal of SB21 passing 43 to 31 with 26 percent undecided. Three months and millions of dollars later and it�s 45 to 34 with 21 percent undecided. A one-point gain. (Frankly, for an industry so obsessed with return on investment, this is freaking hilarious.)
And what�s the constant refrain of this barrage of advertising? ACES is a jobs killer! SB21 is creating jobs! The labor camps on the North Slope are teeming! Let�s get Alaska moving again! A steady stream of �workers� appear on our TV screens telling us that ACES was evil and had us on the road to ruin, and that SB21 will save us. Hallelujah and pass the Kool-Aid.
Now, the folks over at ItsOurOilAlaska.com do not have $10 million.
So out of the goodness of my heart and to help them out a little bit; here is some of their stuff:Myth #1: ACES was bad for oil company jobs.
FALSE!�Under ACES, all Alaskans benefited.� More Alaskans got jobs in the oil patch and oil companies invested more in Alaska.� This helped to grow our economy and improve everyone�s quality of life.
ACES went into effect starting July 2007. For the last complete year before that, July 2006 through June 2007, state statistics show an average employment of 10,850 oil and gas workers in Alaska. The final year of ACES, 2013, had average oil and gas employment of 14,150.� An increase of over 30 percent in six-and-a-half years, or an annualized increase of a little over four percent per year
Myth # 2: SB21 will increase non-oil industry jobs.
Let's Compare!�Under ACES spending on public works projects provided jobs for an estimated 125,000 Alaskans. Under SB21 the state is experiencing a massive deficit which will soon make public works spending a thing of the past. We're already facing the loss of teachers and other public sector jobs. Whose job will be next?
Myth #3: SB21 is responsible for oil service company hiring.
The oil services are growing in large part from projects that were begun before SB21 took effect. These new jobs would have been created under ACES as well.
Myth #4: A vote for repeal is going to kill Alaskan jobs.
Are you kidding? The big oil companies' highest margin of profit is right here in Alaska. Does anyone really think they will pull out of Alaska if they are required to work under a fair and equitable tax structure?
Fact #1: The oil tax giveaway is a JOBS GIVEAWAY
On October 3, 2013, BP told the Fairbanks News-Miner that thanks to SB 21's tax cut BP will now create 200 new Slope jobs. A positive statement unless one calculates how many jobs the state of Alaska could have created with a billion or two.
One billion dollars is enough to create 10,000 jobs that pay $100,000 per year; 2 billion could create 20,000 such jobs. The oil tax giveaway is a JOBS GIVEAWAY
Fact #2:�Alaska unemployment higher than national average for first time in years
The latest jobs report showed that even adjusted for seasonal employment, Alaska is falling behind the rest of the United States.
Fact #3: State spending on public works projects provides good jobs.
Under ACES, spending on public works projects provided jobs for an estimated 125,000 Alaskans. As our revenue dries up and our savings are spent - these jobs will be the first to disappear.
� 2014 ItsOurOilAlaska.com Phone: E-mail Us
Paid for by Vote Yes - Repeal the Giveaway, 1231 W. Northern Lights Blvd. #846, Anchorage, AK 99503.
Vic Fischer, chair, approved this message.