Author's posts
Inhofe Says Toxic Reform Act is Example of What Congress Can Do
Oklahoma U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe says the chemical safety bill approved by the Senate and sent to the President to be signed into law is an historic piece of environmental regulatory reform. The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act awaits the President’s signature after the Senate approved it Tuesday with a …
Despite Protests, Iowa Approves Bakken Oil Pipeline
The Iowa Utilities Board voted this week to give the green light for a subsidiary of Dallas-based Energy transfer Partners to begin work in the state as part of a nearly $4 billion pipeline to carry Bakken oil from North Dakota to Illinois. The vote was 2-1 on the three member board in favor …
Protesters Attempt to Block Natural Gas Pipeline Construction
Developers of a natural gas pipeline in Vermont say the protest that resulted in the arrests of five people this week didn’t impact their work plans. Dozens protested in Williston at the site where Vermont Gas is building an extension of the transmission network 41 miles from Colchester to Middlebury. One woman locked herself to …
Seventy Seven Energy Files Pre-Packaged Chapter 11 Plan
Oklahoma City-based Seventy Seven Energy Inc. announced it has filed a pre-packaged plan for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. In doing so, the company said the plan provides for a substantial deleveraging transaction pursuant to which nearly $1.1 billion of the company’s outstanding debt will be converted to …
Gary England Bridge Proclaimed Near Seiling by Governor Mary Fallin
With the stroke of her pen, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signed a bill into law on Monday proclaiming a bridge over the North Canadian River near Seiling to be the “Meteorologist Gary England Bridge.” The bridge spans the river on U.S. Highway 60 north of the hometown of England who later went on to …
Tax Rebate Program for At-Risk Oil Wells Cut with Governor’s Signature
The measure cutting Oklahoma’s tax credit for at-risk oil wells to $12,500,000 a year was signed into law Monday by Gov. Mary Fallin. Senate Bill 1577 was sent to her last week after the legislature debated its merits. The cost-cutting move came after experts decided that falling energy prices might increase the credit to …
Enid Considering Sales Tax to Finance Kaw Lake Water Pipeline
The city of Enid is considering a possible election to allow voters to decide on a sales tax hike to fund a Kaw Lake water pipeline project. City Commissioners might ask voters to create a new 1/4 percent tax to pick up where a quarter percent tax funding capital improvements will end in March 2018. …
Oklahoma Gasoline Averages $2.13 a gallon, but Texas Flooding Might Affect Prices
Gasoline prices in Oklahoma continue holding at an average of $2.13 a gallon, according to the latest price survey from AAA Oklahoma. It is the same price as one week ago. Nationally, the average is $2.36 a gallon a increase of four cents a gallon since last week’s Memorial Day Holiday. “The state average has …
Chevron Still Fighting Superfund Cleanup at Abandoned Mine near Red River, N.M.
Chevron USA is still fighting the Environmental Protection Agency, contending that the Federal government should pay some of the cleanup costs at the Superfund site that once was the company’s Questa Mine in northern New Mexico. The company made recent arguments to the U.S. 10th Circuit court of Appeals in Denver, hoping to revive its …
Energy Bill in Doubt as Politics Grows
Unless Oklahoma congressman Markwayne Mullin and 39 others named to serve on a joint House-Senate committee negotiating a final Energy Bill agree to Democrats demands, the prospect of the first major energy bill in nearly a decade could be quickly fading. Rep. Mullin was named recently to help negotiate differences in what the U.S. Senate …
