American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2015 - 32

that the new law's impact on producers
may be subtle. "Eminent domain is but one
tool in the toolbox," he describes. "HB
1908 merely changes how our industry and

most others can use that tool."
AIPRO did convince lawmakers to
keep oil and gas producers from getting hit
by SB 755, he says, which bans anti-in-

demnity clauses in contractual agreements between shippers and motor carriers. "It passed, but we managed to get an
exemption," Robbins reports.
Ì

2015 Tennessee Session Uneventful
NASHVILLE, TN.-The 2015 Tennessee Legislature, which concluded in late
April, was uneventful for the oil and gas
industry, reports the Tennessee Oil & Gas
Association.
During the 109th Tennessee General
Assembly, the association reports, only two
bills-neither of which proved harmful to
the industry-merited close attention.
TOGA President Chuck Laine states
SB 1172 and HB 1167 passed both the
Tennessee Senate and House of Representatives. As of late April, the legislation was
awaiting Governor Bill Haslam's approval, and, if approved, would facilitate
natural gas sales at the pump to be measured in gallon equivalents.
The association supported the legislation, Laine says, because it would allow
natural gas consumers to more easily understand the product's volume.
TOGA also monitored a so-called cap-

tion bill, which Laine describes as a "possible place holder for something that
could harm the industry." However, neither of its sponsors put the bill on notice

for hearing, and it died in both the House
and the Senate, Laine notes.
Ì
See story page 132

Ohio House Introduces Budget
Minus Severance Tax Proposal
COLUMBUS, OH.-There is a notable omission in the budget bill introduced
in the Ohio House of Representatives: It
does not include Governor John Kasich's
desired severance tax.
House leadership unveiled Substitute
HB 64 in mid-April. The two-year budgetary plan Kasich introduced earlier in the
year included a 6.5 percent severance tax
on unconventional oil and gas production
(AOGR, March 2015, pg. 34).

According to Ohio Oil & Gas Association Executive Vice President Shawn
Bennett, both the nature of the governor's
proposal and its timing persuaded House
leaders not to incorporate it into Sub HB
64. They apparently prefer not to pile any
new taxes on the industry amid headlines
about its slowdown, Bennett reflects, although some questions about the governor's proposal are pertinent, regardless of
industry conditions.

201
5

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32 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

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Dr. Howard Gruenspecht,
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Mexico's Energy Reform in the
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David Madero Suarez,
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American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2015

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