Excellent point of view this morning on the Serverance Tax and why we should have a referendum and where the new found revenue should go…ROADS!

Some disagreement on this point is inevitable. State Sen. Bob Johnson, D-Bigelow, said recently that raising the tax would be a slap in the face to those industries willing to invest behind Arkansas’ borders. It’s a fair point, but it seems a 50-year period of status quo on any tax rate seems quite generous on the state’s part.

Thankfully, Gov. Mike Beebe agrees. He believes the severance tax is much too low and says it should see an increase. He also thinks the extra funding ought to go toward the state’s bridge and highway needs. With the state lacking several billions in desperately needed funding, and considering the wear and tear that exploration of natural gas adds to the state’s public roads — it’s tough to disagree.