A friend this morning asked for closing arguments from a few of his on Proposition 1. This was mine:
My closing argument is simple. It’s our future. We need investment to turn our oil into cash, under ACES Alaska has lagged behind at a time when investment in oil development globally has rocketed and, along with excessive spending has put Alaska in a place where the University of Alaska – Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research has warned (using ACES revenue projections) that “[r]ight now, the state is on a path it can’t sustain. … Reasonable assumptions … suggest we do not have enough cash in reserves to avoid a severe fiscal crunch soon after 2023, and with that fiscal crisis will come an economic crash.”
SB 21 was built to attract increased investment in a way which, if it reduces the decline curve by as little as 1%, will produce greater long term revenue for Alaskans than under a continuation of ACES. Based on my 35+ years having been and working with oil and gas investors I firmly believe it will achieve that objective and will give Alaska a stronger future than where we were headed under ACES.
I am voting NO to give Alaska that future.
Thoughts on Alaska Oil & Gas 