GOP Tax Bill Passage - Very Good news for the Sweet 16

[dan_s]

Trump, GOP and Energy Industry Celebrate Passage of $1.5 Trillion Tax Reform Bill. Natural Gas Intel.
President Trump stood on the South Lawn of the White House with dozens of Republican lawmakers Wednesday, touting his biggest legislative accomplishment to date: passage of a $1.5 trillion comprehensive tax reform bill, which the GOP successfully muscled through Congress earlier in the day. The oil and gas industry reacted positively to the news. "We're pleased to see the final bill includes pro-growth measures that support the unique nature of our businesses, while allowing producers to continue investing billions of dollars back into American energy and the U.S. economy," said Barry Russell, CEO of the Independent Petroleum Association of America. "Meaningful tax policies like strong cost-recovery provisions, full expensing of capital expenditures, repeal of the corporate AMT, and lower corporate rates will help our member companies reinvest into new production and innovative technologies that will keep American energy affordable for U.S. consumers and create opportunities for the U.S. workforce."

Tax plan is a windfall for oil and gas industry. Washington Post.
When it comes to the energy business, critics of the Trump tax measure say it gives new meaning to the phrase windfall. Defenders say it will boost investment. The oil and gas industry will reap billions of dollars in tax savings from the cut in corporate income tax rates and the generous tax treatment of capital expenditures. In a bitter setback for environmentalists, the bill opens portions of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration. Over 20 years, advocates of development had failed to win approval from Congress for a standalone measure aimed at drilling in the refuge. Though included as part of the sweeping tax measure, opening the ANWR will generate, at most, only a small amount of federal revenue. Created by President Eisenhower, the Alaska wildlife refuge is the largest in the United States. The renewable energy industry fended off potentially damaging proposals that were originally in the House bill but were omitted from the final version. In the end, production and investment tax credits and the $7,500 per car electric-vehicle credit went unscathed.
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As expected the Washington Post had to put a negative spin on it. The U.S. Energy Industry is vital to this nation. Our economy depends on a dependable supply of energy and most of it will come from oil, gas and coal no matter how much anyone "dreams" of "free energy" from wind, solar, etc. Wouldn't it be nice is we'd quit bashing the most important industry in the world. Nothing happens without energy, including food production.