The Alaska Legislature’s Push-Pull on Taxes
Mineral Law
by Graham Coslett
8M ago
In my latest column for State Tax Notes, I discuss several tax-related bills that were introduced during the most recent Alaska legislative session, which ended on May 17. Of the session, I noted that “…after the Alaska Department of Revenue released its Spring 2023 Revenue Forecast in March, the level of activity around tax legislation seemed to accelerate dramatically, albeit in various and often countervailing directions.” Among the bills I cover are: S.B. 114: Would impose a new income tax on a “qualified entity,”—a partnership, sole proprietorship, or S corporation—and increase ..read more
Visit website
Things Heat Up in Juneau
Mineral Law
by Jonathan Iversen
9M ago
In my most recent column for State Tax Notes, I look at the numbers in the Alaska Department of Revenue’s (DOR) spring 2023 revenue forecast, which the governor and Legislature rely on for budget discussions during the legislative session. I also provide a summary of some of the bills legislators introduced during the last session that would increase existing taxes or impose new ones. As a result of lower predicted oil prices and reduced production, DOR lowered its 2023 spring forecast for unrestricted general fund revenue from that of its official fall 2022 forecast by $246 million ..read more
Visit website
Wait … What?  A Potentially Dangerous Development in § 105(c) Retaliation Cases
Mineral Law
by Willa Perlmutter
10M ago
In my last column I talked about a coming shift in the analysis the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission will use when it considers retaliation cases brought by the Secretary of Labor or by miners under § 105(c) of the Mine Act.  For those of you that came in late, here’s the deal:  until very recently, the miner (or MSHA, if they’re stepping in on the miner’s behalf) would have to prove first, that the miner engaged in activity protected by the Act.  Then the miner would have to prove that his employer took adverse action against him (like firing him, or reassigning ..read more
Visit website
We Have to Know What We’re Doing, Because They Don’t Always Get It
Mineral Law
by Willa Perlmutter
10M ago
Let me tell you about an experience I had with a Labor Department lawyer earlier this month. It was one of those experiences that made me realize how important it is for those of us in the mining industry to have a good working knowledge of the Mine Act and how enforcement is supposed to work. I represent a really good client, a company that mines its own materials and uses those materials in construction projects around the community. The construction side of the business is really what they do, with the rock production part being a small but necessary aspect of the operation. They generally ..read more
Visit website
Bracing for Another Budget Debate
Mineral Law
by Jonathan Iversen
10M ago
In my most recent column for State Tax Notes, I look at the numbers in the Alaska Department of Revenue’s (DOR) 2022 Fall Revenue Sources Book, which tabulates historical revenues and provides the revenue forecast that the governor and Legislature will rely on for budget discussions during the legislative session. I also discuss the status of the refundable/rebatable tax credits that have been available for more than a decade in Alaska to companies that invested in oil and gas exploration and development and in refinery infrastructure in the state. Unrestricted revenues in Alask ..read more
Visit website
Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities Proposes Regulation Changes
Mineral Law
by Shannon Bleicher
10M ago
The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOTPF) issued notice of proposed regulation amendments to Title 17 of the Alaska Administrative Code dealing with rural airport rental and fees. The existing rental rate regulation applicable to rural airports in Alaska, 17 AAC 45.127, includes a schedule which provides an annual 10% increase to the rental rate at each airport. The proposed amendments will delay the annual increases of rural airport lease, rental, and fees until January 1, 2023. DOTPF amended the regulations earlier this year to delay the annual increases through D ..read more
Visit website
Bracing for Another Budget Debate
Mineral Law
by Jonathan Iversen
1y ago
In my most recent column for State Tax Notes, I look at the numbers in the Alaska Department of Revenue’s (DOR) 2022 Fall Revenue Sources Book, which tabulates historical revenues and provides the revenue forecast that the governor and Legislature will rely on for budget discussions during the legislative session. I also discuss the status of the refundable/rebatable tax credits that have been available for more than a decade in Alaska to companies that invested in oil and gas exploration and development and in refinery infrastructure in the state. Unrestricted revenues in Alask ..read more
Visit website
Tax Actions by the Alaska Legislature in 2022
Mineral Law
by Jonathan Iversen
1y ago
In my most recent column for State Tax Notes, I look at several bills that did and didn’t pass in the latest session of the Alaska State Legislature, which adjourned in May, and at what may be on the horizon. Legislators introduced several bills that would have increased taxes on individuals or businesses in Alaska, none of which passed. Several bills did pass or were nearly passed: H.B. 104, which would have increased state motor fuel tax rates, was approved in the House but failed to clear the Senate. S.B. 33, which expands the seafood product development tax credit, was passed in ..read more
Visit website
MSHA Announces New Initiative to Enforce Silica Dust Standards
Mineral Law
by Ariel Stavitsky
1y ago
Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced a new initiative to strengthen enforcement of its current respirable crystalline silica standards.  Crystalline silica is a common mineral found in sand, stone, concrete, and other materials.  When disturbed by cutting, grinding, or crushing, it becomes airborne and respirable, capable of posing increased risk of diseases like silicosis, coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, or “black lung,” and certain cancers. The enforcement initiative goes into effect immediately and serves as interim measure ..read more
Visit website
Alaska Gets a Boost from Oil
Mineral Law
by Jonathan Iversen
1y ago
In my latest column for State Tax Notes, I outline the impacts rising oil prices are having on the Alaska economy and the state’s citizens, the accomplishments and tasks ahead of the Legislature as it passes the midway point in its regular session, and the fall prognostication by the Department of Revenue for revenue in the state. Read “Alaska Gets a Boost from Oil,” published on March 28, 2022, by State Tax Notes ..read more
Visit website

Follow Mineral Law on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR