.The Texas Energy Report

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.The Texas Energy Report

Budget Time: This Legislative Session Will Look Very Different and O&G Must Decide Now On Its Needs — TXOGA Panel

November 5, 2020 — “Now’s the time for the O&G industry to get together to decide what’s needed, before the 2021 session of the Texas Legislature” meets — because most “meetings” won’t be as they were in the past, state Rep. Tom Craddick said Thursday, while members of an O&G panel emphasized the budget as top priority.

Because of the pandemic, the session will have very limited capacity, with no public entry into the Capitol — at least that’s the current plan, a major disruption of the legislative status quo and a big setback for citizen groups that regularly visit sessions.

With falling revenue, the biggest concern will of course be the state budget, Rep. Oscar Longoria said, with the re-shuffling of department budgets and state priorities as one of the top items as O&G severance tax income has decreased

Speaking at the Texas Oil & Gas Association‘s online 2020 Lone Star Energy Forum, Rep. Longoria pointed out that well-paying industry jobs are being lost, resulting in lowered sales tax income, and “that’s where we take our biggest hit,” exacerbating state budget crises even as other tax income decreases….