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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Jesse White |
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White introduces Marcellus Shale job creation bill
HARRISBURG, June 23 – State Rep. Jesse White, D-Washington/Allegheny/Beaver, has introduced legislation that would give Marcellus Shale drilling companies a tax credit for hiring Pennsylvania workers.
"Natural gas drilling in the Commonwealth is a booming economic sector with the potential to create thousands upon thousands of good-paying jobs," White said. "We have a ready-made workforce here with the skills, training and work ethic to power the development of the Marcellus Shale.
"My bill would create and retain a large pool of workers in this burgeoning field that will contribute greatly to Pennsylvania's economic recovery," he said.
House Bill 2606 would give natural gas companies that drill in the Marcellus Shale an incentive for hiring Pennsylvania workers by allowing them to apply for a $2,500 Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale tax credit for each resident it employs. Under the bill, companies could only apply for residents that have completed a qualified apprenticeship training program approved by the state Department of Labor and Industry.
Additionally, at least 75 percent of a company's workforce would have to be state residents in order to be eligible for the tax credit. Each company also would be required to submit to the department an application for the tax credit, along with a copy of its Department of Environmental Protection-issued drilling permit.
Companies also would have to present a signed statement certifying that it will employ residents for which it received a tax credit for five years.
White said under the bill, $25 million would be set aside each year for the Department of Labor and Industry to administer the tax credits.
"Pennsylvanians have a long and proud history of getting their hands dirty to get the job done, and we need to make sure that tradition continues in the natural gas drilling industry," White said.
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