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Several Southern West Virginia counties to receive $8 million from oil and natural gas property taxes

By ANDREA LANNOM

The Register-Herald

BECKLEY, W.Va. — County governments in seven southern West Virginia counties will receive more than $8 million from property taxes on oil and natural gas production.

Taxes will provide county governments with more than $96 million for local school systems and community services, according to a Monday news release from the West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association. WVONGA serves the entire oil and natural gas industry, including organizations involved in construction, environmental services, drilling, transporting, distribution and processing.

County totals from highest to lowest in southern West Virginia are: McDowell, $2,070,939; Logan $1,646,018; Mingo, $1,452,948; Wyoming, $1,152,391; Boone, $932,048; Raleigh, $761,658; and Mercer, $1,05,736.

The five counties generating the largest amount of oil and gas property taxes for this year are Wetzel, $15,375,578; Doddridge, $15,165,626; Marshall, $10,553,516; Harrison, $8,846,064; and Ohio, $7,170,770.

“All counties in the state receive a portion of severance tax monies from oil and natural gas production,” said WVONGA Executive Director Anne Blankenship. “Additionally, those counties where natural gas and oil production is occurring have received hundreds of millions of dollars in the way of property tax receipts over the past several years. Many people may not realize that southern West Virginia also receives significant benefit, in the form of property tax revenue, from oil and gas production.”

Property taxes by county for the 2017 tax year for other counties include:

• Summers: $4,845

• Nicholas: $82,911

• Fayette: $254,779

• Monroe: $860

• Greenbrier: $5,110

• Marion: $3,298,952

 • Monongalia: $749,727

• Taylor: $1,273,297

• Mineral: $1,851

Oil and natural gas property tax assessments are based on the production and pricing of the resources from the tax year two years prior, the release said. Property tax assessments for this year are based on production and pricing levels which were realized in 2015.

“Although the amount of property taxes may fluctuate year over year due to many factors including commodity prices, West Virginia producing counties, continue to receive significant funds generated from the development of our gas resources,” Blankenship said.

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