Town gets coal severance dollars
Jefferson County received $39,515.95, and Shepherdstown received $928.43 in oil and gas severance tax payments from the state of West Virginia.
The funds come from a 10 percent tax imposed on the extraction of oil and gas resources in West Virginia. Seventy-five percent of that tax revenue is doled out to oil and gas producing counties based on the amount of oil and gas extracted from those counties. The other 25 percent is doled out to non-oil and gas producing counties and municipalities based on population. Municipalities receiving these funds are free to spend them as they wish.
Oil and Gas Severance Tax payments to counties and municipalities throughout West Virginia jumped to $8.3 million this year, according to the State Treasurer’s office.
The total represents a 16 percent increase from oil and gas payments over the same period a year ago.