Deadbeats

Legislative Auditor says the state is owed up to $11.7 million in unpaid oil and gas severance taxes over the past four years. (via The Lens daily link rodeo)

Part of the problem there is a complicated system for issuing credits, and refunds, and the shuffling around of those responsibilities between the Revenue Department and the Department of Natural Resources.

 Maginnis and Alford suggest that this means another "Tax Reform" movement is coming at us. That can be a good thing or a bad thing.  This being Louisiana, look for several gubernatorial candidates to suggest doing away with the severance tax altogether and "swapping" it for a tax on kittens or something.

Meanwhile, speaking of swapping things, looks like Jindal and Garret Graves' plan to drop the SLFPA-E lawsuit against oil and gas and replace it with legal action against the Corps of Engineers is moving forward.