CPC and COGA Joint Statement on Senate Bill 19-181’s Passage through the Colorado State Senate

DENVER, March 13, 2019 – The following is a joint statement from Dan Haley, President and CEO of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association (COGA), and Ben Marter, spokesman for the Colorado Petroleum Council (CPC):

We are grateful to the senators who stood up in opposition to Senate Bill 181, a bill that could damage Colorado’s economy for years to come. A customary stakeholder process in the crafting of this bill would have yielded a much more workable outcome, and we remain shocked that a measure so consequential to the future of our state would be rammed through a legislative body in under two weeks without relevant input or sufficient analysis by people who actually understand the impacts that these decisions have on people’s lives.

This much we do know: Senate Bill 181 still attempts to cripple the industry’s ability to continue operations in Colorado. If signed into law, this legislation will diminish funding for critical public services, including education, health care, and road maintenance. According to an analysis released yesterday by the nonpartisan REMI Partnership, even a 50% reduction in Colorado’s natural gas and oil production by 2030 could eliminate 120,000 jobs and remove $8 billion in tax revenue from state and local coffers.

Clean, efficient, and safe energy production should be a nonpartisan issue, as the oil and natural gas sector has lifted more people out of poverty, driven more innovations, and lead to greater economic expansion than any other in history. Our industry is leading emission reduction efforts and our member companies adhere to the most rigorous regulatory standards in the nation. Those are the facts. Yet, sadly, politics won out in the Colorado Senate over the past ten days, rearing its ugly head in the same manner we too often see at the federal level.

To the thousands and thousands of Colorado families who depend on the natural gas and oil industry for their livelihoods, know that we will continue to dignify and defend your families and your work by fighting to improve this deeply flawed measure in the House of Representatives. We will continue to work with any lawmakers who are willing to listen to the truth about Senate Bill 181. Our state deserves better than what we have witnessed in the Senate in recent days.

About COGA

Founded in 1984, the Colorado Oil & Gas Association’s (COGA) mission is to foster and promote the beneficial, efficient, responsible and environmentally sound development, production and use of Colorado oil and natural gas. COGA is a nationally recognized trade association that aggressively promotes the expansion of Rocky Mountain natural gas markets, supply, and transportation infrastructure through its growing and diverse membership.

About CPC

The Colorado Petroleum Council is a division of API, which represents all segments of America’s oil and natural gas industry. Its more than 600 members produce, process, and distribute most of the nation’s energy. The industry supports 10.3 million U.S. jobs and is backed by a growing grassroots movement of more than 47 million Americans. API was formed in 1919 as a standards-setting organization. In its first 100 years, API has developed more than 700 standards to enhance operational and environmental safety, efficiency and sustainability.