Demonstrators raise voices for 58

Point to record oil, gas profits; industry says supporters misguided

Gargi Chakrabarty

Published October 31, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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With less than five days to go before Colorado voters decide whether to do away with a tax credit for the oil and gas industry, campaigns on both sides are turning up the heat in the fight.

About 30 backers of the measure, mostly college students, gathered Thursday morning outside a downtown Denver skyscraper that houses an oil and gas industry group, chanting "Yes on Amendment 58."

Some students, dressed in dark suits and clenching cigars in their mouths, held signs listing the millions of dollars that oil and gas companies have contributed to the opposition campaign.

All told, energy companies have poured $11.5 million into the fight - warning the amendment would hike fuel prices and stunt the growing energy industry and the jobs it creates.

"With their relentless advertising on Amendment 58, they are trying to scare voters into continuing to subsidize big oil companies, when those same companies are reporting record profits," said Cathy Kromrey.

Kromrey, who has two college-age children, added, "My daughters can show them something really scary: mountains of student debt."

Backed by Gov. Bill Ritter, Amendment 58 would scrap a tax credit granted oil and gas companies against the severance taxes they owe, generating more than $300 million in state revenues each year. The bulk of the money would fund college scholarships, with smaller portions going to renewable energy and energy-efficiency programs, conservation, and transportation projects in areas affected by oil and gas drilling.

"The population of Metro State College is exactly the kind of students who will benefit from Amendment 58," said Andrew Batemen, president of the 20,000-member Student Government Assembly. "An average Metro State student will receive $1,000 a year, and we could use that to pay for books, tuition fees and other college expenses."

Total contributions supporting the measure, helped by donations from environmentalists and philanthropists from across the country, have reached almost $6 million.

Dan Hopkins, spokesman for the energy industry-backed Coloradans for a Stable Economy, downplayed Thursday's demonstration.

"This sounds like a Halloween stunt that didn't create much interest," he said. "These students apparently think that Amendment 58 is going to help them. Unfortunately, it is not.

"It won't provide any new operating money for the colleges, tuition will go up, and they will be left holding the bag."

Hopkins also defended the television and radio ads claiming the measure would increase pump prices and utility bills, saying, "We have documentation from economists and utility experts that these costs will be passed onto consumers."

Local economist Tucker Hart Adams has dismissed the claim that consumers will face increased prices if the measure were to pass, saying it would be "such a drop in the bucket."

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