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Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Letter: "Legislators needed foresight" on severance taxes

HOUGHTON -- In a letter to the editor of the Daily Mining Gazette, published on Dec. 5, 2011, Calumet resident Paul Campbell comments on the Nov. 28, 2011, Detroit Free Press article, "Will mines get state's riches for a paltry sum?" -- the second in a two-part series on the Rio Tinto-Kennecott Eagle Mine near Marquette.*

Campbell says, "I was surprised. In reading further, I find our Lansing legislators' lack of foresight either overlooking or ignoring "Mineral Severance Taxation" extremely disturbing. The long documented mining history of the Upper Peninsula shows a unique area full of mining minerals. Years ago, our legislators should have passed severance taxation laws to help boost the economy."

Campbell includes a link to a map showing how Michigan ranks among states that impose severance taxes on natural resources. Click here to see the map.

"We as citizens and taxpayers should demand to know why the State of Michigan has ignored severance taxation on our precious minerals, our natural resources," Campbell writes.

Click here to read the rest of this letter on MiningGazette.com.

* Click here to read the Detroit Free Press article "Will mines get state's riches for a paltry sum?"

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