Polluting politics

Evankovich’s petty idea for line item on gas bills

State Rep. Eli Evankovich, a Republican from Murrysville, should be ashamed of himself. This week the House of Representatives continued its debate of a bill that would assess a severance tax by volume on natural gas extraction in Pennsylvania. The House is making slow progress because members have proposed over 400 amendments to the bill.

Mr. Evankovich sponsored an amendment that would require natural gas companies to include a line item on consumers’ bills indicating the amount of the severance tax they are being assessed. In particular, the amendment would require the line item to include the names of the legislators and the governor who approved the tax. Thus, a consumer would see a line item on his bill about the “Wolf/Smith/Jones tax” if Rep. Smith and Sen. Jones from the consumer’s area approved the tax and if Gov. Tom Wolf signed it into law. This assumes that companies would immediately pass the tax through to their customers.

This type of petty partisanship is having a negative effect on our democracy. We have entered a time when legislators feel the need to punish those with differing opinions for their positions, and they go to ridiculous lengths to make this happen.

During debate on the House floor, members spent over two hours debating the Evankovich amendment. Finally, good sense prevailed, and the amendment was defeated by a vote of 53votes in favor and 134 opposed.

A year ago, Mr. Evankovich announced that he will not seek a fifth term in the House when his term ends in 2018. He cited a bad motorcycle accidentas an event that made him reassess his life plans and leave his elected position. Until he steps down, he has every right to oppose taxes on the natural gas industry. However, the House of Representatives and the citizens of Pennsylvania will be better off without his vindictive tactics.