More than $209.5 million will be distributed next month across Pennsylvania in natural gas impact fees, a $36 million increase over last year’s total.
The impact fee — created seven years ago to reimburse counties and municipalities for the effects of natural gas drilling — has totaled more than $1.4 billion since its inception. This year’s total is the third-largest amount collected since 2011.
Beaver County this year is set to receive $497,102, a significant increase over the $335,961 distributed last year to the county. In addition, the 54 municipalities in the county will receive a combined $618,000 from the impact fee, nearly double the $335,961 received last year.
The county’s increase is attributed to the number of gas wells that were eligible for impact fee payments. The number of wells that qualified for this year’s impact fee sat at 75, compared to 55 last year and 42 in 2015.
The impact fee money, which is expected to be delivered locally in early July, can be used for only a limited list of projects in counties and municipalities. That list includes construction projects, road maintenance and upgrades, bridge repair, water and sewer repairs, and environmental programs, such as parks and recreation.
The 54 municipalities in the county will also receive varying amounts of money from the impact fee according to how much drilling took place there.
As in years past, New Sewickley Township by far is the top-earning municipality and can expect to receive $174,563 this year, an increase of $70,000 from last year.
Township Manager Walt Beighey Jr. said leading the county in impact fees is nothing new for New Sewickley. While the $174,000 isn’t a significant addition to the township’s overall $3 million annual budget, it does help pay for projects in the municipality.
He said it will be up to the township supervisors on how to spend the money, but added that a new maintenance building or new fire department building could be in the works.
Regardless, Beighey noted that impact fee revenues are a nice addition to the budget, but it’s not as though the money is a gift that hasn’t been earned.
“There are things that come along with the money,” he said. “It’s not like it’s free money, because we have to put up with things like traffic, trucks, wells and noise complaints, you name it.”
South Beaver Township, which will receive $54,164 this year, and Marion Township, which will receive $44,411, are the second- and third-highest earners for this year’s impact fee.
In a news release issued Thursday, the president of trade group Marcellus Shale Coalition called the impact fee a “special drilling tax” that is “working as designed by enabling local governments to direct how the revenues are utilized.”
“The tax revenues collected from the natural gas industry support local bridge, road and other critical infrastructure improvements, as well as community parks, first responders, soil and water conservation districts, environmental projects and housing initiatives,” said coalition President David Spigelmyer.
All told, county and municipal governments across Pennsylvania will receive $114.7 million in impact fees. In addition, an additional $76.5 million will be transferred to the Marcellus Legacy Fund, which provides financial support for environmental, highway and other projects across Pennsylvania.
Finally, another $18.2 million will be distributed to various state agencies in Harrisburg.