2 - Texas Energy Week CANDIDATES: CLEMENTS BIDS TO NAIL WHITE ON O&G TAXES BOTH FAVOR IMPORTS FEE CLAIMS WHITE AN ADVERSARY WHITE SPIKES TAX INCREASE Republican Bill Clements appears to come on with sharper responses than Democratic Gov. Mark White in a Q&G joust between gubernatorial candidates that appears in e TIPRO Reporter's fall edition now go- ing into the mail. Editors of The Reporter put Clements, the first governor of Texas from GOP ranks in a century, and White to seven rounds of questioning on their energy policy views, a tax or fee on imported oil, taxation of the petroleum industry, a governor's role in development of Texas energy resources, legislative or regulatory "remedies" to assure gas deliverability, attaining a consensus among oil and non-oil states on energy issues, and "significant energy issues" facing the State of Texas in the late '80s. Clements and White came off near even in their exchanges over their efforts for a coherent and comprehensive national and state energy policies. And both Clements and White stood toe-to-toe in supporting an oil imports fee or tax as a step to help maximize domestic produc- tion and stabilize oil and gas prices.. Clements cited that during his governorship that he established the Texas Energy and Natural Resources Advisory Council to develop a state energy policy and "to help take our case" to Washington. "Mark White abolished TENRAC, the state body specifically established to help create energy policy. . ," Clements said. Other punches of Clements against his November foe: Gov. White has a long record in support of increasing oil and gas severance taxes, has asked Clements, then governor when White was at- torney general, to call a special session of the Legislature to boost the severances, "did impose the state's first drilling fee" and later attempted to increase the fee by 900 percent. "I stand opposed to increasing any tax," Clements says in the TIPRO Reporter article. Clements called White an "adversary" of the oil and gas industry. Onetime rougneck and drilling contractor Clements deemed the issues of the late '80s are: Renewing efforts to establish sound state and national energy policy, holding the reins against new taxes, and reversing the over-valuation of oil and gas properties. Gov. White swung back with a set of essential elements of a policy to maintain domestic oil and gas production: * protection of the domestic industry from "predatory market tactics and outside interference" triggered by the Saudi-led market -share-war; * "a healthy competitive environment . . . in order to bring about the greatest efficiency in recovery and deliverability of our oil and gas resources; * retention of adequate tax incentives to promote continued drilling and research; and * adequate regulatory controls for conservation and efficiency of recovery. White tagged an oil import fee as the "key element to effective na- tional energy policy. Tax-wise, Gov. White said, "It makes no sense to increase the tax burden on the oil and gas industry at a time when it is confronted with the most serious threat to its economic viability since World War II." On the issues of the '80s, White said, "We must concentrate on insur- ing the maintenance of our investment in energy technologies necessary to continue a steady course toward energy independence. "An immediate need is to pool our resources in a joint research and development initiative for enhancing and extending the productive life of our existing oil and gas fields." 8/25/86