The Crude Life Content Correspondent Genneca Houser interviews Ryan Rauschenberger
North Dakota Knows How To Get Things Done
The Crude Life had the opportunity to speak with North Dakota Tax Commissioner Ryan Rauschenberger for a few minutes a day after his very popular keynote presentation at the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference. Although he attributed the popularity of the other speakers, Tax Commission Rauschenberger had some interesting content of his own to share.
For example, , North Dakota has a smaller population and area in a comparison to Texas yet they’re at #2 for production in the United States, showing that North Dakota oil and gas is keeping up with the “big dogs.” Because production is so good, North Dakota is able to rely on the oil and gas industry for much of their state expenses and funding.
“Really, oil is a significant portion of not just the oil
tax that’s paid, but also our sales tax base, our income tax base is
very heavily reliant on oil but also farm commodities. So, we’re very
much a commodity driven state.”
Tax Commissioner Rauschenberger explained how the budgeting requires the foresight to try and predict two and a half years into the future. There’s a lot of moving pieces, and it’s not an exact science which means having so much reliant upon the money from oil may complicate things.
“The industry is extremely important. Not just from the
tax revenue that it generates, from the production tax, but our income
and sales tax base and the income tax that’s paid from royalties. It’s
really intertwined throughout our entire tax collection system.”
With so much depending on the money from oil, how are the new
policies affecting the region? Tax Commissioner Rauschenberger talked
about the effects of the moratorium on drilling on federal land and the
potential impact of other regulations handed down from the current
administration. He says that because of the current volatility, North
Dakota made sure to save money for a backup fund, “just in case.” It’s
called the Legacy Fund, and there’s nearly 8 and a half billion dollars
saved so far, to be a cushion for the state if oil takes a turn for the
worst.
“…But we’re extra cautious right now because of the
potential for the federal government to expand its rulings or
legislation that would hurt the industry.”
But crunching numbers for a budget is not all Tax Commissioner
Rauschenberger attends to; his office goes beyond just formulating a
budget and appropriating the money. He calls it a partnership, stating
that he believes “what’s good for the industry is good for the state.”
Because of that, Tax Commissioner Rauschenberger takes it upon himself
to talk about the oil industry when possible in order to educate people
on how much it props up the state, so that the public may understand
just how much that money pays for. Understanding also allows for
planning, which North Dakota was able to do well enough that there are
still funds in savings. Smart financial planning has allowed for a
decent cushion in case the industry has shortfalls, and Tax Commissioner
Rauschenberger gives credit for that to the legislators and the people.
“The financial planning – you know, we play a role in
that. But really, the legislature has put in place all of these
different savings accounts, and frankly, the people did. The Legacy Fund
was put in place by a vote of the people, and, you know, that’s a long
