EDMOND — With names like Phillips Petroleum, Continental Oil and Kerr-McGee, it is clear that energy has played a storied role in Oklahoma’s past. With names like Williams Companies, Devon and Chesapeake it is clear that energy remains important to Oklahoma today. But just how important is it?
This week, the University of Central Oklahoma Policy Institute (www.uco.edu/ucopi), a nonpartisan public policy think tank housed at the UCO released a new report (full disclosure: I authored the report) that quantifies the economic impact of this industry. The report notes that the true impact of the oil and natural gas industry extends far beyond the industry itself. In fact every industry in Oklahoma benefits from the presence of the oil and natural gas industry here.
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis indicates that the oil and natural gas industry in Oklahoma contributes $19.7 billion to the state’s Gross State Product and employs 75,000 people. This data however, does not include the indirect effect the industry has on the economy. In order to produce oil and natural gas, firms rely upon suppliers to provide machinery, tools and even construction services. Consequently, those firms hire more workers, too. Furthermore, by stimulating so much investment and employment, the oil and gas industry along with their suppliers, stimulates consumption, production and employment in all other industries as well.
The UCO Policy Institute report finds that once one considers both the direct and indirect effects, the oil and natural gas actually adds $30 billion to our state’s Gross State Product, supports 267,000 jobs and increases Okla-homa personal income by $15.6 billion — or an average of $4,400 per person. But the impact is even more significant once one considers the type of jobs created by this industry. According to the report, 35 percent of the jobs in Oklahoma’s construction industry are supported, either directly or indirectly, by the oil and gas industry. Further-more, the industry is responsible for supporting the employment of 25 percent of our state’s scientists, 20 percent of our state’s mathematicians/engineers, 15 percent of our state’s lawyers, and 13 percent of our state’s business professionals such as accountants, financial analysts, etc.
Once one examines where these jobs fit in the income distribution one realizes that the oil and natural gas industry is having its most significant impact supporting middle-income, and upper-middle-income families. In fact, the report finds that 35 percent of the compensation for upper-middle-income workers in Oklahoma is connected (again directly or indirectly) with the oil and natural gas industry.
Some might think that our state’s obvious reliance on the energy industry means our state should oppose environmentally friendly policies. Yet, such a belief indicates a misunderstanding of the Oklahoma energy industry today. It turns out that the oil and natural gas industry today is more a natural gas industry than oil industry. It is natural gas that is leading our state economy today, and it is natural gas that will be meeting our nation’s energy needs tomorrow.
Most Americans power their automobiles with gasoline. Yet, compressed natural gas is a much cleaner automobile fuel than gasoline is, and 98 percent of the natural gas we consume in this nation is produced in North America. In other words, natural gas offers a cleaner, more domestic fuel source than oil.
About 50 percent of the electricity we produce in the nation — and in Oklahoma — comes from coal. Yet natural gas produces only one-half the carbon dioxide as coal. If our nation wants to get serious about protecting our environment, it is clear that we will need to become even more reliant upon natural gas.
As a fourth generation Oklahoman I am proud of our state’s energy past. As a parent of two young children I am even more excited about our state’s energy future. This is because as an economist, I know that Oklahoma’s natural gas industry will continue to have a beneficial impact on Oklahoma and the rest of the nation.
MICKEY HEPNER is an associate professor of economics at the University of Central Oklahoma.
Opinion
Oil, natural gas industry continues its impact on state
- Opinion
-
-
LETTER: Spanish teacher supports Duncan for re-election
To the Editor:
I am a teacher in the Edmond Public School District. For the past 10 years, I have witnessed first-hand the extraordinary work of Kathleen Duncan, president of the Edmond Board of Education. -
LETTER: Former board member endorses newcomer in school board race
To the Editor:
On Feb. 14, Edmond school patrons of District 2 will vote to select a school board member for Edmond Public Schools. This District 2 seat will be a five-year term. The responsibilities of a school board member are mainly two-fold: 1) Select and hire a superintendent or terminate his contract when appropriate; and 2) Develop and implement board policies that are in the best interests of Edmond students and school staff.
It should be noted that a board member has no authority to act in any capacity representative of the school unless he/she is seated at an official, designated school board meeting. -
Science could alter drunkenness, but moral dilemmas remain
According to a recent study described in the Feb. 11 issue of Science News, an ancient Chinese hangover remedy may be just what the doctor ordered as a treatment for alcohol abuse. We’re going to consider this study in a minute, but first, let’s put our problem in historical perspective.
-
Hello, recovery
After a financial crisis that triggered the deepest recession since the Great Depression, it finally appears that the long-awaited economic recovery is here.
-
The Norman Transcript: Smoking, obesity, inactivity push health rank to No. 48
Dr. Terry Cline, Oklahoma’s Commissioner of Health and Secretary of Health and Human Services, has been making the rounds of Oklahoma newspaper editorial boards. He outlines a legislative agenda that gives cities and towns control over tobacco regulation, a stronger graduated driver’s license law to prohibit teens from texting while driving and a health education requirement for public schools.
-
Selective outrage over 'public money to private institutions'
Thanks to Oklahoma’s new Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program, “at least $700,000 in state public school funds will be paid this year to send special-education students to private schools in Oklahoma,” Kim Archer reported Oct. 17 in the Tulsa World.
-
Medical board goes paperless with success
Reji Varghese is an Edmond resident who is a deputy director of the Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision. His official duties include overseeing the IT functions of that entity. That board hosts monthly meetings at its Oklahoma City office with agendas that usually include more than 40 items dealing with matters such as possible disciplinary action against physicians, physician assistants and other related professions that the nine members of the board regulate.
-
Moving Oklahoma an integral part of the job
There is one industry that literally moves Oklahoma. Whether it is the fresh produce that feeds your family, or the gasoline that fuels your car, Oklahoma has thousands of trucks moving on its roads daily, delivering goods to your hometown.
-
Report shows good news in the numbers
The Oklahoma Office of State Finance provided the state with some great news last week. As you may recall, purchasing reform was one of the first efforts launched by the Oklahoma House as part of the Government Modernization initiative. During the 2008-09 legislative sessions, we acted on reports from IBM and Treya Consultants and rewrote the state’s purchasing laws to provide a special emphasis on managing the state’s millions of dollars of spend in a strategic manner that hopefully will match best procurement practices of free-market business entities.
-
School nurse supports Duncan’s re-election bid
To the Editor:
On Feb. 14, residents of Edmond Public Schools District 2 have an opportunity to continue the positive momentum of the state of Oklahoma by re-electing Kathleen Duncan to the Edmond Board of Education. A healthy public school system makes our state more attractive to both families and businesses. - More Opinion Headlines
-
LETTER: Spanish teacher supports Duncan for re-election
