Dave Caldwell/MDN
A pumping unit at work on March 20 on North Dakota Highway 8 between Mohall and Berthold. Ron Ness of the North Dakota Petroleum Council favors tax breaks for smaller producers such as this in order to assure long-term stability in the state’s oil and gas business.

By DAVE CALDWELL, Staff Writer dcaldwell@minotdailynews.com

As North Dakota finds itself in the midst of a large upswing in oil exploration and production, the eyes of many in the industry are now focusing on public policy. Much of the blame for the “bust” of the “boom cycle” that took place in the early 1980s in northwest North Dakota has fallen on the state Legislature.
Ron Ness, president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, says that this time around, many policy makers and those who advise them are determined not to make the same mistakes. That included extensive discussion during the 2007 session.
“There were a number of legislative oil tax options being bantered around,” Ness said on Feb. 29. “The petroleum council was really supportive of a flattening of the oil tax rate. In 1980, when things were rocking, there was a 130 percent increase from 5 percent to 11 percent.