Dunleavy Refuses to Let Alaska Tax Its Gasline to Death
Governor Mike Dunleavy deserves credit for refusing to let a group of state senators turn Alaska’s greatest energy opportunity in generations into a vehicle for another damaging tax.
Dunleavy is showing the foresight to recognize that Alaska’s long-term economic future will be secured by developing its vast energy resources, not by sacrificing transformative investment for a short-term tax grab.
On July 16, Dunleavy threatened to veto legislation that would have subjected some private oil and gas companies to Alaska’s 9.4 percent corporate income tax. After the measure failed in the House, he called lawmakers back for another special session beginning July 27.
Alaska LNG could deliver North Slope natural gas to Alaskan communities and global markets through an 807-mile pipeline. Dunleavy’s original proposal would replace a burdensome upfront property tax with a predictable tax based on the gas actually moving through the pipeline, reducing risk for investors while generating revenue once the project operates.
American Energy Alliance President Tom Pyle identified the fundamental problem perfectly:
“A permit is not financing.”
And when lawmakers boast about the revenue their new tax could theoretically collect, Pyle offers the only response that matters:
“You can’t tax what doesn’t get built.”
Dunleavy understands the difference between collecting revenue from a successful project and taxing that project out of existence. Alaska lawmakers should remove the poison pill, provide investors with a stable and competitive framework, and finally get the gasline built.
July 17, 2026