Utah Oil Boom?

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A University of Utah study shows that in 2007 the oil and gas industry paid Utah and one of its state agencies more than $370 million.

Most of the money came from the lease of federal lands in Utah for drilling. That produced $310 million in shared royalties, fees and taxes for the state.

The Utah Institutional and Trust Lands Administration collected its own revenue by leasing state lands for energy development. That figure totaled $63 million.

Oil and gas drilling was booming in 2007 but has since tapered off with a decline in energy prices.

The calculations were made by researchers at the U.’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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