Alaska House leader favors 'surgical' tax debate

JUNEAU, Alaska

Alaska House Majority Leader Kyle Johansen says he's interested in the "surgical" approach to separating oil and gas production taxes.

The Senate Finance Committee is working on a bill that would change the current system of taxing oil and gas production together amid concerns the state could lose potentially billions of dollars in revenue if a major natural gas pipeline comes to fruition.

Not everyone agrees the concerns are warranted or that urgent attention is required.

Johansen, a Ketchikan Republican, told reporters Monday that he doesn't think there's widespread support in the House for revisiting the larger issue of oil and gas taxes this session. He said he'd like to see a discussion on "surgical" separation of the two now.