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by Jeff MacNelly
' ABILENE (AP) — Tax incentives
and government subsidies are
among measures needed to help the
oil industry overcome the effects of
plunging prices, an oilman told a
congressional panel Wednesday.
John H. Chalmers, president of
Chalmers Exploration Co. of Abi
lene, said, “It is absolutely necessary
that something be done immediately
on tax reform. Investors are reluc
tant to invest when they do not know
what type, or if any type, of tax re
form will affect their investments.”
More than a dozen witnesses,
mostly oilmen, testified before the
U.S. House subcommittee about the
woes the industry has incurred from
the drop in crude prices.
Among the suggested remedies
were giving double tax credit for oil
field investments; repealing the
windfall profits tax, the Fuel Use Act
and preferential tax items for mini
mum tax; opening interstate and in
trastate pipelines; establishing an oil
import fee; and restoration of deple
tion to 27.5 percent.
Rep. Charles Stenholm, who
chairs the House Small Business
Subcommittee on Energy, Environ
ment and Safety, said independent
producers have all but abandoned
the search for oil.
“The price slide of the past 90
days is not the result of supply-and-
demand market economics,” the
Stamford Democrat said. “It results
from punitive, monopolistic actions,
designed to undercut high-cost pro
ducers, of the world’s single most
dominant producer.”
Chalmers outlined several actions
to help maintain stripper or margi
nally producing wells and continue
exploration for new pools of oil.
Parts of his proposal recommended:
• Subsidizing marginal or strip
per well production tit a $22-a-barrel
level. When the market price drops
below that figure, the federal gov
ernment would subsidize the differ
ence and put the oil in the Strategic
Petroleum Reserve, Chalmers said.
• Doubling tax benefits on strip
per wells. “If all intangible costs con
nected with maintaining marginal
and-or stripper wells were doubled
for tax purposes, then a substantial
amount of these wells could be kept
producing,” he said.
• Doubling tax benefits for ex
ploration into new pools of oil.
• Give a 150 percent tax credit
for intangible costs for development
wells:
Waldo
50 UHAT'S
WITH THE
CLOWN SUIT?
I'VE GOT
A JOB
INTERVIEW/
YOU'RE GOING
LIKE THAT?!
by Kevin Thomas Tower: Negotiations key to arms control
I majored in
PETROLEUM
ENGINEERING /
AUSTIN (AP) — Former U.S.
Sen. John Tower of Texas, until re
cently a Geneva negotiator on nu
clear arms control, said Thursday
both the U.S. and the Soviet Union
accept “the idea of a non-nuclear
world” but neither nation has a prac
tical plan to achieve it.
He also predicted that after
lengthy negotiations, the two nations
eventually will come to terms on
arms control.
Tower, whose resignation as an
arms negotiator was effective Tues
day, was the keynote speaker at a
symposium on U.S.-Soviet relations
since World War II.
Audrey Kokoshin, deputy direc
tor of the Institute for the U.S. and
Canada in Moscow, will offer a “So
viet perspective” on Friday.
The symposium was proposed by
Elspeth Rostow, former dean of the
Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public
Affairs, who noted that Tower’s 24-
year career in the Senate covered
much of the 41-year period that is
the focus of the conference.
Tower said that the resolution of
arms control issues is the most im-
Billionaire’s life attracts attention 10 years after
HOUSTON (AP) — Ten years af
ter his death, billionaire Howard
Hughes still attracts the attention he
so desperately tried to avoid in life.
A few “regulars” frequent the
Houston cemetery site where
Hughes is buried next to his parents,
and curious visitors still seek direc
tions to it, a Glenwood Cemetery
caretaker said.
A decade ago Saturday, a private
jet carrying Hughes’ 94-pound body
flew from his Mexican seaside hidea
way to Houston, where he was born.
The Hollywood playboy-turned-re
cluse died that day of kidney failure
at age 70.
Hughes, known for his exploits as
a moviemaker, pilot and financial
wizard, was buried two days later in
a brief Episcopal ceremony.
He left a legacy of money, adven
ture and glamorous women — but
apparently no will.
The case of Hughes’ millions
landed in the lap of Houston Pro
bate Judge Pat Gregory, who said
more than 500 people have claimed
to be related to Hughes and entitled
to his money.
A worldwide search failed to pro
duce a legitimate will, and in No
vember 1981, Gregory declared an
aunt and 21 cousins heirs to the
Hughes fortune, estimated to be
worth up to $2 billion when he died.
“We still get our regular comple
ment of people who purport to be
related to Mr. Hughes or an heir,”
Gregory said.
One woman who says she is a
queen living in Alabama often writes
to the judge, making claims to
Hughes’ money.
Although Gregory never met
Hughes, he said he grew to know the
man exceptionally well during court
proceedings.
“As in many contested cases, you
learn more about the person in
death than others did in life,” he
said. “He was a total enigmatic per
son in my opinion.”
Gregory said after hearing all the
testimony, claims and odd bits of in-
portant aspect of U.S.-Soviet rela
tions.
Tower said Gorbachev’s economic
goals for his country “are not com
patible with the continued dedica
tion of human and material re
sources to the level of military
capability that the Soviet Union now
has.
“And certainly we in the United
States would rather dedicate less of
our human and material resources
and less of the taxpayers’ money on
weapons.”
death
formation regarding Hughes, he
wasn’t surprised Flughes did not
leave a will.
“He was a procrastinator, that was
one of his inconsistencies,” the judge
said.
Although litigation designating
the heirs is complete, Gregory said
he would not be surprised to see a
motion filed concerning expediting
the distribution of the estate.
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