How dumb are they?
They are so dumb, I bet the Big Gas Mafia puts a contract out on them.
A Texas oil-and-gas lawyer who probably figured he was using a crafty defense technique during a recent deposition may have shot his whole industry — or local governments — in the foot. Decatur resident Tim Ruggiero sued Aruba Petroleum after the company drilled on his 10-acre property and spewed so many toxins that Ruggiero says it made family members sick and reduced their property’s value from $300,000 to $78,000. When Ruggiero sued for damages, the gas company attorney argued that the property should never have been valued at $300,000. His reasoning: The land should have been valued at $78,000, because the owner didn’t own the mineral rights and the land was therefore vulnerable to drilling. In other words, a gas company could have come along and drilled on the property at any time, so the property value should have reflected that.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
So, a judge and/or jury is either going to have to side with Aruba and we get to watch all of the appraisal districts and cities and school districts lose loads of tax revenue because of the gas industry and lower valuations OR Tim wins his lawsuit. Everyone say it with me now, "Leverage."
If Aruba weren't so dumb with blind arrogance, they would have settled with Tim and Christine long ago and shut them up. But, they are so dumb…
How dumb are they?
Never confuse dumb for arrogance.
SHE – I – T, I was going to buy his place for $300,000.00…….boy Thanks Aruba for letting me know it is only worth $78,000…….wounder if I could get a farm tap?……
What I've proposed is not a new concept, I've just put a bright light on it.
Industry has been destroying property values for decades, now. Brilliant tactician Ben Barron (Aruba Attorney) is now making the case for us at their own expense.
The problem that Aruba now has-and quite possibly the entire Industry-is that in order to drill for gas, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, provide jobs and put millions upon millions into the local and state economies, they have to destroy the tax base along the way.
The more visibility this gets, the more people that are going to protest their property taxes, and rightfully so. What will communities be left with?
I can't understand why the industry keeps on with the same old tired crap. We are decreasing our dependence on foreign oil so we can be energy independent and all the while they are selling their share of the leases in the Eagle Ford Shale to China, India, and Canada.
How the hell is selling our rights to energy development in this country to other countries decreasing our energy dependence? All China will do is sell it back to us for 3 times the money while they rape our land.
By the way who holds the mineral right to the state capitols lands, the White House, the Pentagon? Are there property values decreased?
According to the illogical logic of this attorney what are our
property values next to the Razyor Ranch drilling site worth?
Can you imagine if this attorney wins with this argument what will
happen to the property tax revenues for all the counties in the
Barnett Shale?
We can all go to the county appraisal office and tell them our homes
are only values for 1/4 of what the county has it valued at because we
don't own the mineral and we live next door to a natural gas well.
Looks like the Aruba "boys" went to the same summer camp as the bozos in Booger County! In Booger, the Appraisal Board upped my taxes on my homestead by 10%!!!!
We are being ruined at every turn in the road!!