Alva Review-Courier -

A new ruling declaring waste water lines for oil and gas as exempt from ad valorem taxes has resulted in the loss of tax money to counties and especially to schools. On Thursday, Jan. 26, the Woods County Tax Roll Corrections Board met at the courthouse in Alva to handle a list of tax corrections. Many of them were for the change in status of waste water (often called saltwater) lines. The corrections related to those lines, approved for four years of tax rolls, resulted in over a half million dollars in lost taxes to Woods County. More than half of that was designated for schools.

Members of the board include John Smiley, chairman of the county commissioners; Renetta Benson, county assessor and Joe Shirley, chairman of the county excise board. County Clerk Shelley Reed was also present.

2017 Tax Roll

Attorneys Lauren McCall and Drew Harrold with Merit Advisors were present by telephone for the beginning of the meeting. They wanted to discuss the SandRidge E & P and SandRidge Midstream protests for 2017. Benson said the formal protests were withdrawn and then the company came back and filed paperwork which included everything like land, mobile homes and computers. She said the information should have been broken down to show what was being protested.

Due to the withdrawal of the protests and the later paperwork including too much, Benson recommended the protest not be approved. Shirley made a motion, seconded by Smiley to deny the claim, and the motion carried by unanimous vote. The SandRidge E & P protest involves $193,229 in taxes and will go to court.

The board also denied the SandRidge Midstream protest which involves $119,888 in taxes. This will also go to court.

2018 Tax Roll

On 2018 taxes, SandRidge E & P will pay $181,868 less in ad valorem taxes to Woods County due to the exemption of waste water pipelines. Broken down into school districts, taxes went from $4,030 in the Waynoka district to zero. The reduction in the Freedom district is from $55,091 down to zero. Another Freedom amount of $6 also went to zero. In the Alva district, taxes go down from $154,594 to $33,734. A Major County school district that includes Woods County land goes from $881 down to zero. These tax amounts are not what the school districts receive. The totals are divided among schools and other entities such as Woods County and the Woods County Health Department.

The board members voted to accept this tax roll correction because it was ordered by the court.

2019 Tax Roll

In another court order approved by the tax roll corrections board, SandRidge E & P will pay $182,107 less in taxes to Woods County. For the area included in the Waynoka School District, taxes went from $5,478 to zero. In Freedom district, taxes went from $57,503 to zero and from $6 to zero. In Alva school district, the taxes to be paid went from $150,979 to $32, 752. For the Major County school district, taxes went from $893 to zero. Again, these tax totals are for all those receiving ad valorem taxes, not just the schools.

2020 Tax Roll

The 2020 tax roll protest has not gone to court. Benson said SandRidge didn’t file with the courts after the formal protest was denied. SandRidge’s attorney was asked to talk to the county’s attorney, Luke Adams, but Adams said no one talked to him. This protest was not filed before the deadline so there has been no ruling by the county tax roll corrections board.

At the request of the county’s attorney, the board moved to table the matter.

2021 Tax Roll

The loss of ad valorem taxes from SandRidge in 2021 totals $185,918. The loss in the Waynoka School District is $5,677. In the Freedom district the loss is $58,364. The Major County district loss is $979. In the Alva School District $121,144 was reduced to $246 for a loss of $120,898.

Since these changes were approved by the courts, the tax roll corrections board approved the change in taxes.

2022 Tax Roll

Benson had several corrections to the 2022 Tax Roll. One account was reduced by $691 in taxes due to a mobile home being moved off the property and into Woodward County. Woods County was not told of the change before taxes were assessed. This change was approved by the board.

Companies designated as Public Service companies go directly through the state instead of to the county. Taxes on Southern Star Central Gas were reduced by $14,885 by the state. The board approved the change.

Paperwork sent to Redline Energy, LLC was signed for, but later the county received a notification that the company does not own the wells assessed. However, the Corporation Commission shows they still own the wells which were purchased in 2020. Shirley made a motion, seconded by Smiley and approved unanimously to deny the protest.

In final action, the board approved a protest from a taxpayer who was assessed $747 on a mobile home which was sold to someone else.

Corrections for 2018, 2019 and 2021 involving saltwater disposal lines amounted to a loss in taxes of $549,893 for Woods County.