The Capitol Pressroom

Tompkins County bankers and Assembly member Barbara Lifton met with Cuomo administration officials within the last few weeks to discuss a potentially explosive problem for land owners who have gas drilling leases. It turns out that gas/oil leases are generally not accepted by lenders such as Well, GMAC, FNCB, Fidelity, FHA, First Liberty or Bank of America, among others. Lifton and others are requesting that the administration reopen the DEC’s SGEIS process to include the study of land values. Lifton will join us with more.

Activist Walter Hang of Toxics Targeting recently sent a letter to Governor Cuomo about mortgage lenders and hydrofracking. What could they possibly have in common? We will tell you.

A post from The Capitol Pressroom which includes a partial transcript of the interview and the letter sent to Governor Cuomo in its entirety.

Does Natural Gas Leasing Hurt Property Values?

QUESTION — Does natural gas leasing hurt property values?

ANSWER – There is some damning evidence that it does.

Walter Hang of Toxics Targeting joined us on the Capitol Pressroom last Friday 5/20 to discuss this issue. He spoke with several banking institutions about their rules surrounding lending money for both residential and commercial land investment, and the results are on his website.

And why is the Independent Oil & Gas Association in Albany this week? We will speak with Lenape’s John Holko about state legislation that has piqued the interest of the gas-drilling industry, and who they are lobbying.