Taxing issue

Everyone is looking for a piece of the pie. In a court case that has far-reaching ramifications for aggregates producers, the Commonwealth Court in Pennsylvania ruled that limestone is taxable, paving the way for North Union Township producer Coolspring Stone Supply to pay taxes to Fayette County, the township and the Laurel Highlands School District. The case was reported in the Herald-Standard. Coolspring has operated the quarry for 17 years. While Coolspring maintains that its stone products are in the same non-taxable category as oil and gas, the court determined that those products are in the same taxable category as coal. The decision will be appealed to the State Supreme Court, but the precedent set in this case is particularly ominous. Your comment?