The objective of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) is to encourage the extractive industries to make public the amounts and sources of monies paid to governments for natural resources. This article discusses the background that led to this initiative, the escalation of public commitment to it, the pressures on extractive firms to comply with it, and the current level of participation.

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative: Public Information on Natural Resources Revenues. Lee, Tanya, Summer 2006, pp. 1‑18.

Royalty accounting has entered a new era. While oil and gas producing states may have at one time applied fairly uniform royalty accounting rules, some states have recently adopted rules that vary significantly from the previously accepted norms. Producers must remain aware of the rapidly changing rules from state to state. This article offers some practical advice for producers and other royalty payers seeking to calculate royalty payments in the new era of royalty accounting.

A New Era of Royalty Accounting: Practical Advice for the Payer. Keeling, Byron C. and Gillespie, Karolyn King, Summer 2006, pp. 19‑37.

This is the third installment of a four-part series on FASB Statement No. 143. In this installment empirical estimates of the economic limit of production are used to forecast the expected abandonment time of offshore structures. Also, a meta-modeling technique is introduced to explore the manner in which variations in system parameters impact the determination of abandonment time.

Accounting for Offshore Structure Retirement Obligations: Abandonment Time Estimations. Kaiser, Mark J., Summer 2006, pp. 38‑57.

This is the conclusion of a two-part series on partnership allocations that began in our fall/winter 2005 issue. Part I of this article discussed partnership allocations with a focus on the “substantial economic effect” rules of § 704(b) of the Internal Revenue Code and presented situations where the partner is either contributing his own capital to the partnership or the partnership has recourse debt which one or more partners are obligated to repay. This article will take a close look at more advanced aspects of partnership allocations, including nonrecourse liabilities, allocations of tax credits, and the anti-abuse rules.

An Introduction to Partnerships Allocations for the Exploration and Production Partnership, Part II. Adelberg, Dianne and Wilson, William H., Summer 2006, pp. 58‑76.

This study examines the association between corporate governance and executive cash compensation of the U.S. multinational oil and gas companies. When sophisticated investors who have significant economic stakes in a business entity monitor it intensively, do executives work toward maximizing firm value and select value-maximizing projects? Does substantial large stockholder ownership and oversight in a firm make it more likely that corporate executives will demand a higher amount of cash compensation?

Corporate Governance and Executive Compensation of the U.S. Multinational Oil and Gas Companies. Hossain, Mahmud; Mitra, Santanu; Crumbley, D. Larry; and Msra, Ram, Summer 2006, pp. 77‑98.

Alaska receives nearly 90% of its income from petroleum, and it looks as though it is about to enter a new dimension. On August 10, 2006, after six long, hard months of work, the Alaska legislature passed one of the most significant pieces of legislation in the state's history—House Bill 3001 (HB 3001). HB 3001 changed the oil severance tax from the long-standing economic limit factor to a new system, the petroleum profits tax. Next on the agenda for lawmakers is the Alaska gas pipeline deal.

The Alaska Gas Pipeline Story—As It Stands Now. Johnston, Daniel, Summer 2006, pp. 99‑111.