Governance
Public Policy
and Perception

Why It Matters to Us

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Growing debate within public, regulatory, and investor groups related to the transition to a low-carbon economy has contributed to an enhanced focus on fossil fuels, including natural gas. As the largest producer of natural gas in the United States, we believe it is our duty to serve as an informed resource to policymakers on issues directly affecting us and the natural gas industry. Pursuing thought leadership opportunities and advocating for responsibly developed natural gas may lead to improvements to, and better perceptions of, the industry while simultaneously supporting our goal to be the natural gas operator of choice. 

Additionally, we have an opportunity to elevate the conversation with policymakers to explain how natural gas can be used not just as a resource for meeting growing energy demands domestically and globally, but also as a tool for enhancing the quality of life in many disadvantaged communities. Nearly 3 billion people live in energy poverty. Natural gas is the most evolved tool to help address this, as natural gas is a low-cost, reliable, and clean source of energy — and the benefits do not end there.

Responsible development of natural gas can help improve disadvantaged areas by providing a low-cost, low-impact, and reliable source of energy while also providing a number of direct and indirect benefits to the broader community through job creation, landowner royalties, road improvements, and philanthropic investments in educational programs and municipal services. Learn more about the benefits we provide to local communities in Economic and Societal Impact.

What We Are Doing

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We engage on issues that affect our operations and communities so that we and others in the industry may fairly and safely produce natural gas. We aim to be a thought leader that elected officials seek out for consultation on questions related to our industry. We engage with regulators, legislators, and other natural gas companies to proactively shape policies in the best interest of all stakeholders. Our goal is to build trust among stakeholders and officials through transparency and honesty.

In 2022, we significantly increased interaction with members of the U.S. Congress and federal agencies. Our President and Chief Executive Officer, Toby Rice, participated in nearly 100 meetings with policymakers and key stakeholders, both in the United States and abroad. He worked with these policy makers and stakeholders to discuss the impacts natural gas can have in the reduction of global emissions. We also continued our outreach with government officials, including issuing a public letter to U.S. Secretary of Energy Granholm, and participated in several discussions with the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. For more information, please read our Letter to Secretary Granholm.

Public Policy Issues and Engagement

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Discussion of corporate positions related to government regulations and/or policy proposals that address environmental and social factors affecting the industry
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When considering and engaging on policy issues for the industry, we aim to see the larger impact on communities, operators, the environment, and the economy. We collaborate with government agencies such as the National Safety Council and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to improve safety regulations related to the industry. We also work to support federal, state, and local policies that promote stable investment climates for natural gas exploration, production, storage, and transportation. These may include policies governing environmental protection, taxes, natural gas production, transportation, and expanding the use of natural gas in sectors such as transportation, manufacturing, and electricity generation. The impact on our stakeholders remains a key driver for our influence and engagement.

We engage in shaping policies affecting our company and our industry at the local, state and federal levels directly, in addition to engaging on federal policies through our membership in trade associations. In 2022, we participated in the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, as well as CERAWeek, the world’s premiere energy conference, where we unveiled our new business plans for increasing liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports in an effort to replace international coal consumption at unprecedented rates. We also became founding members of the Partnership to Address Global Emissions (PAGE) in October of 2022. This partnership promotes policies to replace coal consumption and strives to solve complex global energy and climate problems. Within PAGE, we push for the enactment of policies that will help create the infrastructure needed to increase the production and export of U.S. LNG.

Governance and Policies

We conduct our public policy activities in compliance with applicable local, county, state, and federal laws. These activities are guided by our Public Relations and Government Affairs teams, collectively referred to as “Stakeholder Affairs.” Additionally, the Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility (PPCR) Committee of our Board of Directors receives regular reports regarding these activities at each regular PPCR Committee meeting. The PPCR Committee reviews and receives reports regarding our approach to public policy matters, including corporate political spending;  diversity;  environmental, health, and safety (EHS);  and energy.

Our Political Contributions and Political Activity Policy and Lobbying Disclosure and Compliance Policy help manage our interactions with regulatory agencies and elected officials. We require, among other things, that employees not engage in lobbying activities on our behalf and that corporate treasury dollars not be used for political purposes, in each case without prior approval from our General Counsel. The PPCR Committee annually reviews our contributions made to political candidates and discusses public policy issues that affect us to help ensure compliance with our policies and applicable law.

Political Spending

Our political spending is limited to the United States, and we comply with the laws and regulations in each jurisdiction where we are politically active. This includes adherence to federal and state campaign finance laws regarding political spending in support of political parties, politicians, and related institutions. We fund our political spending through three sources:

  • The non-partisan EQT Corporation Federal Political Action Committee (PAC), sourced solely from voluntary employee contributions;
  • The non-partisan EQT Corporation State PAC, sourced from voluntary employee contributions and transfers from the EQT Federal PAC; and
  • EQT corporate treasury dollars.

Members from our executive team comprise the Board of Directors of our PACs and our General Counsel serves as Chair of both PAC Boards. Our PAC Boards meet as necessary to approve political contributions and to take other actions. At each meeting, representatives from our Stakeholder Affairs team present to the PAC Boards on relevant political issues and key political races. At each meeting, the PAC Boards also discuss fundraising efforts and solicitation and contribution strategies for the PACs.

Corporate Memberships

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Membership associations
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We are committed to actively participating in member and trade organizations to improve our industry. In 2022, we proudly contributed to the creation of three new organizations. We co-founded PAGE — along with other responsible energy companies, climate advocates, and labor groups — to work together to increase U.S. LNG production and reduce international emissions. We also launched the Appalachian Methane Initiative with other energy companies to monitor and reduce fugitive methane emissions. Lastly, we partnered with the State of West Virginia, other energy companies, and an energy technology firm to create the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2). ARCH2 will be a foundational component towards the decarbonization of the United States by providing blue hydrogen and carbon sequestration possibilities.

In 2022, we also continued our participation in industry associations — such as the Marcellus Shale Coalition, the Gas & Oil Association of West Virginia, and the American Exploration and Production Council — to discuss local, state, and federal issues pertinent to natural gas, and the ISNetworld® Appalachian Working Group to share safety-related best practices. We continued to participate in Our Nation's Energy Future Coalition and The Environmental Partnership, where we work with like-minded companies to improve environmental performance and to lower emissions. During 2022, we worked closely with the American Exploration and Production Council to help them evolve their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) framework to expand upon the scope of sustainability metrics covered by their reporting. We also joined new organizations focused on building a better understanding about how natural gas can play a vital role in the low-carbon economy, such as the Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future and Appalachian Energy Future.

For all these memberships, at least one of our employees is assigned as the relationship manager and many of our employees also sit on the boards of local chambers of commerce and industry associations of which we are members. We provide a list of our corporate memberships, disclosing 2022 dues paid and the portion allocated to lobbying under How We Are Doing.

In 2022, we continued to use our associations dashboard in our digital work environment to track our corporate memberships. The dashboard tracks our membership status, renewal date, membership dues, the organization type, and the geographic focus of each organization in which we are a member or have considered joining. This data can be accessed by all our employees, helping ensure both accuracy and full transparency of our membership data. Additionally, every proposed corporate membership is submitted for approval to our ESG Committee and the ESG Committee also reviews all our active corporate memberships on an annual basis. The ESG Committee uses a pre-defined scoring rubric to assign a membership score to each proposed organization based on the organization’s influence, historical success in achieving its stated goals, and whether the organization’s mission is aligned with our corporate mission and strategy.

Thought Leadership

Thought leadership is a critical component to achieving our mission. We believe that natural gas is an essential energy form in the United States with strong potential to satisfy the growing demand of energy globally. We also recognize the importance of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from our operations. That is why, in 2022, we replaced 100% of the natural gas-powered pneumatic devices used in our production operations. Natural gas pneumatic devices have historically been a significant source of methane and GHG emissions within the oil and natural gas production industry and, therefore, the replacement of these pieces of equipment gives the industry more opportunities to reduce emissions with limited capital outlay. These devices accounted for 47% of our Production segment Scope 1 GHG emissions in 2021[1] and their replacement enabled us to significantly lower our methane and GHG emissions. We also published a whitepaper highlighting our research and findings on developing and implementing a pneumatic device replacement program so that other operators can leverage our experience and implement this process in their own operations. Read more about how we are reducing our GHG emissions reductions in Operational GHG Emissions.

Additionally, in 2022, we worked with the Pennsylvania General Assembly and Governor to encourage the passage of legislation that created an LNG Task Force to further explore opportunities for exporting U.S. LNG. In December of 2022, our Chief Executive Officer, Toby Rice, was appointed to this task force by then-Pennsylvania Governor Wolf, furthering our leadership within the industry. We believe that LNG is the most impactful green initiative on the planet. The transition to sustainable LNG is proven, is actionable using today’s technologies, and can be executed rapidly. The United States is well positioned to lead this transition with plentiful access to natural gas resources and we remain committed to using our voice to educate policymakers about the environmental, social, and economic benefits of natural gas production and consumption. For more information, please see Climate Change Strategy.

[1] Includes emissions from EQT's historical assets, as well as emissions from the Chevron Assets and the Alta Assets.

How We Are Doing 

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Public Policy Issues

We continued working with legislators and regulators in 2022 to help develop policies and regulations to advance safe and efficient natural gas development. In 2022, we provided guidance to legislators, administration officials, and regulators on the following issues: 

 

Pennsylvania

Ohio

West Virginia

Federal

Royalty Statement Transparency

X

 

 

 

Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage

X

X

X

X

Tax Issues

X

X

X

X

Permitting Reform

X

X

X

X

Blue Hydrogen

X

X

X

X

Methane Mitigation

X

X

X

X

LNG Exports

X

 

 

X

Unitization and Additional Leasing Laws

 

X

X

 

Energy Infrastructure

X

X

X

X

Energy Choice

X

     

Political Contributions

Through our Federal and State PACs along with our corporate treasury dollars, we contributed over $312,000 to political candidates and organizations in 2022 as shown below.

2022 Political Contributions

Funding Source

Beneficiary of Contribution Amount ($)
EQT Corporation PACs     Candidates for, and members of, U.S. Congress and U.S. Senate $19,500
Candidates for, and members of, Pennsylvania state elected office $35,550
Candidates for, and members of, West Virginia state elected office $18,350
Candidates for, and members of, Ohio state elected office $5,000
Candidates for, and members of, county and municipal elected office $3,900
 Total PAC Political Contributions  $82,300
EQT Corporation EQT corporate treasury contributions to political candidates and other political organizations $230,000
Total 2022 Political Contributions $312,300

We also paid over $2.6 million in corporate memberships dues in 2022, with approximately $207,000 of that total allocated to lobbying. The table below details our corporate-level participation in membership organizations during 2022.

2022 Membership Associations
Association Name Membership Dues Dues Allocated to Lobbying
Allegheny Conference on Community Development $52,250.00 $3,657.50
American Exploration & Production Council (AXPC) $175,000.00 $122,500.00
American Gas Association $40,000.00 $2,040.00
Appalachian Energy Future $60,000.00 $0.00
Atlantic Council of the United States $100,000.00 $0.00
Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship $6,000.00 $0.00
Center for Corporate Social Responsibility at Waynesburg University $2,000.00 $0.00
Doddridge County Chamber of Commerce (WV) $1,000.00 $0.00
Fayette County Chamber of Commerce (PA) $800.00 $0.00
Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute $28,000.00 $0.00
Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia $35,000.00 $0.00
Greene County Chamber of Commerce (PA) $700.00 $0.00
Harrison County Chamber of Commerce (WV) $495.00 $0.00
Independent Producers EHS Forum $0.00 $0.00
Institute of Gas Technology (GTI) $100,000.00 $0.00
Leaders Council of The Bipartisan Policy Center $100,000.00 $0.00
Marcellus Shale Coalition $150,000.00 $32,250.00
Marion County Chamber of Commerce (WV) $570.00 $0.00
Marshall County Chamber of Commerce (WV) $775.00 $0.00
Methane Emissions Technology Evaluation Center $8,000.00 $0.00
Mon Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce (PA) $475.00 $0.00
Monongahela Area Chamber of Commerce (PA) $320.00 $0.00
Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future $1,250,000.00 $0.00
Ohio Chamber of Commerce $6,000.00 $1,800.00
Ohio Oil and Gas Association $40,000.00 $10,000.00
Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP) $0.00 $0.00
Our Nation's Energy Future Coalition (ONE Future) $15,000.00 $0.00
Partnership to Address Global Emissions (PAGE Coalition) $0.00[1] $0.00
Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry $41,788.00 $20,894.00
Peters Township Chamber of Commerce (PA) $300.00 $0.00
Pledge 1% $0.00 $0.00
Propane Gas Association of New England $750.00 $0.00
Public Affairs Council $2,800.00 $0.00
St. Clairsville Area Chamber of Commerce (WV) $500.00 $0.00
Stanford Natural Gas Initiative $35,000.00 $0.00
The Environmental Partnership $0.00 $0.00
The Permitting Institute $100,000.00 $0.00
The Progressive Policy Institute $250,000.00 $0.00
U.S. LNG Association (LNG Allies) $65,000.00 $13,000.00
Utilities, Telecommunications & Energy Coalition of West Virginia $1,000.00 $0.00
Virginia Propane Gas Association $425.00 $68.00
Washington County Chamber of Commerce (PA) $900.00 $0.00
West Virginia Chamber of Commerce $7,350.00 $918.75
West Virginia Manufacturers Association $1,500.00 $240.00
Westmoreland County Chamber of Commerce (PA) $600.00 $0.00
Wetzel-Tyler Chamber of Commerce (WV) $1,500.00 $0.00
Williamsport-Lycoming Chamber of Commerce (PA) $417.50 $0.00
Total $2,682,215.50 $207,368.25

[1] EQT's membership fee in the PAGE Coalition was waived for 2022, as EQT made significant monetary and administrative contributions to help create, organize and launch this organization during 2022.


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