The US oil and natural gas industry supports two million jobs in Texas and 24% of the state’s economy, according to a new study commissioned by API and conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

API President Jack Gerard said that President Obama and Congress should keep the study’s findings in mind as they debate greater access to domestic oil and natural gas, along with higher taxes on energy.

“Increasing energy taxes raises costs for businesses, which may impact consumers, and it threatens the two million jobs our industry supports in Texas,” Mr. Gerard said. “Higher taxes would also depress energy production over the longer term, reducing royalties and income taxes collected by the government.”

The new report updates data from a previous report and shows that, between 2007 and 2009, the economic activity supported by the industry nationwide actually increased in size as a percentage of US GDP, from 7.5% to 7.7%. The industry supports 9.2 million jobs in the US.

“The people of the US oil and natural gas industry are the backbone of our economy,” Mr. Gerard said. “They provide most of the nation’s energy, spurring job growth across America. Even during times of economic recession, the oil and natural gas industry stands strong.” HP