Joe Wertz
Joe was a founding reporter for StateImpact Oklahoma (2011-2019) covering the intersection of economic policy, energy and environment, and the residents of the state. He previously served as Managing Editor of Urban Tulsa Weekly, as the Arts & Entertainment Editor at Oklahoma Gazette and worked as a Staff Writer for The Oklahoman. Joe was a weekly arts and entertainment correspondent for KGOU from 2007-2010. He grew up in Bartlesville, Okla. and studied journalism at the University of Central Oklahoma.
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This year could see a wave of state tax hikes on gasoline and diesel. Oklahoma is one of about a dozen states seriously considering increases. -
An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 hit Oklahoma on Saturday morning. StateImpact Oklahoma reporter Joe Wertz talks about earthquakes and their connections to oil and gas production.
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National parks are a big source of local pride, but about half the U.S. states don't have one. Oklahoma is among the park-less, but it wasn't always that way.
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In 2014, after disastrous spills and opposition from environmentalists, the EPA imposed new rules on the storage of coal ash. Two towns are pushing back against different ways of storing the ash. -
Aubrey McClendon, one of the pioneers of the shale oil revolution in the U.S. died in a car crash Wednesday at age 56 years. McClendon was indicted Tuesday on charges he conspired to rig the bidding process on oil and gas leases in Oklahoma.
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Low energy prices are good for consumers but bad for some businesses — and the states that rely on them. Oklahoma lawmakers say there may be a "revenue failure" soon. The state has a $900 million budget hole.
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Oklahoma's earthquake boom is now a national security threat. No damage has been reported, but operators at the hub are on high alert for a disruption that would ripple through the U.S. energy market. -
Oklahoma set a state record last year with more than 5,000 earthquakes. This year, the state is poised to have even more. Now oil and gas regulators have taken notice and are working to curb them. -
The U.S. Geological Survey issues a report Thursday on quakes linked to oil and gas drilling, but Oklahoma has said that the industry's wastewater disposal is the cause. What's unknown is a solution. -
Public meetings are underway in Oklahoma and Arkansas to get input on a high-voltage transmission line. The U.S. hasn't added a line like this since the 1970s, but not everyone is happy about it.
