INDEX
- ObamaCare: By the Numbers
Thursday, March 18, 2010
- Interior Department Hides Data, Pushes Back Offshore Drilling Plan
- It May be Sunshine Week, But There Are Dark Clouds over the Slaughter House (CFA Site »)
- Bill McCollum Signs Taxpayer Protection Pledge in Florida Governor's Race
- Sen. Lincoln (D-Ark.) New Ad: I'm not working for the unions
- Making Laws Should Be Transparent
- CFA in Washington Times: Read the Bill! (CFA Site »)
- How the FCC Plans to Tax the Internet (Stop eTaxes Site »)
- Study: Health Care Legislation Will Cost up to 700,000 Jobs by 2019
- Comprehensive List of Tax Hikes in Government Health Bill to be Voted on by House
- Testimony Before U.S. House Appropriations Committee on Labor
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
- The Second Annual Pat Quinn Income Tax Increase Proposal
- How the FCC Plans to Tax the Internet
- Oh, the Irony! It's Sunshine Week, So Let's Push Healthcare Bill Through Without Even Voting On It!? (CFA Site »)
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
- Wisconsin Gubernatorial Candidate Scott Walker Signs Taxpayer Protection Pledge
- Why Do We Get Health Insurance from Our Employers Anyway? (ASA Site »)
- The Enormous Price Tag of Government Run Healthcare (ASA Site »)
- Call for Sunshine Week: "Just Give Us The Earmark Data" (CFA Site »)
- PA-12 Special Election Update: Tim Burns Signs the Taxpayer Protection Pledge
- How Government Accounting Works
- ATRF Analysis: The Importance of International Tax Competition
- How Tax Preparation "Simplification" Will Lead to Tax Hikes
- GAO: Implementation of Coburn-Obama Still Lacking in Some Areas (CFA Site »)
Monday, March 15, 2010
- Latest Developments In The Fight To Stop A Govt Internet Takeover
- China Buys Our Debt, We Give Them Renewable Energy Stimulus Jobs...Seems About Right
- ATR Urges Governor McDonnell to Sign Bill to Abolish State Run Tax Filing
- Saving the Sea Turtles...But at What Cost? (PRA Site »)
- Craig Miller Signs Taxpayer Protection Pledge in FL-24
- The Economics of #StimulusFail
- Missouri Unions and Andy Stern on the Same Page: Raise Taxes (AWF Site »)
- Obamacare, Free Trade, & Our Economic Prosperity
Friday, March 12, 2010
- Rusty Bowers Signs the Taxpayer Protection Pledge for AZ-01 Race
- Ask Your Virginia Legislator to Vote "NO" on Any Budget Containing Higher Taxes
-
ATR Supports H.R. 4781, the
"Keeping American Businesses
Competitive Act of 2010" - Ronald Reagan Legacy Project Urges Naming of California High School After Reagan
- Democrats Attempt to Subvert Congress in Hopes of Carbon Regulation
- Economic Issues Dominate at the Bloggers Briefing
- Pushback Against EPA’s Attempts to Regulate Carbon Emissions Grows
- Minnesota Gubernatorial Candidate Running on a Platform of Tax Hikes
Thursday, March 11, 2010
- Michigan Jobs Ain't What They Used To Be...Unless You Work For The Government
- ATR and CFA Support Earmark Moratorium
- Voter Fraud in the Name of Tax Hikes
- Ballooning Deficits in Greece Foreshadowing Future for the U.S.? (ASA Site »)
- Green Jobs FAIL
- The Evergreen Tax and Fee Spree
- ATR Staffer Testifies Before U.S. House Energy & Commerce Select Committee
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
- The endemic rot in government run health care
- The Debt Panel's 800-lb. Gorilla: Why Andy Stern Stands Out
- The Left Agree: Obamacare Ushers In Their Radical Ideological Agenda
- We Ought Focus On Cutting Taxes & Spending, Not Deficits
- The Debt Panel's 800-lb. Gorilla (AWF Site »)
-
Does the Obamacare Investment Surtax
Apply to Capital Gains? - ATR Urges Opposition to Sen. Isakson Pension Bailout
- Taxpayers to Legislators: Clean Virginia Budget of Taxes
- ATR Supports the Georgia JOBS Act
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
- ATR Urges Utah Governor Herbert to Veto Tax Increase
- More on the VAT
- Public Sector Jobs
- How 550,000 jobs were destroyed by the minimum wage hike
- How Obamacare Will Hurt Poor Women & Children Most
- Federal Workers Make $11,000 More Than Private Sector Workers, and There’s More of Them (AWF Site »)
Monday, March 8, 2010
- Legislation Introduced to Put Ronald Reagan on the $50 Bill
- Pledge Signer Wins Illinois Republican Gubernatorial Primary
- "Net Neutrality" To Kill Jobs
- NY Supreme Court Votes to Evict Residents and Close Businesses (PRA Site »)
- California US Senate Candidates Square Off in First Debate
Friday, March 5, 2010
- ATR and CFA Support the Spending Limit Amendment
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Golden State Fact of the Day: Severance Tax on Oil Will Further Depress the California Economy
From Patrick Gleason on Wednesday, June 24, 2009 10:45 AM
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A severance tax on every barrel of oil produced in California was floated earlier this year and has returned as a topic of debate in Sacramento once again as the state seeks to rectify a $24 billion plus deficit. In fact, a severance tax is among the cadre of tax hikes that the California Senate and Assembly will vote on today. While today's vote is merely a drill since it will not garner the 2/3rds majority required to pass a tax increase in California, it does present a good opportunity to discuss why a severance tax is bad policy and the myriad of reasons why Golden State lawmakers should reject any severance tax proposal:
· A severance tax will cause Golden State residents to face higher utility bills and gas prices and, even worse, a higher cost of living in general. Make no mistake, the burden of a severance tax hike would be borne by all California residents and reduce jobs. An additional tax on in-state oil production would adversely affect workers and retirees, most of whom have a stake in energy companies through a 401K, mutual fund, or other investment vehicle.
· California’s fiscal challenges are due, in large part, to reliance on volatile and unpredictable revenue sources such as high income earners. A severance tax will only exacerbate this problem. It is no secret that the price of oil is incredibly volatile; varying up to 30% a year. Imposition of a severance tax will only increase state revenue instability.
· Oil production is already taxed more heavily in California than nearly anywhere else. Energy companies operating in California already pay some of the highest corporate, property, and sales tax rates in the nation. Tacking on a draconian severance tax will only make the state a less attractive place for energy companies to locate, invest, and create jobs.
· Imposing an additional state tax on oil production will serve as a disincentive on in-state oil production and increase the Golden State’s reliance on foreign imports. Studies show that imposition of a 9.9% severance tax will decrease in-state oil production by an upwards of over 2.4 million barrels over the next 30 years. It should come as no surprise that this decreased output would be accompanied by the loss of approximately 10,000 high paying jobs.
· Rather than place a disincentive on in-state energy production. California lawmakers should instead utilize the state’s untapped petroleum reserves. Such action would simultaneously help address the current deficit without socking it to taxpayers yet again and create high paying jobs in the process.
· There are at least 9 billion barrels of oil off California's coast. At least 1 billion barrels are located in waters that are solely controlled by the state. The natural resources found in state controlled waters alone could immediately generate $5 billion for the state through securitization. What’s more, these reserves can be tapped in an environmentally sensitive way with slant drilling, which requires no new rigs.
· Californians worked 204 days last year, well over half the year, just paying for the cost of their government. If new and higher taxes were the answer then California would be in great fiscal shape, but that is not the case.
ATR urges California officials to reject the severance tax and chart a different course of action. California lawmakers need to promote, not put a disincentive on, utilization of the state’s abundant resources. Such an approach will generate much needed revenue for the state and create jobs in the process.
Related Articles
ObamaCare: By the Numbers - Thursday, March 18, 2010 1:45 PM
Interior Department Hides Data, Pushes Back Offshore Drilling Plan - Wednesday, March 17, 2010 5:49 PM
Study: Health Care Legislation Will Cost up to 700,000 Jobs by 2019 - Wednesday, March 17, 2010 10:21 AM
Comprehensive List of Tax Hikes in Government Health Bill to be Voted on by House - Wednesday, March 17, 2010 9:05 AM
How the FCC Plans to Tax the Internet - Tuesday, March 16, 2010 3:42 PM
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