An Oily Tax

Our representatives in Juneau have really stuck it to those oil companies this time. They increased the taxes on oil to 25% of up from 22.5%. The big oil companies said that they wouldn't be able to invest in new projects and the State of Alaska will now wither and die without them footing the bill for everything. They may even leave!

A quick search of the inter net finds that the Canadian have a different take on the royalty rates.
This article at Bloomberg.com has some interesting information regarding what the Canadians consider a "Fair Share."

In Alberta much of the oil is tied up in oil sands and is expensive to extract. The article is a little confusing (or I am a little dumb) and says in one place they are raising royalties to 33%, then it says 64% on the oil sands. Whatever. Read this:

"The recommendations would boost Alberta's share of oil-sands revenue to 64 percent from 47 percent, the report said. The higher take ``remains competitive internationally,'' Hunter said. The government's share from oil and gas wells would rise 5 percentage points to 49 percent and 63 percent, respectively."


I am sure it is little more complicated than all this. Our leggies wouldn't sell use down the river would they? BUT WTF-25%??????? The damn Canadians are getting 44% rate on the regular oil that the people own (actually "the crown" owns most of it), and health care, and only 1% of their GDP on military expenditures. Idiots, Eh!