Tom Fudge : If money spent on campaigning is the measure of a proposition’s importance, then Prop. 87 is the most important initiative on next month’s ballot. Supporters and opponents of this proposed tax on oil extraction in California are on their way to spending 100 million dollars. The oil companies are providing the cash for the “No” campaign. The “Yes” campaign has found a rich benefactor in movie producer and real estate magnate Steve Bing.
Prop. 87 would impose a tax on oil pumped from the ground in California. Our state produces 12 percent of the nation’s oil, making it the third biggest oil state behind Texas and Alaska. The tax would range from 1.5 percent to six percent, depending on the prevailing price of crude oil.
California is rare among oil states for not currently having an extraction tax. The Prop. 87 oil tax would be eliminated after it produced 4 billion dollars in revenue. All of that tax revenue would go toward encouraging the production and use of alternative energy.
Guests
- Anita Mangels , spokesperson for Californians Against Higher Taxes.
- Shelley Luce, science director and spokesperson for Californians for Cleaner Energy.
