In what could prove to be bad news for local oil producers and those seeking employment in the West Kern County oil patch, California Assemblymen Pedro Nava (D - Santa Barbara) has called for a 10 percent oil severance tax on all oil produced in California.

"California oil companies are getting a free ride," said Nava. "California is the only major oil producing state that does not charge a severance tax on oil extraction. California has been giving away public assets to Big Oil for far too long."

Nava, who is a democrat candidate for California Attorney General next year, is known for his anti-oil position in the legislature.

According to the California Taxpayers Association, Kern County and the Westside would be hit hard by the tax.

"The proponents ignore the taxes already paid by oil companies," said David Klein spokesman for the California Taxpayers Association, a non-partisan, non-profit organization based in Sacramento and formed in 1926.

Klein said that the side effects of the proposal would mean that local oil would be less valuable, county assesments of oil properties would be lower and property tax assessments would generate lower property taxes.

"Kern county could loose between $12.7 and $15.9 million dollars in property taxes alone," Klein said.

Klein cited a study by the Law and Economics Group which said that California oil industry could loose up to 9,900 jobs because of the new tax.

The economic effects of an oil severance tax would be widespread, the LECG report said.

"California's oil production is already among the most heavily taxed in the country. This new oil tax would make California's combined taxes on petroleum the highest in the nation by far," the report said.

"It's exactly the wrong thing to do to get California's finances back in shape," Klein said. "The result would be loss of local tax revenues,and it would be a huge hit to Kern County."

The LECG report, co-authored by William Hamm and Jose Alberro of the Law and Economics Group has been widely cited by opponents of the tax.

"Proponents of the tax are misleading the public," Klein said. California already taxes oil companies enough. If this tax is passed, this would put us at number 1.

Nava will introduce legislation in the Sixth Extraordinary Session to create an oil severance tax of 10% on the gross value of each barrel of oil pumped by companies in California. According to Nava, the tax will provide approximately $1.5 billion in additional revenue per year to the California general fund.