Palin Boosted Oil-Company Taxes While Alaska Had Budget Surplus

Source: Bloomberg

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who has joined the Republican national ticket as a tax-cutter, was a driving force in raising a tax on oil companies last year that will help swell the state's budget surplus.

The increase backed by the Republican vice presidential nominee will, at current prices, raise oil revenue to $11 billion this year -- almost twice what the state needs to fund its government -- state documents show. Alaska also has gotten more money from the federal government than its residents pay in taxes -- $1.75 per tax dollar in 2006, the most recent year available, according to the Tax Foundation, a Washington research group.

``Alaska is an outlier,'' Thomas Mann, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, said in an interview. ``They have traditionally used their fossil-fuel resources to generate some wealth for the citizens of the state.''

Republican presidential nominee John McCain, who last week chose Palin as his running mate, is campaigning as a tax-cutter and opposes raising taxes on oil companies because he says they discourage investment and cut production.

``There's never a good reason to raise taxes,'' said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, a Washington group that encourages politicians to sign a no-new-taxes pledge. ``She does have a track record of cutting other taxes. We're interested in what she does going forward.''



Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aYdZoyTvFrTc&refer=home

As for the sales taxes, that's offset by the money Alaskans get in oil revenue checks from the state each year. Alaskan's seem to do pretty well with her as Governor since she's hugely popular there. I hope she spends the rest of her political career there myself :)

increase cost the average Joe $1200 and the parasitic corporation ZERO.
Way to "stand up to the Oil interests"

Now go ahead and explain this to the dodo birds that constitute your base.

her x-lover's wife. debbie richter worked for palin's campaign. as a reward palin put richter in charge of the fund that controls the oil money. read the story & connect the dots


Scott Richter Palin:Todd Palin Business Partner Emergency Motion - Todd Palin’s former business partner, named Scott .A.Richter who allegedly had an affair with Sarah Palin filled an emergency motion to seal his divorce records but it was denied.
The Palins own few undeveloped properties on the Safari Lake and Big Lake, AK in Alaska in partnership with Scott A. Richter and his ex-wife Debbie under “Richter Investments LLC.”.Debbie Richter was Palin’s campaign treasurer. Richter was awarded a job as the Director of the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend Division for her service.The State of Alaska gives its citizens “free money” checks every year out of this fund. This “free money” comes from oil royalties collected and investments. The Fund is currently worth $35 billion.Under Sarah and Debbie’s leadership in 2006, all Permanent Fund claims from residents (you have to make a claim for your check) were lost in a computer data entry failure.According courtrecords.alaska.gov


http://news.spreadit.org/scott-richter-palintodd-palin-business-partner-emergency-motion/:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:

This was in your links.

"Sarah Palin Son Track Palin Going To Iraq To Avoid Jail Time? - Sarah Palin’s son Track Palin has joined the army to avoid going to prison.Track Palin is not going to Iraq because he is patriotic but because he was arrested,for vandalizing the brakes of a school bus,in order to avoid jail he enlisted himself in the army.Track Palin will be performing security duties for his brigade’s top officers in Iraq starting on September 11, 2008.That’s all we have for now on Sarah Palin Son Track Palin Going To Iraq To Avoid Jail Time?"

Did I miss this gem over the last few days?

Like highways, schools, mass transit, the post office, currency, elections, or health care, and it ought not be subject to the vagaries of greed and the personal whims of egotists.

Damned right she did raised taxes on oil companies who were reaping huge windfall profits on Alaska's oil when oil prices skyrocketed. THAT OIL BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE OF ALASKA, and we deserve far more income from it than we had been getting!

We need to have huge surpluses now, because the state won't have much income once the oil runs out --- we need to invest that money to fund state government in the future.

When Alaska's oil tax rates were first set before the pipeline was finished and oil began to flow, Big Awl and their surrogates began pumping money into Repugnican campaigns, and the Democratic majorities in the Alaska Legislature that passed taxes with rates much higher than even the new rates now in effect disappeared, replaced by Repukes that toadied to the oil industry's desires.

The tax increases were desired by most Alaskans, and were supported by the Democrats in the Alaska House and Senate.

Squeeze 49 states that are going into a recession to get a bigger dividend check for yourselves without any apparant downside (the actual downside was reduced exploration, which would have come to a screeching halt but for oil going over 100 per bbl) The problem with a discussion about Alaskans is that they pray for oil to go to $200 so that none of them have to work anymore.

Sure you would refuse it.
Like all of us would decline the oil company payoff worked out by the that states wilderness politician backwoodsman.

Alaska pay $6 to $10/gal in the more isolated places of the state.

hey
Thats pretty much everwhere but the state capitol

What was the result of her raising taxes when Alaska was already facing a windfall from oil prices?

1) the oil companies as they said they would looked to better alternatives for exploration
2) the oil companies decreased income actually is reducing their federal tax liability in the hundreds of millions of dollars per year (translated - costs every other american money)
3) Another factor applying pressure to force oil prices up. After all, raising taxes on businesses doesn't impact you unless you work for one, want to work for one, or buy their products.

Thanks Palin for screwin over the outsiders. She took on big oil like Chavez took on big oil - she became big oil. When She became governor, Alaska's budge would work with oil at 22 per barrel. Now, with her bloated government, it has to be more than twice that.

Thank's Palin - As though you ever gave a shit about America. Open up ANWR so that we can do our part to help us achieve energy independence. More like so we can squeeze more money out of the rest of the country. You are against federal windfall taxes on oil so that Alaska can soak them. Note that more than half of the profit from oil in Alaska goes to Alaska. I am not here to defend big oil but they were all dead on in their assessment of the impact of ACES legislation.

TEHRAN – Iran’s oil minister said here Saturday that while the global oil prices declined sharply during recent weeks the service and engineering costs have remained unchanged and if the reducing trend in prices continues, the producers will be harmed, therefore Iran seeks a fair oil price.


Speaking to Shana on the verge of the 149th OPEC meeting which is slated for Sept. 9 in Vienna, Gholam-Hossein Nozari said that “Oil prices have dropped by some 36 dollars. This is while the oil exporting countries have undergone a 25-30 percent rise in production costs.”

OPEC should discuss the ways to curb oversupply in the upcoming meeting, the minister said.

Crude has tumbled from a record high of $147 in July and was trading on Friday at below $107

http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=177239

Seems the oil companies are pinching consumers and producers both