It seems to be katching on—San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Katcho Achadjian recently announced that 15 current and former city council members have endorsed him in his campaign for the 33rd District Assembly seat. The council members, such as former Lompoc Councilman Will Schuyler and former San Luis Obispo Councilwoman Dodie Williams, join a growing list of endorsements for the Republican, from current and former Central Coast mayors and other local leaders. For more information on Katcho’s campaign, visit katchoforassembly.org.
Earlier this month, Assemblyman Pedro Nava (D-Santa Barbara) introduced a bill geared toward channeling more money into the state’s General Fund. If passed, the Oil Industry Fair Share Act (AB 1604) would establish an oil severance tax of 10 percent on the gross value of each barrel of crude oil pumped by companies in California. According to a press release from Nava’s office, the tax would provide more than $1.5 billion in revenue to the General Fund each year. The tax money would be used for public safety, education, children’s health programs, human services, and other under-funded programs. “California oil companies are getting a free ride,” Nava said in the release. “Right now, California is the only major oil-producing state that does not charge a severance tax on oil extraction. It is time for California to catch up with Alaska, Texas, Alabama, and Arkansas. We need to collect the people’s share of this revenue source by forcing Big Oil to pay its fair share.”
This article appears in Jan 14-21, 2010.