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Permalink Reply by Frank on November 13, 2012 at 16:23

Sometimes I just LOVE Louisiana!

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Permalink Reply by GoshDarn on November 13, 2012 at 19:07

Yep.  Louisiana might have some issues (over dis and dat) . . . but, y'know, thank goodness the King Fish did what he did.

Oh, man.  Having parishes, when you think about this type of county stuff, really makes one proud to have Mike the Tiger on your side.  

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Permalink Reply by GoshDarn on November 14, 2012 at 7:47

Yep, that was mean, Jay.  But that was Big Eddie's top rate.

Whereas the ol' King Fish was able to build LSU and the charity hospitals and the many needed bridges and the swamp-free high-ground roads via a flat severance tax per pennies on the oil barrel.  'Course, my dad didn't like that oily bite one little bit.  Yet, it was the Great Depression, and a job was better than no job back then, even if it was the sweaty labor of laying down asphalt for the La. highway system.  (Hey, some of us actually grew up in La., and we go way, way back, cher.)

So, the poor La. hicks who didn't have dip, not even school textbooks or paved roads . . . well, we got Tiger Stadium out of the King Fish deal.  Then again, as David McCullough points out, the American public is historically illiterate and can be easily duped by educational blindness. 

Anyway, as you know, Jay -- on a stripper, the sev rate is around 3%.  And on small production, it's around 6%.

Plus, that's only a tax bite once it's pumped out of the ground and the mailbox money is fresh off the press, not like the hefty Texas tax system via this topic discussion.

GD

 

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Permalink Reply by Aubrey C. Sanders, Jr. on November 14, 2012 at 8:30

Makes our LA tax man  "Look a lot like Santa" Y'all be good now. Remember Santa.

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Permalink Reply by adubu on November 14, 2012 at 14:59

GD--In Texas royalty owner not only pay property taxes as discussed but all Texas production is hit with severance tax on production sold  Nat Gas 7.5% and crude oil 4.6%

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Permalink Reply by GoshDarn on November 14, 2012 at 19:23

adubu:

The "parish" assessed values on undeveloped land in La. (i.e., raw land out in the middle of nowhere) -- is quite low.  And, as far as I know, none of the assessment that's tagged involves in-the-ground mineral values.  I have cousins in Texas who pay hefty property taxes.  In La., such tax bites are real, real, real low.  I mean, low.  Low, low.  Way low.

So, historically, as best as I understand it, it's the surface-use value that gets hit for a relatively way low tax rate in La.

So, the best of both worlds would be to pay the TX severance tax on oil and the La. property tax for land.

Now, having grown up as a kid in both TX and La. and having gone to both school systems (even having gone to junior high in Shreveport) and having also attended high school in both N. and S. La. -- I saw the educational power of better schools in Texas.

True.  In TX, we stayed in school until 4 p.m. in elementary school.  In La., we got out at 3 p.m.  Plus, the lunches in TX were somewhat better than the school food in La.  (Mostly.)

So, y'know, I guess you get what you pay for (in life).  If you want better schools, someone has to pay the tax bill.

Then again, maybe I was too countrified to realize how much I was being shortchanged by La. as a kid.  In other words, living out in the sticks, we did have a bunch of fun, not knowing we weren't getting the best education.  Yet still, I have no regrets.  Looking back, I'm truly glad I was lucky to get to grow up way out in the country in the Great State of Louisiana.   

Truly lucky to have come from two ol' families of hardworking farmers who had acquired the land through the sweat of their efforts.

Plus, since severance tax not only funded LSU but also funded much of La.'s higher education system (e.g., many of the colleges), I know I feel proud that my family has been paying that sev tax bite for close to 100 years.  As a LSU alum, I benefited from the tax payments my family made for so darn long (and are still making).

Of course, no one likes paying any taxes; and, without a doubt, there are certain folks in my rather large family who, if asked, would say to hell with taxes and say that they absolutely don't wanna pay any at all, even if such payments have helped educate the young citizens of their own state and also helped bring 'em into the 20th century (from having been one of the poorest and "less-educated" states in America via the statistics).

So, it seems to me that so many want it all and don't want to pay anything to get it all.

Seems to me.

But, hey, that's life.

GD

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Permalink Reply by Frank on November 14, 2012 at 12:53

My beef with the TX tax is it is property based. 

Severance, and yes state income tax are both income related.  Wells haven't been pulled into the DeSoto Parish assesments.  Timber land is still valued at that rate.  Everyone who has income pays by the same rules depending on their financial structure.  Sales tax is even more fair across people in my opinion. 

Property tax can be elected by all and pinned on property owners.  I can't stand that.  Arkansas is horrible about property from what I've heard. 

I love living in Louisiana while riding and camping in Arkansas and Texas.

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Permalink Reply by adubu on November 14, 2012 at 1:31

Tad pole---Valuation is calculated on some formula based on reserves remaining in well and price of the oil or gas that year resulting in total value of well. Your taxes then a multiple of your decimal interest in well. Yes your values will decrease each year as well get "Long in the tooth" You can always go to the apprasial district and protest valuation on any property you have. County tax rates are set based on county,city,school,etc budgets needs and total property values in the County. These values should compare equal with other Counties since they use similar formula to calculate reserves and commondity prices. Who all taxes the well like the school,city,county,hospital district, etc is determined on the location of the well like any taxable property

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Permalink Reply by Joseph Cartwright on November 14, 2012 at 16:51

I was told by a nearby County Tax assesor collector that they receive the valuation from the State-i.e. the RRC and that there is nothing you can protest on the valuation. The tax rate is decided by the County Commissioners annually and you can show up at the hearing that preceeds their vote but it generally as little effect.

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