Los Angeles Is the largest urban oil field in the United States. More than half a million LA County residents live within half a mile of an active oil well. Consequently, oil and gas extraction has adverse impacts on the city and its taxpayers, including diminished quality of life, reduced property values, and negative health and educational outcomes, especially among low-income Angelinos. In addition, oil production is antithetical to, and thus increases the cost of, Los Angeles' goals of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The combustion of fossil fuels is the worlds greatest contributor to climate change, which will force Los Angeles to make massive expenditures incoming years. Los Angeles taxpayers therefore bear considerable expense resulting from the oil and gas extraction industry. For 60 years, Los Angeles charged an oil extraction tax, which was repealed by voters in 1996. Many neighboring jurisdictions impose various per-barrel taxes on oil and gas extraction that help them pay for general city services, including offsetting the negative local impacts of extraction. In order to create an additional source of revenue to achieve those objectives, Los Angeles should consider allowing the voters to decide whether to impose an extraction tax on oil and gas production.
I THEREFORE MOVE that the Council INSTRUCT the City Administrative Officer, with assistance from the Office of Petroleum and Natural Gas Administration and Safety, to report back on potential amounts and structures of oil and gas extraction taxes for Los Angeles, to he considered on the November 2022 ballot The report should include examples of oil and gas extraction taxes from other jurisdictions. The report should include projections on potential revenue for each model to the City.