[HogFixer]

The Alaska tax is based on the idea the residents own the resource. The oil companies are taxed on the profit they get from selling the residents oil. The rebate the state is paying ($1200), is from the 8+ billion dollar surplus the state received this past year.

From http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/

Windfall profit
A sudden unexpected profit uncontrolled by the profiting party.

[businessprofessor]

The Alaska tax is based on the idea the residents own the resource. The oil companies are taxed on the profit they get from selling the residents oil. The rebate the state is paying ($1200), is from the 8+ billion dollar surplus the state received this past year.

The idea behind the tax is preposterous. To own an asset, you must purchase it and invest in it to make it productive. The fact that the residents have declared themselves owners without investment is legalized theft. The rats have the same idea. They feel entitled to windfall profits, whatever a windfall profit is.

Here are some provisions about the tax:

• 22.5% tax rate on "net" positive cash flow or "Production Tax Value"
• Progressivity. A higher tax rate (.25) kicks in when oil sells for more than $55 per barrel.

This is one tax that the rats can love. It seems that the state is assessing a hefty profits tax. There is even a rate uptick when the price per barrel rises above an arbitrary threshold.

You can apply the same idea to any asset. Suppose we say that the state owns all real estate. Essentially you receive a lease and must pay 22.5% to the actual owners of your property. The owners however have no obligation to invest in the property. If you do not make specified investments, your lease will be taken away.