Earlier today, I posted excerpts from Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio’s excellent floor speech about President Barack Obama’s proposal to address the deficit with tax hikes. Among other things, Rubio asked just how many jobs the president’s proposed tax on oil companies would create. Turns out, energy analysts at consulting firm Wood Mackenzie have the answer.
According to their analysis, increased industry taxation of $5 billion a year (a little off of the approximately $4 billion currently under discussion, but still applicable) would cost the country about 50,000 jobs by 2014, an additional 15,000 by 2020 and 8,000 more by 2025. That doesn’t even take into account the indirect employment effects. Related industries would also suffer staggering job losses – 120,000 by 2014, 35,000 by 2020 and 20,000 by 2025.
Ironically enough, the proposal would also eventually decrease government revenues. While, in the first five years, a $5 billion tax increase would generate an additional $3 billion in revenue each year, by 2020, it would result in an estimated $6 billion less in revenue — and, by 2025, an estimated $10 billion less.
