Signal Hill Municipal Code Ch. 5.12 Crude Oil Producers

Every person who engages in the business of producing oil from any well or wells located within this city shall pay an annual license tax for each well operated by such person for the purpose of producing crude oil, gas, or other petroleum substances, computed as follows:

A. One hundred fifty dollars, which amount is referred to in this chapter as "the base tax"; plus

B. Fifteen cents times the number of barrels of oil produced and shipped from the well during each calendar quarter of the calendar year, except as adjusted herein, which amount is referred to in this chapter as the "per-barrel tax." The per-barrel tax shall be adjusted on July 1, 1984, and on each July 1st thereafter. The adjustment shall be to increase or decrease the per-barrel tax by an amount equal to the percentage increase or decrease during the previous fiscal year (July 1 st through June 30th) in the Producers Price Index for Crude Petroleum (OS-61) as printed in the Monthly Labor Review, published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. In no case, however, shall the "per barrel tax" be decreased to a rate below 12.5 cents per barrel of oil produced. Such adjustment shall be determined by the tax collector.

(Ord. 83-06-908 § l; Ord. 78-6-798 § 3; Ord. 76-12-757 § 1; Ord. 70-11-667 § 1 (part): prior code § 5.08.040(A) (Ord. 64-10-569 § 1; Ord. 533 § 2 (part), 1962; Ord. 494 § 42.5(a), 1960))

The annual license tax shall be due and payable and, if not paid shall become delinquent, as follows:

A. The base tax shall be due and payable and, if not paid shall become delinquent, in accordance with the times prescribed in Sections 5.04.280 and 5.04.290 for payment of and delinquencies of annual license taxes generally.

B. The amount of the per-barrel tax shall be due and payable on the first day of the month next succeeding each calendar quarter, and shall become delinquent if not paid on or before the last day of said month.

(Ord. 70-11-667 § 1 (part): prior code § 5.08.040(B) (Ord. 533 § 2 (part), 1962; Ord. 494 § 42.5(b), 1960))

For the purpose of determining the per-barrel tax, the following provisions shall apply:

A. A well is located within this city if any portion of the wellhead is located within the city, irrespective of the subsurface location of the well or the producing interval thereof.

B. The calendar quarters of each year shall consist of the following: first quarter, January, February, and March; second quarter, April, May, and June; third quarter, July, August, and September; and fourth quarter, October, November, and December.

C. A barrel of oil shall consist of forty-two U.S. gallons of crude petroleum substances corrected for temperature variations in accordance with methods generally approved in the petroleum industry. "Petroleum substances" means crude oil remaining after the removal therefrom of water and other impurities by preliminary processing in the vicinity of the well site preparatory to the shipment thereof.

D. If oil produced from two or more wells is commingled without the production of the respective wells being separately measured, each well whose production has been so commingled shall be considered as having produced an equal part of the total.

E. Oil produced and shipped during a calendar quarter shall mean oil produced from a well either before or during said calendar quarter which either has been sold to another or shipped from the well site during said calendar quarter.

(Prior code § 5.08.040(C) (Ord. 533 § 2 (part), 1962: Ord. 494 § 42.5(c), 1960))

A. Every person required to have a license under this chapter shall on or before the last days of April, July, October and January file with the tax collector a report, upon a form provided by the tax collector, setting forth such information as the tax collector shall require, including the following:

1. The name or other identification of all oil wells located in the city operated by him during the calendar quarter involved;

2. The number of barrels of oil produced and shipped from each of the wells during the quarter; and

3. The computation of the amount of the per-barrel tax with respect to such production due the city.

B. At the time of filing the report he shall also pay to the tax collector any additional license tax which may be shown to be due. The report must be signed by the person required to have the license or by a managing officer or agent thereof and shall include a declaration substantially as follows:

"I declare under penalty of perjury that I am authorized to make and file the foregoing statement, and that to the best of my knowledge and belief it is a true, correct, and complete statement made in good faith for the period stated."

C. The statement shall not be conclusive against the city as to the information set forth therein, nor shall the filing of a statement preclude the city from collecting by appropriate action any additional tax that is later determined to be due and payable.

(Prior code § 5.08.040(D) (Ord. 533 § 2 (part), 1962: Ord. 494 § 42.5(e))

Every person required to have a license under this chapter shall keep full, true, and accurate records as to the amount of oil produced and shipped or sold by him from wells located within the city and shall, upon the demand of the tax collector, make the records, together with any shipping documents or sales invoices pertaining to such oil, available for the inspection of the tax collector at all reasonable times.

(Prior code § 5.08.040(F) (Ord. 533 § 2 (part), 1962: Ord. 494 § 42.5(f))

In the event any person required to have a license under this chapter fails to file a report of the quarterly production and shipment of oil from his wells as provided in Section 5.12.040, or that the information filed in such report is insufficient to enable the tax collector to compute the license tax liability of such person, the tax collector shall, by such method as he may deem appropriate, estimate the amount of the tax due from the person. Notice thereof may be sent by the tax collector to such person by registered mail at his latest address as shown on the city's records, and, unless within thirty days thereafter a proper statement is filed by such person with the tax collector, the estimate shall become a final and binding determination of the amount of the tax.

(Prior code § 5.08.040(G) (Ord. 533 § 2 (part), 1962: Ord. 494 § 42.5 (g), 1960))