OSAKA -- The Osaka chapter of the Liberal Democratic Party on Thursday submitted a bill that would impose a tax of between 2 percent and 3 percent on the gross profits of large banks in the prefecture.

The bill was submitted on the final day of the March session of the prefectural assembly. It was modeled on Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara's controversial plan, which was approved by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly the same day.

The bill will be carried over to the next session, which opens in September, because the assembly session was not extended.

The Osaka Prefectural Government has, in the past, been opposed to the introduction of such a tax. Gov. Fusae Ota proposed setting up a working team to examine tax reform instead, which will make its own proposal to the September assembly session.

According to a prefectural government estimate, the same tax that has been introduced in Tokyo would increase Osaka's annual tax revenue by 37 billion yen.

Unlike the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, however, Osaka Prefecture receives tax grants from the national government. This would mean that about 80 percent of the revenue increase would be offset by a decline in state tax revenue, leaving a net increase of only 7.5 billion yen.

Tokyo's tax plan is estimated to add an average of 110 billion yen to the metropolitan coffers.

Osaka Prefecture is in dire financial straits, with a revenue shortfall in fiscal 2000 forecast at 530 billion yen.

Some opposition assembly members see the move by the LDP's local chapter as an attempt to embarrass Gov. Ota. "It is very unusual to put a bill forward on the very last day of the session," said New Komeito assembly member Harutaka Nishimura.

Despite the LDP headquarter's request to support Ota in the gubernatorial by-election last month, the Osaka chapter of the LDP, which is the largest force in the assembly with 42 of the 112 seats, fielded a local businessman as its candidate.