Written by William Hale
Gas prices in California continue to rise, even while most of the US begins to show signs of gas price stabilization. According to AAA, the average price of one gallon of gasoline in the US is $3.394, but this relatively high number would be a dream for Californians who are currently spending an average of $4.711 per gallon. However some regions of California are far exceeding the state average, with residents of Mono County paying a staggering average cost of $5.664 per gallon.
The average city in California has a 38% higher cost of living than any non-California city in the nation, and like many examples of outrageous costs in the Golden State — housing, transportation, and groceries for example — a plethora of taxes and fees remain the reason for inflated gas prices.
Thanks to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, California’s current excise gasoline tax sits at 51 cents per gallon. Additional taxes from Sacramento and D.C. have caused an increase in the total tax for a gallon of gas to be ~85 cents. The American Petroleum Institute notes that California’s combination of gas taxes are higher than that of every other state, and the California cap-and-trade program adds another 35 cents of fees per gallon, according to SFGate.
Unlucky weather also hurt California’s gas situation, as October’s heavy rainfall halted production at some oil refineries throughout the state. AAA spokesperson Jeffery Spring suggests that Northern California can partially attribute increased gas prices to a stormy month.
Drivers being consistently charged over a dollar more than in many red-states might perpetuate California’s mass-exodus. According to the Hoover Institution, 74 business headquarters relocated out of California in the first six months of 2021, if democratic-dominated California doesn’t reexamine the state’s tax-policy, this unfortunate trend will only accelerate.
Photo Cred: Al Seib/ Los Angeles Times
