California Gas Prices Surge up to $8 per Gallon | What's Causing the Massive Increase?

Record-high gas prices are still seen in California as it remains the state with the highest average gas price as of Sunday.

According to the Automobile Association of America (AAA), the average price of regular gasoline in the state is $6.326. However, CBS Sacramento reported that some of the pumps in the Golden State had surpassed eight dollars.

Reports noted that the gas price in California means that locals are paying more than twice the amount for a tank of gasoline than the rest of the country was paying last year.

Currently, a 14-gallon tank could reportedly cost more than $112 in California. According to NBC Los Angeles, Siskiyou, Humboldt, and Trinity counties were among those that recorded the state's highest average gas prices.

The average price of gas per gallon in Riverside, Los Angeles, and Orange County has already surpassed the six-dollar mark.

What Causes the California Gas Price Surge?

Here are several reasons that contribute to the record-high gas prices in California. California gas prices have always been higher compared to other states because of the high gas tax that the state implements and the regulatory programs aimed at reducing the greenhouse emissions in the state.

New York Times also explained that California requires a special cleaner fuel that is only used in the state. Another reason contributing to California's high gas prices could be the state's gasoline supply disruption, mainly due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February.

Andrew Gross, a national public relations manager from AAA, said the war between Russia and Ukraine "sent shock waves through the oil market that have kept oil costs elevated."

Forbes also reported that the United States completely banned Russian oil imports, which squeezed the global supply. The supply of crude oil also affected the gas prices not only in California, but nationwide.

Some reports noted that oil-producing companies had started cutting back on their oil production when COVID-19 first hit the globe as fewer people were on the roads.

Joe Biden on Gas Prices

The record-high gas prices in California came days after President Joe Biden admitted that there would be no quick remedy to the current costs of food and gas in the United States. He then suggested how Americans could adapt to the high gas and food prices through compensation.

"You can compensate​, for example, by having drug prices drop significantly, or an impact on childcare... The bottom line is the bottom line, how much it costs you to maintain your household and your standard of living," the president said.

Joe Biden earlier gushed about high gas prices as part of an "incredible transition" away from fossil fuels.

"When it comes to the gas prices, we're going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it's over, we'll be stronger, and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over," Biden said.

The Biden administration has already released at least 180 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which they claimed would aid in lowering gas prices at the pump. However, the president acknowledged that the move helped, but it was still not enough.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Joshua Summers

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