I live maybe an hour or so north of you, and the prices are about $3.20.
Part of it may have to do with the LA Basin.
But as soon as I get away from the west coast it drops considerably.
I have lived in CA for about 35 years now. That chapter is coming to a close as I type.
I am now out of the oil business so I can’t tell you what is happening right now. But my experience is that frequently, if you have a problem in two refineries at the same time, the prices spike. But since they haven’t really spiked that much in my area, I’m not sure what to say.
It does make a big difference that you can’t truck fuel in from out of state; it makes the fluctuations more pronounced and always higher. As soon as you get out of California, the picture is different. So while you blame the oil companies, just remember that they are pumping the oil just an hour from your home. And refining it an hour away. Every other state has gas substantially less, though they have to bring the oil in from great distances and in many cases don’t have a refinery. Same oil companies, same retailers. The difference is Sacramento.
I agree. It’s just that Sacramento was screwed up two years ago and it’s screwed up still.
Outside of the refinery mess and the global warming tax, the other problems are static.
It is interesting that you live in state and are still paying $0.50 cents less per gallon. Ouch!