Posted on 04/03/2026 10:26:21 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
There’s no doubt that oil prices have gone up since the war began. However, there’s also no doubt that they’re nowhere near as high as they’ve been in the not-so-distant past, including just a few short years ago during Joe Biden’s presidency. In California, as well, the prices far exceed those of any other state. ChatGPT collated the prices for me:
How in the heck did California’s fuel prices get so high?
An essay at the Marin Independent Journal provides some insight for its local readers, leading with the equivalent of “it’s mostly Trump’s fault.” However, what struck me about the essay is that it fails entirely to mention the real culprit behind California’s prices: taxes, regulations, and fees. In addition, you must scroll quite far down in the article to find another significant cause: closed refineries, which we'll discuss in more detail in a moment.
Here’s how the Marin IJ article begins (emphasis mine):
For commuters like Andrew Emer, who drives more than 40 miles round trip to get to his job in San Rafael, there is no getting around the skyrocketing gas prices.
“It’s horrendous,” said Emer, a Sonoma County resident who spends upwards of $120 a week at the pump. He stopped on Wednesday at a Shell station in Novato, where regular unleaded was $6.05 a gallon.
Advertisement“It doesn’t matter where you go, they are all expensive,” he said. “It’s ruining me — literally destroying my paycheck.”
As the war in Iran wages on, spiking fuel costs across the country, the average price of gas reached $6.08 per gallon in Marin County on Thursday, according to AAA. The state average is $5.89 a gallon, and the national average is $4.08 a gallon.
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While the existing refineries can still largely meet California’s needs, the state is increasingly relying on imported fuel. That’s because it’s easier to buy refined fuel from South Korea and India, which can be shipped, than it is for California to buy American, since land transit is more expensive. ChatGPT is not optimistic about the trend in California gas prices: They’re going up.
One of the biggest parts of California’s sky-high fuel prices, and that’s state interference. Again, I got a tidy summary from ChatGPT (which I did confirm is correct):
Gas prices are spiking in California, but it’s unfair to blame only the war
_______________________________
Well DUH. Blame Newsum. Gas prices there would be spiking even if there was no war.
I’ve already told a few people this past week: “If it’s Trump’s fault that gas prices are almost twice as high in California as they are here in Alabama ... you might be a Democrat”.
California has been a wholly owned subsidiary of oil company major stockholders for 70 years, behind only the residential development and real estate industry.
You’re exactly right! We were already anticipating roughly a $1.40 increase in fuel prices between January and June, even without the situation in Iran. Some forecasts projected summer prices climbing as high as $8.00 per gallon even before we dropped a bomb. It escapes my mind, who voted for these increases?
The war that’s to blame is California’s war on hydrocarbon fuels. Of course that is going to make hydrocarbon fuels more expensive - that is the plan.
Yet the major oil companies based there…..Arco, Unocal, Chevron…have either left the state or were merged out of existence.
Gavin Gas
I'm talking the stockholders, and their interests are not always obvious. For example, Exxon/Mobil is the biggest lithium extraction interest in North America. See Energy Racketeering: The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
The Gouging sign is on.
Again summer vacation time will be a repeat.
You are partially incorrect.
Chevron is still here.
Unocal sold their two refireries in 1997. It eventually ended up owned by Phillips, who owns them now. See the closed refinery section on the second link.
I couldn’t find anything on ARCO.
california oil refirnery locations:
https://www.energy.ca.gov/data-reports/energy-almanac/californias-petroleum-market/californias-oil-refineries
caifornia oil refinery history.
https://www.energy.ca.gov/data-reports/energy-almanac/californias-petroleum-market/californias-oil-refineries/california-oil
Today’s article: The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County dropped Friday for the second consecutive day following a run of 41 increases in 42 days, decreasing two-tenths of a cent to $6.00.
It’s hardly a *war* when one side is doing the bombing at will and the other side is getting obliterated.
California’s high gas prices are driven by a combination of the nation’s highest taxes ($0.90-$1.64 per gallon), specialized, more expensive “cleaner” fuel regulations, and a geographically isolated market with dwindling refining capacity. Declining local production and refinery closures, along with high compliance costs for environmental policies like cap-and-trade, consistently keep prices well above the national average.
Tack that on to greed of midstream companies, the mis-trading of Trading Houses and Marketers, and the increased prices of Distributors and Resellers. It all has to do with raising costs to fit the sellers. It isn’t spiking. It will continue to grow until the market implodes on itself and is forced to buckle. And that will happen when the consumer can’t get enough of a raise to get by and finally blows the politicians who allowed this out of the water.
wy69
Make the ca air resource board and all its EO’s illegal and that is 70% of the battle
I filled up on Monday because I was nearly empty. I paid $3.85/gallon. If I had had a crystal ball, I would’ve waited a few days before filling it completely. Yesterday it dropped to $3.75/gallon, and today it’s even a bit lower than yesterday at $3.69/gallon.
Summer blend is around the corner.
Didn’t Chevron move to Houston? I thought they bought the old Enron building?
Chevron moved their headquarters from San Ramon (near San Francisco) to Houston.
The link I provided lists the refineries. Oil is still being refined here.
Gotcha. Thanks. Kind of hard to pack up a refinery and move it...lol
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