California gas hits $6.14 a gallon

AAA said on May 15 that California’s average price for regular gasoline stood at $6.142 a gallon, compared with a U.S. average of $4.528. The reading put California at the top of the state rankings heading into the Memorial Day travel period, when AAA expects 45 million Americans to travel at least 50 miles from home between May 21 and May 25. AAA’s California reading was down slightly from $6.147 on May 14, but it remained far above the national figure. The U.S. Energy Information Administration, or EIA, is due to publish its next weekly gasoline update on May 19. ### Why is California so far above the national average? The California Energy Commission says the state’s gasoline prices run above the U.S. average for five named reasons: higher taxes, higher production costs, environmental program costs, a longer summer-blend season and the isolated nature of the state’s fuel market. The commission says California’s cleaner-burning gasoline blend typically adds 10 to 15 cents a gallon versus the U.S. average, while marine imports can take three to four weeks to arrive when in-state supply tightens. (gasprices.aaa.com) The commission also says unplanned refinery outages can trigger temporary price spikes because California cannot quickly draw on the same pipeline and refining network that serves other regions. That leaves local prices more exposed when supply is disrupted. ### What do the latest California numbers look like? (energy.ca.gov) AAA’s May 15 tracker showed California at $6.142 for regular, while the national average was $4.528. AAA’s May 14 reading for California was $6.147, indicating only a small day-to-day change. AAA’s regional update, republished Friday by the Tahoe Daily Tribune, said California’s average had fallen 2 cents over the week but was still up 26 cents from a month earlier and $1.22 from a year earlier. (energy.ca.gov) The same update said crude prices near $100 a barrel had kept pressure on retail fuel costs. (gasprices.aaa.com) ### How much of this is about refinery supply? The EIA said in a July 2025 market note that California was set to lose 17% of its refinery capacity over the following 12 months because of two planned refinery closures. The agency said Phillips 66 planned to close its 139,000-barrel-per-day Wilmington refinery in the Los Angeles area, while Valero had submitted notice to end refining at its 145,000-barrel-per-day Benicia refinery by the end of April 2026. (tahoedailytribune.com) EIA said those two plants account for 17% of California refinery capacity and 11% of West Coast capacity, and that the shortfall would be hard to replace quickly because the West Coast has limited links to other U.S. refining hubs. The agency said replacement barrels would most likely come by ship, including imports from Asia, rather than by pipeline from the Gulf Coast. (eia.gov) ### What has California done to monitor price spikes? Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill X1-2 in March 2023, and the California Energy Commission says the law took effect in June 2023. The commission says the law lets it set a maximum gross gasoline refining margin, collect more market data and use an independent Division of Petroleum Market Oversight to investigate the market. (eia.gov) The commission says Assembly Bill X2-1, passed in October 2024, expanded that framework by allowing the state to require refinery resupply plans during maintenance outages and minimum fuel inventories intended to reduce shortages. The commission says those price spikes cost Californians more than $1 billion in 2023. (energy.ca.gov) ### What should drivers watch next? AAA updates its state and national averages daily, and its May 15 tracker is the latest public reading showing California at $6.142 a gallon. EIA’s next weekly gasoline and diesel release is scheduled for May 19, which will provide the next federal snapshot of retail fuel prices. The California Energy Commission also updated its annual joint review of gasoline prices on May 5, with sections on refinery operations, wholesale markets, retail prices and volatility. (energy.ca.gov) That report, together with AAA’s daily tracker and EIA’s weekly data, is where the next documented moves in California pump prices will show up. (energy.ca.gov) (gasprices.aaa.com)