The price of gasoline doesn't get any higher anywhere in the country than it is in the Bay Area right now.
The California-based Lundberg Survey of gas stations shows that while fuel prices are dropping nationally, there's a big difference between the Bay Area and the rest of the country. Bay Area prices are averaging 4-dollars-eight-cents a gallon, while Baton Rouge, Louisiana has the lowest national average of 2-dollars-35-cents a gallon.
Members of the California Energy Commission have said they want to study possible market abuses by the oil industry that may contributing to artificially high gasoline prices in the Bay Area.
Governor Gavin Newsom has asked the commission for an analysis of the state’s gas prices by May 15.
At the same time Trump administration early in May disclosed plans to open up more than 700-thousand acres of public land to fracking and oil drilling practices in the Central Coast. Federal officials said the their plan could provide greater economic opportunities for California communities near the drilling sites and promote environmentally responsible development of oil and gas on public land.
Governor Newsom reacted to the announcement by saying that handing over our public lands for more oil drilling is the last thing we should be doing.