SACRAMENTO—On January 30, reports began circulating that the California Legislature was researching a per-mile tax as a potential replacement for the gas tax used today. News reports indicate that a pilot study was conducted from August 2024 to January 2025 to test this fee and submit recommendations to the legislature by December 2026.
Planning for the prospective mileage tax was introduced years ago during the time of Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to end sales of gas-fueled automobiles. The first dates on the research study for what is referred to as the “Road Change” first dated from January — June 2021. California’s transportation system was funded by the California gas tax.
Public records indicate that California’s gas tax began in 1923, with a two-cent tax. That changed in 2017, during the tenure of then-Governor Jerry Brown. Legislators passed SB1 (Senate Bill One) to increase fuel taxes to pay for infrastructure.
The state of California currently holds the highest state gas tax in the country. In addition, there were inflation adjustments implemented for the low-carbon fuel standards put in place during Governor Schwarzenegger’s administration. The tax rates and inflation continue to rise.
On March 28, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill X1
-2 (SB X1-2), the California Gas Price Gouging Transparency Law. It reportedly took effect in June 2023. The law was created to investigate and penalize gas price gouging. The new Bill required oil refineries to increase supply, which did not lower gas prices. In the long run, it raised them.
California’s new regulations caused oil refineries to flee the state. As California’s oil refineries close, the state becomes more dependent on the U.S. Gulf Coast, Asia, and other foreign markets for there gasoline.
Despite Governor Newsom’s claim that he has “stabilized” California’s gas prices, the price at the pump states otherwise.
AAA fuel prices report gas prices in California today are $4.29 per gallon for regular and $4.52 for mid-grade. Some consumers in Menlo Park(The Bay Area) and Gorda (The Central Coast) are paying as much as $7.00 per gallon.
This is not a problem in other states. Some of the southern states, such are reporting prices as low as $3.39 in some states to $2.30 per gallon for regular gasoline in Alabama.
AAA reports the National Average on January 31st is $2.87 a gallon for regular gasoline. Multiple states are reporting gas prices even lower than that.
