Overview
- California drivers are paying about $6 a gallon on average, roughly 40% more than the national price, after the Iran conflict pushed up global oil and pressured family budgets.
- Valero’s Benicia refinery is being idled and the company asked lawmakers for about $400 million to keep it running, triggering a fight over whether to subsidize operations.
- Supply has tightened over years as California’s refineries fell from 23 in 2000 to 12 today and most refinery feedstock now arrives from out of state or overseas, leaving the market exposed to disruptions.
- Analysts say a few companies control nearly all in-state refining, which can amplify price spikes when plants fail or supplies tighten, as past refinery accidents showed.
- The oil lobby is pushing for more drilling, tax breaks, and rollbacks of climate rules, while others urge converting idled refineries to import terminals, expanding storage, speeding permits, and funding support for workers and local budgets.