October 23, 2019
written by Net Advisor™
SACRAMENTO, California. The former mayor of San Francisco, now California Governor, Gavin Newsom (D) was outraged, and claimed Californians pay an average of 30 cents more per gallon for gas. The Governor demanded an investigation.
The fact is, California now pays the highest in gas taxes in the USA thanks to the latest gas tax bill passed by State Democrats. The first thing the Democratic-ran state did in 2017 is raise taxes. CA Senate Bill One (SB 1) increased state gas taxes and vehicle registration fees costing state tax payers $5.24 Billion per year.
As of July 1, 2019:
- California State Gas Tax is 60.8* cents per gallon.
- Federal Gas Tax is 18.4 cents per gallon. (Diesel Tax 24.4 cents per gallon).
- + Local Sales Tax.
* Math: 60.8 Cent State Tax. We could not find one media source who would actually give you the actual new state tax total; but two media sources combined shows the actual tax impact. ABC News, San Diego (KGTB) posted CA state gas tax before July 1, 2019 as 55.2 cents per gallon. The Los Angles Times posted the newly added CA state gas tax effective July 1, 2019 at +5.6 cents per gallon. Take the existing tax plus the new added tax and you get 60.8 cents per gallon. This does not include local sales tax, federal gas tax, or if you use diesel gas such as truckers, which is an additional higher tax.
The average sales tax in California is 8.56%. According to AAA, today’s average cost for unleaded gas in California is $4.117 per gallon, that’s an increase of .81 cents per gallon since March 2019; up 38 percent or up $1.14 from $2.98 per gallon on April 5, 2017.
Total CA Gas Taxes: $1.142 Per Gallon.
Rounding current average gas prices to the nearest penny at $4.12 per gallon, times 8.56% average sales tax is .352672 cents or .35 cents per gallon local sales tax. Now add the 60.8 cents per gallon state tax, the 18.4 cents per gallon federal gas tax, and the average sales tax (at 35 cents per gallon) and you get $1.142 gallon gas tax.
Note: Gas sales tax can fluctuate with the change in oil prices. If oil prices goe down, sales tax is accessed on a lower amount. If oil prices go up, then sales tax will be assessed higher.
Why California Pays More in Gas Taxes.
The California governor seems perplexed why the state pays more for gasoline. The state previously admitted last April, that about 70 cents per gallon of cost is due to the state’s environmental laws and regulations.
“Higher taxes, along with a combination of tougher gas standards and environmental regulations, normally account for about 70 cents of that difference…”
— Gordon Schremp, California Energy Commission (Source: Los Angeles Times)
Well the California tax part is actually now 95.8 cent per gallon [60.8 cents state tax, plus an average .35 cents in state sales tax]. Some try to blame the higher fuel costs on oil companies.
The truth is, the state has massive and complex regulations on fuel. All of these regulations, including more ‘green additives‘ to fuel cost vehicle drivers money. The state can try and blame oil companies; tax and regulate them with fees, and the oil companies will just raise the retail prices to off-set their higher costs.
California #3 in Oil Production After Texas & Alaska.
Despite thinking that no gas or oil is drilled anywhere in California, the state has massive oil and gas programs since the early 1900’s. California is the third largest oil producer in the USA. California went from pumping 4 million barrels of oil a day in 1900, to 197 million barrels by 2012.
Despite being a leading oil producer, California government signed two bills to block NEW off-shore drilling. The state is also attempting to block the Trump Administration from drilling and fracking on federal lands within the state. It is estimated that federal drilling on federal land just in the Central Coast “accounts for 3,000 jobs and $620 million in tax revenue.”
Apparently, jobs or money is not a concern for the state?
41% of Gas Taxes & Vehicle Fees Don’t Go to Road or Bridge Repair.
None of the new or existing gas tax money and high vehicle registration fees will go to build a single new highway; the money will simply repair existing roads.
Worse, only 59 percent of gas taxes and vehicle fees actually go to repairing, maintaining existing roads; where 41 percent goes to anything but roads and bridges.
Some $100 Million of gas tax money will go to bike lanes and pedestrian cross walks. Another $750 Million will go to funding public transportation.
The state, and their campaign backers have repeatedly given voters the illusion that California will build more roads, when they are not building any.
Gas & Registration Taxes Fall Short of State ‘Needs’
The State admits that the high gas taxes and vehicle fees will still be $78 Billion short of what they claim to currently need. The solution is to tax California residences with gas/ vehicle-related taxes without a future vote.
Fear Campaign Ads Sway California Voters into Taxing Themselves.
The People of California had the opportunity on November 6, 2018 to repeal these new taxes, but most fell under campaign commercial deceptions, and decided to tax themselves, and raise the cost of everything in the state.
Kristina Swallow, featured in California TV and video “No on Prop 6” ads, doesn’t even live in California. She does have B.A. in civil engineering, but she is also a lobbyist.
California passed a $215 billion budget, including free and low cost health care for illegal aliens. So it’s not like the state doesn’t have a few billion for roads when they could just tax drivers in the state more.
Keep in mind that truckers transport goods within, to and from the state. As fuel (especially diesel) taxes and costs rise, Californians can expect to see higher food and other retail prices.
Majority California Voters: Tax Us More & Forever!
Not only did the voters permit higher gas taxes, more than double (141%) vehicle registration fees; voters also allowed the state to impose new taxes, increase existing taxes and extend expiring taxes and vehicle registration fees WITHOUT future voter approval.
A no vote on CA Prop 6,
“(allows) the state legislature to continue to impose, increase, or extend fuel taxes or vehicle fees through a two-thirds vote of each chamber and without voter approval.”
These new taxes never expire and will automatically increase as they will be indexed to the inflation rate without a future vote.
All the state needs to do in order to raise these taxes even higher is a two-thirds (67%) vote by state legislators.
According to Ballotpedia (p11), as of October 2019, California Democrats already control 61 of 80 of state legislator seats or 76 percent of votes with 1 seat vacant. If Dems gain the vacant seat, their control of the state legislature goes to 78 percent.
Dems control 73 percent of the California State Senate.
If the state really wanted lower gas prices, they could remove some of the burdensome state imposed taxes, and or cut regulations that impact the income of the 40 million state residences. Calling for “an investigation” after the state jacked up gas taxes is hardly to blame the oil companies.
State Takes Bigger Percentage of Gas Money Than Oil Companies.
This June 2014 California Energy Commission chart shows that the state takes a bigger percentage (66 cents) of gas tax money than does the oil refineries.
- 55 cent per gallon state excise tax – Now 60.8 cents.
- 9 cents per gallon state and local taxes – varies by municipality.
- 2 cents per gallon state underground storage tank fee.
- Total: 66 cents to the state (as of June 2014) – Now 71.8 cents.
- Verses 53 cents for oil refinery cost and their profits.
California to Ban Gas-Powered Vehicles by 2040?
California Dems have been tinkering the idea to just get rid of all vehicles than run on gas or diesel by 2040. Guess this means you can’t drive in the state from another state? In order to transport food, water and goods, we will need a lot more horses and carriages in the state. Of course if they manage this, the state will have to start taxing horses for the massive bio-waste they will leave on all the roads throughout the state.
Streets loaded with bio-waste shouldn’t be much different than the former mayor of San Francisco, now California Governor was used to seeing.
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