Why didn’t California gasoline prices go up on January first?

On January first I drove by the gasoline station just like I d0 every day. The price was marked $2.439 a gallon. The price was cheaper than the day before. Hours later they had raised the price to a few pennies above the price it was the day before.

Where was the ten to fifteen cents higher price caused by the tax hike on January first? The deep seated conspiracy theorist in me shouted enemy action.

It’s bad enough to get selfies from a friend who is visiting Utah and the picture shows gasoline at $1.89 a gallon.

A reasonable guess is that the gasoline companies knew the price was going up so they did not lower the price of gasoline in the preceding months to lessen the shock when the tax goes into effect. It would have made the companies a nice little profit and it would not scare buyers away or to another brand of gasoline. It would take market wide (state wide) collusion but big oil has been accused of worse.

The tax money collected will go into the general fund. It would take a very dedicated reporter to determine just how much money was collected for this cap and trade tax. On budget reports it will be lumped in with many other similar taxes. Once in the general fund the money will be spent on whatever the politicians think is the most important thing is now.

From what I’ve seen of the national level politicians and the federal budget that just passed the most important thing was to increase the amount they could receive as campaign donations. Or in simple terms get re-elected. Will that be the use of the new gasoline tax monies?

Only someone with skill and talent could show how much money was collected in the new gasoline tax and how much of it was spent for carbon emission reduction, above what was spent last year. Politicians know how to spend money but will it be for things that befit the voters of California?

Don’t forget these are the same lawmakers that are trying to tax fuel saving cars such as electric cars because they were not paying their share of road costs. That would imply that they do not care about the environment they just want to  collect more tax money.

Write on, draw on.  Professor Hyram Voltage