47-Cent Gas Price Hike Possible In CA As Soon As 2025

CALIFORNIA — Drivers in California could see gas prices increase by nearly 50 cents per gallon as soon as next year, according to a state report.

The economic assessment of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard amendments for 2023 details how proposed changes to the policy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector are expected to raise fuel expenses.

“The proposed amendments would likely increase the costs to producers and importers of high-carbon intensity fuels, while producers of low-carbon intensity fuels would likely see revenue increases,” the report said.

“This could indirectly affect individuals in California that purchase transportation fuel, as staff assumes some portion of increased costs associated with production or import of high-carbon intensity fuels is likely to be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices for these fuels.”

Assuming the amendments are implemented in 2024, they are projected to potentially spike the price of gasoline by an annual average of 37 cents per gallon from 2024 to 2030 — including predicted hikes of 47 cents in 2025, 52 cents in 2026 and 49 cents in 2027, the report said. For 2031 to 2046, the average annual increase is projected at $1.15 per gallon and could go as high as $1.83 per gallon in 2041.

The Low Carbon Fuel Standard updates were formulated by California Air Resources Board staff and are expected to be presented to the body in 2024, according to the report, which was released in September 2023. A board hearing set for March was postponed with no new date, KTLA reported.

State Sen. Janet Nguyen, a Republican from Huntington Beach, referred to the projected increases as a "secret" tax, according to FOX Business.

"The middle class, the low income, they can't afford gas to go to school, work or grocery or the doctor's office," she told the outlet. "No one knows about this. I think people just think it's a tax, so they don't know the difference between the carbon tax versus the state tax. It's almost like a tax on the tax."

An Air Resources Board spokesperson clarified to FOX that the projected cost changes were not a gas tax hike.

"The figure the Senator cited is from an incomplete, preliminary document released last September which is intended to provide a range of financial possibilities looking at how various LCFS credit prices might be passed through to Californians by industry," the spokesperson told the outlet.

The state has a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2045.

As of Thursday, it also has the highest gas prices nationwide at $5.24 per gallon for regular fuel, according to AAA.

California’s gas tax has more than doubled since June 2017, according to CalTax, and it is set to increase again in July, from 57.9 cents per gallon to 59.6 cents. Californians pay about $1.21 per gallon in state and federal gas taxes and fees, the nonprofit reported.