The California Air Resources Board is set to vote on new regulations next month, and if passed, they could pass costs over to customers at the gas pump.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the plan would limit the carbon intensity in fuels by expanding a program instituted in 2011 that penalized refineries that create high-carbon fuel, like diesel and gasoline. New regulations would increase the penalties, thus increasing the price of production.
In September of last year, CARB estimated the regulations could raise gas prices by 47 cents per gallon, but analysts, according to The Times, say customers at the pump could be paying 65 cents more per gallon if the regulations go through.
Steven Cliff, CARB’s chief, told The Times that price estimations haven’t been updated by the board because it “not equipped” to do so. He also claimed that the amendments would be a “net positive” when considering economic impacts such as job creation.
The board will vote on the regulations just three days after the Nov. 5 general election.
The potential increase comes as Gov. Gavin Newsom has called for more controls on state gas refineries. Newsom has publicly supported calls for refineries to create an adequate amount of backfill supply of fuel and a stable inventory, which could prevent spikes in prices.
“It should be common sense for gas refineries to plan ahead and backfill supplies when they go down for maintenance to avoid price spikes,” Newsom said in August. “But these price spikes are actually profit spikes for Big Oil, and they’re using the same old scare tactics to maintain the status quo.”
As of Friday morning, the average regular gas price in California was $4.668, which is more than $1 less than it was at this point one year ago. The prices have remained relatively stable for the past several months, according to AAA.
