If you want to cry about gas prices then California has been higher than the rest of the country for the last 20 years. California gas prices are also down $1.10 per gallon from last year.
It ain't the gas prices keeping people from riding.
As was already said, drilling more will not help. We already export more than we import. If you want to lower the cost then tell the oil companies to stop exporting and making record profits, I don't think they will listen.
2023
The U.S. exported about 10.15 million barrels of petroleum per day (b/d) and imported about 6.48 million b/d, resulting in a net petroleum export of 1.64 million b/d.
Also keep in mind that the oil we produce here is not the oil needed to make gasoline so having more of the wrong oil isn't going to lower your gas prices.
"You see, the U.S. does produce enough oil to meet its own needs, but it is the wrong type of oil.
Crude is graded according to two main metrics, weight and sweetness. The weight of oil defines how easy it is to refine, or break down into its usable component parts, such as gasoline, jet fuel and diesel. Light crude is the easiest to handle, heavy is the most difficult, with intermediate obviously somewhere in between. The sweetness refers to the sulfur content of unrefined oil. The sweeter it is, the less sulfur it contains.
Most of the oil produced in the U.S. fields in Texas, Oklahoma, and elsewhere is light and sweet, compared to what comes from the Middle East and Russia. The problem is that for many years, imported oil met most of the U.S.’s energy needs, so a large percentage of the refining capacity here is geared towards dealing with oil that is heavier and less sweet than the kind produced here."
If you want to complain about California gas taxes then find a way to get all the electric vehicles to pay for road repair because as of now that is why the gas tax is so high as you are paying for the EV's and they are paying nothing towards transportation costs like road maintenance. Also let's be realistic, the people using the roads have to help pay for the roads, that is not communisms. I don't understand the people that want police, fire, EMS, the strongest military in the world, good roads, perfect public transportation, care for veterans, make the homeless disappear but don't want to pay any taxes because that would be communism...
Facts do matter.
Now shut up and go ride. If you can afford the ski and the vehicle and the entry fee then go ride because the gas is going to cost less than last year. More fun and less complaining will make you much happier.
Yes, I hate the cost of stuff in Cali but I can ride my ski in the morning, surf at lunch and be riding my dirtbike in the mountains in the afternoon. It isn't perfect but fo me I haven't found a place I like more and I don't let politics get in the way of living my best life.
caltax.org
