Gas Prices Are So High In LA That Inspectors Are Checking Stations For Price Gouging

The entire state of California currently has the highest gas prices in the entire country. While Southern California drivers have it worse, LA County drivers are dealing with something else. Prices are so high that, as KTLA reports, LA County inspectors are checking local gas stations for price gouging.

EV Racing In Italy | Jalopnik Visits

Gas prices are high in California. According to AAA, the current state average is $6.07, a whopping $2.24 higher than the rest of the country. LA County’s gas prices are 24 cents higher than the state average at $6.31. The most recent jump is the 22nd time in just 24 days that prices have risen in the county. Because of the high prices, inspectors have been hitting thousands of stations cross the county to make sure buyers are getting the correct amount of fuel they’re paying for.

Takla Mankarious is an inspector with the L.A. County Weights and Measures Bureau and his department tests 1,000 to 2,000 fuel dispensers every month to make sure that drivers are getting the exact amount of fuel that’s stated on the signage and aren’t being shorted out of money, even if the existing prices remain high.

“We want to make sure that people are getting the exact volume for which they’re paying,” said Ken Pellman who also works in the Bureau of Weights and Measures. “If you’re paying for 10 gallons, you should be getting exactly 10 gallons.”

When it’s discovered that a station is shorting its customers with a malfunctioning pump, it receives a citation. And while KTLA says that violations only happen on “1/2 of 1 percent of meter tests,” the number of stations in the county means that still amounts to over 300 violations per month.

So what is the deal with the high gas prices? A number of things, but it always comes back to the same problem: regional refinery issues, as a AAA spokesperson explained.

“This is a time of year we see prices falling, but this year is different as a result of the increase in crude oil prices and regional refinery issues lately,” explained Doug Shupe, a AAA spokesperson. “But the other factor that’s very unique to our area is the regional refinery issues. We’ve been experiencing refineries that have had either planned or unplanned maintenance issues.”

To help combat high gas prices, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new law back in June that’s supposed to prevent the very thing we’re experiencing now from happening. He also directed the energy commission to have state refineries switch to a winter blend of fuel a month earlier to help prices go down. I won’t hold my breath.