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Gas prices: $8 a gallon spotted in downtown LA
Is it price gouging? A Chevron station in downtown Los Angeles is charging over $8 a gallon for gas.
LOS ANGELES - One gas station in downtown Los Angeles is charging upwards of $8 a gallon for regular gas.
This comes as gas prices continue to rise across California and the U.S. The average price in Los Angeles County rose to a record $6.172 on Tuesday.
However, the Chevron station off Alameda in Downtown LA is charging over $8 a gallon. Many people in the area say the station is price gouging.
In a statement released to FOX 11, Chevron said there are multiple factors that go into the price of a gallon of gasoline, "including some unique ones specific to California."
The company added that the majority of its branded stations in California - including this one - are independently owned. That means each station can charge its own prices.
"In addition to the price of oil, other factors include the competitive conditions in the marketplace, the higher cost to produce gasoline to the specifications required by the California Air Resources Board, costs associated with fuel distribution, local, state and federal taxes, California carbon-compliance costs, recent inflationary pressures, and fixed costs of doing business that are often higher in California relative to other states (e.g., the cost of commercial real estate)," Chevron said.
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LA-area gas station charging more than $8 a gallon for regular
"Chevron does not tolerate unlawful pricing practices at any of its branded stations," the company added.
The California Attorney General’s office says they are keeping their eyes on gas prices and in March sent a letter to Gas Company CEOs "warning them against illegal market manipulation".
The AG’s office also said the state’s price gouging law is not triggered unless there is a federal, state, or local declaration of emergency. Nothing has been issued in Sacramento, where legislators are still arguing over how to return tax overpayments to taxpayers, who have been demanding a halt to the gasoline tax, or at least a break from it until prices stabilize.
Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a plan in March that would give a $400 rebate in the form of a debit card per registered vehicle owner, and up to $800 for drivers with more than one vehicle.
But Democratic legislators came up with a different proposal and the Republicans have an entirely different plan.
State lawmakers are at a standstill on how to provide gas relief to drivers in California.
The stalemate continues while gas prices spiked to record highs over Memorial Day Weekend with the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County jumping 2.8 cents Saturday to $6.126. Meanwhile, the Orange County average price jumped 3.4 cents to a record $6.101.