Chevron v Gavin: Just the Facts That all Americans Should Know About California’s Commitment to ‘Energy Affordability’

“California is committed to energy affordability for all residents.” (California Energy Commission on Fox Business (5/20/26))

By Michael Mische and Michael Umbro

Energy affordability is not what comes to mind when one thinks about California. As reported by Katie Jerovich in the California Post, Chevron gasoline stations in California have begun displaying banners on their pumps to help consumers better understand gasoline prices declaring, “California politicians are choosing foreign oil and fuels over local jobs and lower costs. Nearly 25% of your gas money goes to state taxes and fees”. No doubt a bold declaration by Chevron and one that solicited the “typical” tirade reactions of Governor Newsom we’ve come to expect.

So, what does the data tell us?

Here are some basic facts and figures that all Americans should know about California’s commitment to “energy affordability” and its energy policies going into Memorial Day Weekend… and the 2028 elections.

1. Californians pay approximately $1.25 per gallon in state mandated taxes and fees, the highest in the U.S.
   • CA gasoline prices include five layers of taxes, fees, and costs.
   • CA has the highest “environmental” costs per gallon in the U.S.
   • 25% of the “Cap and Invest” cost or about $0.06 a gallon is paid by the consumer in support of the highspeed rail project and another 20% is allocated to “affordable housing and sustainable communities”.
   • Current cost estimates for the highspeed rail project are around $230 billion or 57 times more than the recent Artemis II mission to the moon.

2. CA has the highest gasoline prices in the U.S.

1. • CA regular gasoline price is 35% higher than the U.S. average. (5/22/26)
   • Some stations are charging over $7.00 gallon…$7.29 for 91 premium grades.
   • The Governor’s proclamation that AB 30, allowing E15 ethanol gasoline, would reduce prices by $0.20 a gallon and saving Californians $2.7 billion annually, has yet to materialize…and won’t. (10/2/25)
   • Irrespective of the Iranian situation, California has had and will continue to have the highest gasoline prices in the U.S.

3. CA has the highest state excise tax on gasoline in the U.S.

1. • CA state excise tax is $0.612 per gallon. (Automatically increases on 7/1)
   • CA state excise tax is 3.4 times greater than the federal excise tax.
   • Under Governor Newsom California’s State Excise Tax on gasoline has increased by 29.39%. (2019 to 2025/26)

4. CA has the highest diesel prices in the U.S.

1. • CA diesel fuel price is 63% higher than the U.S. average. (5/22/26)

5. CA has the highest jet fuel prices in the U.S. (48 contiguous states). (5/22/26)

1. • CA imports a significant amount of its jet fuel from South Korea.

6. CA has the highest residential electricity rates in the lower 48 of the U.S.

1. • Under Governor Newsom California residential utility rates have increased 71% from $0.1897 a kilowatt hour in 2019 to $0.3241per kilowatt hour in 2025.

7. CA has the greatest dependency on foreign oil suppliers in the U.S.
8. Refinery production for gasoline has fallen 22% in six years.

1. • Under Governor Newsom, California has lost two major refineries and the 3 remaining major refiners with 6 refineries representing 98% of all in-state gasoline production have issued warning letters and concerns over continuing to operate.

9. CA crude oil production has dropped 75% since 1991.

1. • California first produced oil over 150 years ago, yet the regulatory barriers to in-state production have never been higher.
   • New drilling permit approvals collapsed from 2,664 in 2019 to 73 in 2024 to just 17 in 2025 under Governor Newsom — a 99.6% decline.
   • California’s highly touted SB 237 to stimulate production has yielded only 339 new drilling permits; only 17% of its intended 2,000 permit target…under prevailing conditions, independent producers cannot afford to permit new wells.

10. CA has the 5^th largest crude oil reserves in the U.S.

1. • For nearly a decade, Sacramento has campaigned to wind down in-state oil production by directing regulators to phase out all oil extraction by 2045, banning new well stimulation permits, imposing an arbitrary 3200-foot setback, and inventing new regulatory costs (AB1167) that disproportionately hurts independent operators.

11. CA crude oil imports from foreign sources have increased 866% since 1981.

1. • CA imports over 61% of its crude oil needs from sources such as Iraq, Brazil, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, U.A.E. and Guyana.

12. The number of CA-based refineries has dropped 84% from 43 to 7 today.
13. Branded gasolines are different from unbranded…the data on this is established.
14. CA policymakers, legislators, and the Governor were warned about the potential of historically high prices in May 2025 and failed to prevent them.
15. Over 90% of all vehicles in California rely on liquid fuels. 

Policies have consequences. California’s “affordable energy” policies hit independent operators hardest; many have been driven out of business, which only further pressures Chevron and the large operators with the balance sheets to try to outlast the rising cost of overregulation. Over 95% of Chevron retail fuel stations are independently owned and operated.

Chevron’s banners are merely stating the facts, which are the inconvenient truths to California’s narrative of “energy affordability for all residents.” Sacramento’s policies have destroyed free markets and increased consumer prices at the pump.

Mike Umbro is President and General Manager of Premier Resource Management and Founder and CEO of Californians for Energy & Science (CA4ES), a nonprofit advancing science-based energy policy.