This just in: California's a mess. A big, hot, beautiful, Left Coast mess. Now, I have friends and colleagues who live in the once-Golden State, and many of them are tirelessly fighting the good fight, trying to turn their state around. These folks should have our undying respect and admiration for their efforts. But California, it seems, continues to slide into an economic precipice.
At the heart of this is California's energy policy, such as it is - it may be more accurate to call it an "anti-energy policy." California Assemblyman Stan Ellis (R-Bakersfield), who, we may note, represents part of California's more conservative Central Valley, has some pointed comments on how Sacramento's harebrained energy policies are about to have a catastrophic effect on gasoline prices.
Here's his statement that should cause more than a few raised eyebrows:
And I want to make sure that we address this issue today because number one, let's just suppose we get really dependent on foreign, and we are already on crude. We get dependent on gas and diesel. Guess what? If there's a catastrophic event like a tsunami, like a war, we're out of business in California. We do not have a pipeline to bring our crude and our products from Texas. We are bringing our products from other countries into our ports, and it's a matter of national security. So you add those two things, national security and the cost of living, we are in a dangerous situation.
Thanks to the energy-unfriendly Democratic supermajority in Sacramento, led by California's impeccably coiffed Governor Gavin Newsom, whose primary political achievements include overseeing the ruin of San Francisco before going on to oversee the ruin of California, gas prices are now set to skyrocket.
The Philipps 66 refinery is closing in October, and the Valero refinery is set to close in April 2026.
The closure of those refineries in California could lead prices to rise to $8.44 a gallon by the end of 2026, according to a study from University of Southern California professor Michael A. Mische.
Ellis cited the closures of refineries such as Philipps 66 and Valero as he answered The Center Square's question on how gas could reach $8 to $10 a gallon.
Of course! When you reduce supply, you increase the price, and California has been doing everything it can to reduce supply.
Read More: The Hidden Cost Californians Pay for Flawed Energy Policies
California Punishes Voters After Historic Election, Slaps on Massive New Gas Tax
California's gas prices are already a dollar and a half higher than the national average.
This is a recipe for economic ruin. Everything our modern society does, every economic decision we make, every price on every product and commodity, is affected by energy prices. The cost of gasoline and, maybe even more so, the cost of diesel fuel, trickles down into the price of every single thing we make, buy, or consume. Even something as prosaic as getting your driveway plowed in the winter is affected; last year, our local plow guy, a good friend, had to apologetically raise his price for plowing because of the increased cost of diesel for his plow truck.
Everything depends on energy costs. And California's government, with Gavin "A Little Dab'll Do Ya" Newsom in the forefront, seems determined to push California to economic suicide.
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