Gas Prices Near $6 a Gallon in Washington, Prices Remain Elevated Nationwide

A U.S. postal worker puts his seatbelt on after filing up his vehicle at a gas station in Garden Grove, Calif., on March 29, 2022. Mike Blake/Reuters

Gas prices in the state of Washington are hovering near $6 per gallon, with prices in other states also rising, putting further pressure on the budgets of American citizens.

The average price of regular gas in Washington was $5.529 per gallon as of June 10, according to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA). In San Juan County, gas was priced at $6.22 per gallon, Skamania County at $5.87 per gallon, Wahkiakum County at $5.75 per gallon, King County at $5.68 per gallon, and Jefferson County at $5.67 per gallon.

Nationwide, regular gas averaged $4.986 on June 10, the highest level recorded by AAA. This is up 14 percent from a month back and over 62 percent from 2021. State-wise, California has the highest average regular gas price at $6.42 per gallon, with 20 other states having gas prices in excess of $5 per gallon.

Elevated gas prices are affecting people’s budgets. In an interview with The Associated Press, California resident Quentin McZeal says that it used to cost him $100 to fill up his tank in the past, but now he is forced to shell out $140 to $160.

“It’s a lot of other things I can’t do because I have to pay for gas, you know what I’m saying?” McZeal said. “Less food, less playtime because I got to get gas. I got to go to work, right?” He blamed the Ukraine war and the Biden administration for the high gas prices.

A gas station in Amherst, Massachusetts, has stopped selling gas due to high prices. Ren’s Mobil, which has been in operation since the 1970s, has taped “out of gas” signs at its pumps. Owner Reynold Gladu blames oil companies for “making extra money” on gas.

“It’s hard enough for people to put groceries on their table after working in the factory or wherever they work for 30-40 hours a week and not be able to put gas in their car and get to work. I don’t want to be part of that,” Gladu said to Western Mass News.

Some lawmakers have pointed to the Biden administration’s blocking of the Keystone XL pipeline, suspending new oil leases on federal lands, and failing to bring additional oil output online from existing offshore federal oil leases by issuing necessary permits, etc. as major factors contributing to the elevated gas prices.

In May, Democrats passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, which will allow politicians to bring civil action against gas firms that engage in “unconscionable pricing.”

At a June 1 virtual discussion by the Heritage Foundation, Jack Spencer, senior research fellow for energy and environmental policy at the foundation, called the move a recipe for “disaster.”

“So essentially, what this bill would do is, for an unlimited duration, create a system where politicians and bureaucrats can decide what the appropriate level for prices are and fine people,” Spencer said, adding that “we need to stop the war on energy.”

Efforts to defund fossil fuels are preventing essential investments in the oil and gas sectors that would reduce prices.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration recently canceled the sales of three major offshore oil leases in the Gulf of Mexico and off the coast of Alaska, effectively blocking the opportunity to drill for oil on over 1 million acres.