California’s Gas Crisis Explained: How State Policies Are Driving Prices Toward $8 a Gallon

California’s looming gas crisis is not the result of market failure or corporate greed. It is the direct consequence of political decisions made in Sacramento. For years, state leaders have restricted oil production, punished refiners, and imposed layers of regulations that make energy production economically irrational. The outcome was never in doubt. When supply is constrained and demand remains constant, prices rise. This is not ideology. It is basic economics.

California once ranked among the world’s leading oil producers. Today, it produces less than a quarter of its own energy needs. At the same time, the state has driven major refineries out of operation. When those refineries close, California will be forced to import gasoline from out of state and overseas. That dependence will raise costs, increase volatility, and expose consumers to supply disruptions. Eight-dollar gasoline is not a mystery. It is a policy choice.