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Bustamante Gas Plan Means Gas Lines NewsMax.comLt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, campaigning to replace Gov. Gray Davis in the Oct. 7 recall, has endorsed a proposed state constitutional amendment to let the Public Utilities Commission regulate gasoline, but critics are firing back that the proposal to regulate gasoline prices in California would bring back the long gas lines of the ‘70s, according to a report in the Sacramento Bee. Presidents Nixon and Carter put a ceiling on prices during the oil embargoes of the 1970s. The price of gas leveled off, but motorists frequently had to wait in order to top off their tanks. Bustamante at a news conference last week said, "Californians are being gouged, and under current law we are powerless to do anything about it." Gas prices increased 18 cents in one week in August and were averaging $2.12 for a gallon of self-serve regular, according to AAA of Northern California. But according to some analysts, the latest jump in prices was not the product of gouging but was caused by refinery problems in the Bay Area and a pipeline rupture in Arizona, which cut the state off from gas supplies in Texas, forcing it to import more gas from California – resulting in strained supplies.
Consumer advocate Jamie Court of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica endorsed Bustamante's plan, saying gas prices were being driven up by a handful of generators and marketers.
"The problem is one of manipulation of inventories by refineries," Court said, noting that state regulation would provide a potential remedy and would not automatically result in gas lines. The California Energy Commission, however, notes that despite the recent increases, gas prices adjusted for inflation have risen only slightly since 1982. California gas prices usually run about 20 cents above the U.S. average, owing in part because of the unique fuel blend required in the environmentally-conscious state. Recently, the spread has risen to around 40 cents. Richie Ross of the Bustamante committee argues that the clean-air standards contribute just 4 cents to the price at the pump -- the rest of the spread representing a profit gouge by oil companies. Regulation "is going to result in lower prices," he said. The threat of long gas lines is "just another bogeyman tactic" by oil companies, he added, according to the Bee report.
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