What's behind the record Calif. gas prices?

(CBS News) LOS ANGELES - The price of gas in California set another all time high overnight. The state average hit $4.66 per gallon, breaking the old record set just one day earlier.

The national average is a full 85 cents less.

For California drivers, Sunday brought yet another jump in gas prices. The statewide average went up a nickel overnight. It has happened every day for the past week.

Drivers said Sunday they have never seen anything like it, and Jeffrey Spring of AAA said they're right.

"In a week, it's gone up about 52 cents. That is absolutely unprecedented," Spring said.

In part, it is due to California's efforts to protect its spectacular natural environment. Air pollution regulations require special summer and winter gasoline blends in the state.

Refineries are making that seasonal switch now, but that reduces supply, which was already tight after a fire in August shut down part of a Chevron refinery at Richmond, near San Francisco.

Then, last week a power failure temporarily knocked out an Exxon refinery at Torrance in Southern California.

"The Richmond refinery and the Torrance refinery account for about 25 percent of the production in California, because they're two of the biggest refineries we have. It's easy to see why the wholesalers panicked," Spring said.

As wholesalers raised prices, drivers started to panic as gas seemed to get more expensive, and many say they don't see it going down anytime soon.

State energy officials are trying to reassure drivers that price spikes like this don't last.

"This is a very dramatic one, but we do know that what goes up does come down, and often quite quickly," said Alison Roberts, a spokesperson for the California Energy Commission.

In fact, the wholesale price has already started coming down. On Friday, it dropped 55 cents per gallon on the spot market in Los Angeles.

But gas station owners who paid thousands more to fill their tanks in the past week are likely to keep retail prices up until they get their money back. So relief for California drivers is still days away.

[hayseedbears]

Answer: Big business supporting Romney and the GOP agenda trying to manipulate the market to make people vote against Obama. Plain and simple folks, they are talking behind closed doors trying to get the average folk to fall for the "it is all Obama's fault and life will be so much better when you vote for Romney".
Be afraid. Be very afraid.

[apu_20]

It's Bush's fault!

[apu_20]

You got a energy crisis? ..you..you didn't build that. I built it.

[lyinpoliticians]

It is funny that we have to pay for any sort of problem the oil companies have, all other business has to rebuild or suffer their losses with their own money.

[lyinpoliticians]

Well here's one for us. Oil hedge fund to oil companies. (You've got to do something to hold these oil prices up till heating oil demand is covered or untill first of year, this will give us time to get out with minimum loss.)

[apu_20]

In defense of his energy policy, President Obama did finally allow drilling, in the strategic oil reserve.

[AOCGUY]

apu, the strategic oil reserve consists of crude oil placed in storage. It has already been pumped out of the ground.

[apu_20]

Keep electing Democrats, California. Repent Ye, for the Kingdom of Obama is at hand.

[jamead1]

@allrightreadym I googled Energy Secretary Chu and the comment you are referring to was made in September 2008 before there was an Obama administration or before Chur was Energy Secretary. He has since said that he was wrong. Under Obama, we are more sufficient on using our own oil, so US businesses need to shape up and make sure they are refining what we need, rather than cater to their own greedy instincts.

[axiom0001]

Let be blunt about it: US demand for gas is at the lowest its been in years & supply is at the highest its ever been. What else is behind it other then politics. Its the big oil pushing for Romney by sabotaging the economy. Republicans made it clear that their goal is to remove the president at whatever the cost, I guess the average citizen is fodder for the fire. Btw this is the sole reason for the slow down in the current hiring numbers. I say remove tax breaks from the oil companies and lets see them survive in a truly free market economy.

[Xbeing]

Umm, yeah.. you might wish to see who those Oil Companies are supporting. The Big Oil Companies are Foreign based, really believe you are confused about who is who.

Most of the oil we receive is imported from other countries, like Canada, it is then sold for what ever use, and not all petroleum goes to gas and motor oil, they use it in things like plastic and paper production.

If you remove the Tax Breaks from domestic oil, you might as well consider paying the World market average for gas, at $7-$8 per gallon (that's the range of Europe). And figure that all domestic drilling would be going to companies in other countries.

Only ones paying income taxes are domestic, and those "breaks" allow them to be competitive with companies that don't have to pay retirement pay and health benefits. They allow domestic companies to provide goods at low enough prices, even with the miles of Government regulations, despite the foreign competition has no such regulation.

It's always helpful to understand, we (Americans) have supported more and more regulations and sued each other so much, we have allowed foreign based companies to flourish, since they are immune from the expensive results.

[mindfulwhim]

Can you say Koch Brothers? Even their web site says "encourage engagement in the political process".
http://www.kochfacts.com/kf/

[Xbeing]

Yeah, that's why their employees top the list of Political contributions... BOTH Republican and Democratic contributions. They also contribute to the Federal programs that aid others in making sure to vote.

Their views aside, they also contribute MILLIONS of dollars to charitably organizations like CURE and United Way... So, make sure you really attack the action, not the person.

Good people do bad things.. does not make them bad people, only human.