California Facing $5 Gasoline Stirs Brown to Relax Rules - Bloomberg

California Facing $5 Gasoline Stirs Brown to Relax Rules - Bloomberg

Regular gasoline in California surged to an average $4.668 a gallon, an all-time high and 22 percent more than the U.S. average, according to data today from AAA, the nation’s largest motoring organization. Some stations were charging as much as $5.89 in the Big Sur area, according to GasBuddy.com.
The California Air Resources Board yesterday granted refineries permission to make an early shift to winter-blend gasoline, typically not sold until after Oct. 31. Due to the composition of the gasoline, refiners can produce more of the winter blend than the summer blend.
“It’s absolutely outrageous,” said Tonnie Katz, 67, a retired newspaper editor who stopped at a Los Angeles gas station for a $69 fill-up. “I don’t think anyone understands it. For seniors, this is an awful big chunk out of our budgets.”