by Katy Grimes, E&E Legal Senior Media Fellow and California Globe Editor
As Appearing in the California Globe

It costs Californians more than $100 to fill the tank

California has the nation’s highest prices for gasoline and diesel fuels, coming in as high as $5.57 per gallon of gas, according to AAA. The cost of a tank of gas for a Jeep Grand Cherokee with a 24.6 gallon tank is a whopping $137.

In this AAA interactive map, California’s gas prices range from a low in Butte County of $4.43 per gallon, to a high in Mono County of $5.57 per gallon.

The American Petroleum Institute reports on all 50 states and the breakdown of these prices and taxes: a state’s excise tax, sales tax and other local, state, and federal taxes. In total, Californians pay 86.55 cents per gallon in gas taxes, and 124.31 in total diesel taxes.

The next closest state with taxes as high as California’s is Illinois, with 78.00 cents per gallon in taxes, and 91.42 in total diesel taxes.

Florida has very low state excise tax at 4.00, but greater “other state taxes” in the mix. However, Florida’s overall gas/diesel tax was much better than California’s at 61.95, and 60.77 diesel tax.

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