As Gas Prices Soar, Sen. Tony Strickland Argues Dems Should Have Listened

“If the majority party and the Governor truly want to tackle the affordability crisis, they have the ability to do so, because this is a no-brainer,” said Senator Tony Strickland.

California drivers were hit with yet another blow as the latest gas tax hike took effect at the start of the month, adding more strain to already high fuel costs. The new gas tax is expected to raise costs by up to 65 cents per gallon. In total, Californians can expect to shell out around $1.50 more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline.

To make matters worse, two of California’s major oil refineries—responsible for nearly 20% of the state’s oil production—are set to shut down this year, citing the soaring cost of doing business in the state. These closures could potentially cause in-state gasoline production to fall from over 34 million gallons per day (in 2023) to barely 27 million gallons per day by the end of next year. 

That’s devastating news for a state which is already only producing roughly 23.7% of its own needs, experts say.

“This isn’t just a self‑inflicted energy crisis in the making. It’s also a national security issue,” said USC Associate Professor Michael Mische, who has written extensively about California’s failure to meet its own gasoline needs. “As refineries shut down, the supply chain narrows, increasing reliance on imports from Asia and elsewhere.”

Given the combination of economic uncertainty and the closure of the The Phillips 66 refinery in Los Angeles and the Valero refinery in Benicia, Senator Tony Strickland (R-Huntington Beach) says that the gas tax “comes at the worst possible time.”

“The Democrats and Governor’s inaction in Sacramento to address this issue is a serious failure of leadership,” argued Sen. Strickland. “The legislature has the power to stop these increases. Let me repeat that—if the majority party and the Governor truly want to tackle the affordability crisis, they have the ability to do so, because this is a no-brainer.”

Shortly after his election to the Senate, Strickland got right to work on the first bill of his tenure—SB 94—to redirect a portion of the state’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund away from the California High-Speed Rail and toward the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account to effectively to lower the gas tax burden.

“California High-Speed Rail has wildly broken trust with the public…. What was marketed initially as $9.95 billion in bonds has skyrocketed to an estimated $128 billion overall budget. The project needs an immediate $7 billion dollars in order to keep moving forward. And the overall project will require more than $100 billion in additional investment to ever be completed,” said Strickland. “Enough is enough… The entire project was supposed to have been completed a half decade ago, and not a single mile of track has been completed.”

He argued the proposal to defund the “failed high-speed rail project” would provide real relief to California taxpayers, saving the average two-car family an estimated $1,500 per year.

“For some families, having an extra $1,500 a year might mean saving towards their kids’ education, putting away for retirement, or even taking a vacation… At a time when cost of living is taking a toll on Californians up and down the state, cutting back on those excessive gas taxes could make a real difference for countless working families,” said Strickland. “And by simply, finally admitting high-speed rail has failed, we have the funds to provide this financial relief to so many people who could use it.”

SB 94 was heard on April 23, 2025, by the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee, where it was killed by the Committee’s Democrat majority. A disappointed Strickland remarked, with regard to the high-speed rail, that “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Not only did Democrats kill Strickland’s bill, they also approved another gas tax hike. Republicans countered with a gas tax repeal vote—SB-2—on June 4, 2025, during a Senate floor session. All Senate Democrats voted against the measure and the bill was defeated unanimously along party lines.

And thus, Strickland’s battle against the gas tax will continue into the foreseeable future. 

“Any increase in the gas tax is a surefire way to put the California economy on the road to ruin,” Central Valley Business Federation CEO Clint Olivier told the California Globe. “Business owners who move goods to market won’t simply eat the increased cost, they’ll pass it along to the consumer. Sacramento is playing with fire.”

Unless something changes, gasoline prices could surge 75% by next year. That’s an eye-watering $8 per gallon—coming soon to a gas station near you.