Questions and Background to the Governor’s Attempt to Blame Gas Prices Today » Publications » Washington Policy Center

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Today, Governor Inslee, Senator Nguyen and Rep. Fitzgibbon are expected to announce a proposal that blames oil companies for Washington’s highest gas prices. However, key political decisions raised fuel prices, were meant to do so, and by easily projectable proportions using a base formula involving the additional cost of the new carbon emissions tax. Here is the basic context of today’s story:

Average gasoline prices in Washington are the highest in the country for nearly a month. The new state tax on CO2 emissions has raised gasoline prices by about 40 cents per gallon compared to neighboring states.

Using the same formula used by the state of California and energy economists, on July 12 of last year, we predicted that if the state’s projections of the cost of a metric ton of carbon were correct, Washington’s new tax on CO2 emissions would increase gas prices by about 46 cents per gallon. This projection turned out to be nearly accurate.

Between Washington’s gasoline tax of 49.4 cents per gallon (the third highest in the nation) and the CO2 tax of approximately 44.3 cents per gallon (which is the highest in the Americas), the Washington State collects nearly 94 cents in taxes for every gallon of gas.

As climate economists have recognized, the purpose of taxing CO2 emissions is to raise gasoline prices and make electric vehicles more attractive. One of the original architects of California’s CO2 ceiling noted that it was “beyond controversy”. Even Climate Solutions – which lobbied for the tax – told the Everett Herald that the purpose of the CO2 tax was to raise prices.

Gas pricing policy, however, caused the governor, Ecology Department staff, and others to either deny the tax’s impact on CO2 emissions or blame others, and even erase their previous state web page inaccurate predictions.

Over the past year, the governor, his administration and activists have changed their tune several times. For example, they:

Claimed the impact of the new tax would be “a few cents” on gasoline prices. When prices rose, said the price increase was nothing unusual. They then argued that the price increases since January 1 were due to a 3-day closure of the Olympic Pipeline. They falsely claimed that oil companies were making 80 cents per gallon profit in Washington State – which was contradicted by the source cited by the Governor and Climate Solutions. A week later, they claimed that rather than knowing exactly how much profit the oil companies were making, “we have no visibility” into the profits being made.

Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat argued that these consistently false claims (what he called the governor’s “strategic misinformation”) were intentionally dishonest but necessary to pass the Climate Act.

Given the long history of inaccuracies and dishonesty by the Governor and other lawmakers on this issue, here are some questions Governor Inslee, Senator Nguyen and Rep. Fitzgibbon should answer:

Two weeks ago, the governor told KIRO TV that oil companies were making 80 cents profit per gallon. The source cited by the governor says that is not true. Does the governor maintain his figure? Is the governor still claiming that his CO2 emissions tax only raises gas prices by “a few cents”? Between the state gasoline tax and the CO2 emissions tax, Washington takes about 94 cents per gallon from the price of gasoline. every gallon of gasoline. What is his plan to reduce this amount? Two weeks ago, Senator Nguyen said he knew down to the penny a gallon how much oil companies were making in Washington. Then, last Friday, he told the Seattle Times, “we don’t have any visibility” on earnings. What is it? Rep. Fitzgibbon has said many times in the past that the purpose of the CO2 emissions tax is to raise gasoline prices. Does he think gas prices should be lower?

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