The national average price for a gallon of regular gas increased slightly on Tuesday. It bucked the recent downward trend of fuel costs for commuters.
Tuesday’s average gas price for a gallon of regular is $3.166, a more than one-cent rise from Monday’s cost, according to AAA. Despite the slight increase, Tuesday’s national average price was lower than a week ago, when the cost was $3.172 per gallon. However, fuel costs remain more expensive than a month ago, when the national average price for a gallon of regular gas was $3.126.
Gas prices have fluctuated quite a bit in April. Earlier this month, fuel costs increased from $3.078 per gallon on March 18 to $3.268 on April 4. Prices began to drop in the middle of the month, falling over eight cents to $3.184. The rate of declining prices slowed down over the last week, dropping less than two cents from the middle of April.
Gas prices are a significant focus of the country’s voters and consumers. Whether gas is expensive or cheap, it affects hundreds of millions of people in the country. High gas prices were a focal point of the nation’s political discourse during the Biden administration. Gas was significantly more expensive than in President Donald Trump’s first term in office. Consider that the average price for regular gas from January 2017 to January 2021 was $2.476 per gallon. Comparatively, less than six months after President Joe Biden’s term began, fuel costs jumped to over $3 per gallon in June 2021.
Fuel costs increased in subsequent years of the Biden administration. Fuel costs hit record highs of $5.032 per gallon about 18 months into his term, according to the Energy Information Association. This was the highest national average price for a gallon of regular gas in the country’s history. The following month, the average price dropped to $4.92 per gallon for regular gas, a record for the highest average price for regular gas in a single month.
Prices continued to fall in July 2022 and would gradually decline the rest of that year. In 2023 and 2024, costs fluctuated but remained above the $3 per gallon threshold — higher than when Trump was in office. By April 2024, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas peaked for the year, and gas prices began falling the next month. This gradual decrease continued for the remainder of the year, and gas prices fell to a low of $3.01 per gallon shortly before Christmas.
POPE FRANCIS DEFIED EASY POLITICAL CATEGORIZATION
Gas prices vary depending on the region of the country. The nation’s highest gas prices are currently on the West Coast, whereas the cheapest gas prices in the U.S. are found in the Gulf States region. Currently, Mississippi has the cheapest statewide average cost for a gallon of regular gas in the nation at $2.677 per gallon. Oklahoma is next at $2.717. Then there is Texas at $2.736, Louisiana at $2.748, and Tennessee at $2.756.
Meanwhile, California’s average statewide gas price is approaching $5 per gallon. On Tuesday, the average cost for a gallon of regular gas in the Golden State was $4.825. Hawaii is the next most expensive state, at $4.512 per gallon, followed by Washington state at $4.298. The next two highest averages are slightly below the $4-per-gallon threshold. Oregon has an average fuel cost of $3.932 per gallon, and Nevada’s is $3.896.
This article was originally published at www.washingtonexaminer.com
