SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KGTV) -- Some lawmakers are calling for an investigation by the attorney general into why Californians pay billions each year on a mysterious gas surcharge, KGO reports.
As of January 29, residents in the Golden State were paying $1 more per gallon on average than the rest of the nation.
According to KGO, an unexplained surcharge anywhere between 20 to 40 cents per gallon may be to blame.
Meanwhile, Severin Borenstein, a professor at U.C. Berkeley Haas School of Business, says the surcharge can’t be explained by higher taxes, cap and trade or cleaner gasoline.
According to a report by Borenstein, the surcharge appeared after the 2015 Exxon Torrance refinery explosion.
The report also found that the surcharge costs Californians at least $3 billion per year.
“And unlike the extra tax revenue, this money is not going to fix any roads or bridges,” Borenstein says.
According to KGO, more than a dozen lawmakers sent the letter to the Department of Justice. They’ve yet to receive a response as of Tuesday night.
