In March 2021, a small city in Northern California made history.

Pedaluma became the first community in America to permanently ban the construction of new gas stations.

The city council voted unanimously.

No residents spoke against it.

The measure passed without controversy.

Within 2 years, that ban spread like wildfire across the Bay Area.

Sebastapable banned new gas stations.

Kotati banned them.

Ronert Park banned them.

Noado banned them.

Santa Rosa, the largest city to adopt the policy, banned them, too.

The logic was simple.

State leaders had declared a climate emergency.

The state had mandated that all new car sales must be electric by 2035.

Building new gas stations seemed like investing in the past, so they stopped approving them.

Then Costco showed up.

The warehouse giant wanted to add a gas station to its existing store in Novado.

It would be a 28 pump facility with 14 dispensers, three 40,000galon underground storage tanks, cheaper gas for members who already pay some of the highest prices in America.

The city said no.

Well, technically they said the project could proceed because Costco had filed before the ban took effect.

But that did not stop the opposition.

Residents sued.

Environmental groups protested.

A judge ordered the city to conduct a full environmental review.

The project has been tied up in bureaucracy since 2021.

Four years of paperwork, hearings, and delays for a gas station next to an existing store.

The opposition claims the gas station violates climate commitments.

Noado declared a climate emergency in 2020.

The city adopted a climate action plan targeting a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

Transportation accounts for 64% of local emissions.

Adding a major gas station seems to contradict those goals.

But here is what nobody mentions.

Californians still need gas.

The state has 40 million residents.

Most of them drive cars that run on gasoline.

Banning new gas stations does not make that demand disappear.

It just makes fuel harder to find and more expensive to buy.

California already has the highest gas prices in the continental United States.

In October 2024, the average price hit $468 per gallon.

The national average was $3.20.

That means California drivers pay about 46% more than everyone else.

By early 2025, prices in some Bay Area cities topped $5 per gallon.

The state’s own data shows that taxes and regulations add more than $1.30 to every gallon.

That is nearly double the national average for regulatory costs alone.

Costco sells gas at some of the lowest prices in any market it enters.

Members line up for the savings.

The company operates 719 gas stations worldwide.

Gas sales account for 12% of total revenue.

When Costco opens a gas station, prices at nearby competitors often drop.

That is exactly what California drivers need.

Instead, they get lawsuits and environmental impact reports.

The Novato fight is not unique.

In Fresno, a judge blocked plans for a new Costco location with a 32 pump gas station.

The project would have been one of the largest Costco stores in the world.

It would have replaced an older, smaller store and generated millions in tax revenue.

Residents sued over zoning and environmental issues.

The judge ruled that the city relied on an invalid climate action plan.

The project is now indefinitely delayed.

Meanwhile, Fresno drivers keep paying premium prices at existing stations.

The pattern is clear.

Cities declare climate emergencies.

They ban new gas stations.

Then they act surprised when fuel becomes scarce and expensive.

The logic assumes that banning supply will somehow reduce demand.

It does not.

People still need to get to work.

They still need to drive their kids to school.

They still need to run errands and visit family.

Banning gas stations just forces them to drive farther and pay more.

California’s war on gas stations goes far beyond local bans.

In 2014, the state passed a law requiring all singlewalled underground storage tanks to be replaced by December 31st, 2025.

The regulation sounds reasonable.

Singlewalled tanks can corrode and leak during earthquakes.

Doublewalled tanks are safer, but the cost of compliance is devastating.

Replacing a single underground tank costs approximately $2 million.

Most gas stations have multiple tanks.

For small family-owned stations, that expense is impossible.

The station is often worth less than the cost of the upgrade.

As of late 2024, more than 2,000 singlewalled tank systems remained in operation statewide.

By the end of 2025, 473 gas stations are expected to close because they cannot afford compliance.

Most are independently owned.

Most serve rural communities.

Most have no replacement coming.

The state promised help.

A program called Rust offered loans and grants to assist small businesses as with tank replacement.

The maximum grant was $70,000.

The average replacement cost is $2 million.

That is a gap of $1.

93 million that small business owners must somehow cover.

Many applied for assistance and received nothing.

The deadline came and went.

The stations closed.

The communities they serve now face longer drives and higher prices.

And then there are the refineries.

In October 2024, state leaders passed a law requiring refineries to maintain minimum fuel stock piles.

The California Energy Commission would oversee inventory levels.

Refineries would need to submit maintenance plans 120 days in advance.

Penalties for non-compliance ranged from $100,000 to $1 million per day.

Within 48 hours of that law passing, Philips 66 announced it would close its Los Angeles refinery.

The facility had operated since 1896.

It supplied 8% of California’s gasoline.

It employed 600 workers and supported 300 contractors.

Company executives blamed market dynamics.

Industry analysts noted the suspicious timing.

Philip 66 was not alone.

Marathon Petroleum stopped producing fuel at its Martinez facility in 2020.

Philip 66 converted its rodeo refinery to renewable diesel in 2024.

California has lost 400,000 barrels per day in refining capacity.

The state now imports about 30% of its gasoline.

After the Philips 66 closure, that number will approach 40%.

Every gallon imported adds transportation costs, shipping emissions, and supply chain risks.

Prices go up, reliability goes down.

The state’s response has been telling.

Rather than ease regulations, officials doubled down.

On July 1st, 2025, the state excise tax on gasoline increased again.

Changes to the lowcarbon fuel standard took effect the same day.

Some estimates suggest these changes could add 65 cents per gallon to fuel prices.

Other projections warn of $8 per gallon gas by 2026.

A USC study found that California’s 2024 regulatory actions alone could increase gas prices by 55 to nearly $1 per gallon.

While small stations close and refineries flee, Costco keeps trying.

The company recently announced plans for its first standalone gas station in Mission Viejo.

It would have 40 pumps on a site that used to be a Bed Bath and beyond.

No warehouse attached, just fuel for members who desperately need affordable options.

The project still requires permits, environmental reviews, and regulatory approval.

In California, that process can take years, and there is always the possibility of lawsuits from neighbors or environmental groups.

The contrast with other states is striking.

In Texas, drivers pay about $3 per gallon.

In Oklahoma, the average is $2.37.

California drivers pay nearly double.

The difference is not geography.

It is not geology.

It is policy.

California has the highest gas tax in the country at nearly 71 cents per gallon.

It has carbon credit requirements that add another 20 to 25.

It has boutique fuel blends that no other state produces.

It has regulations that make building new stations nearly impossible.

And it has a political climate that treats affordable fuel as the enemy.

State leaders claim these policies protect the environment.

They say higher gas prices encourage people to buy electric vehicles.

They say banning gas stations prepares communities for a zero emission future.

But the 2035 electric vehicle mandate is now facing serious challenges.

The federal government moved to block California’s waiver.

Automakers admit they cannot meet the sales targets.

Even state regulators acknowledge that 100% electric sales by 2035 may not be practical.

Meanwhile, electric vehicle market share in California sits at about 22%.

That means 78% of new car buyers are still choosing gas powered vehicles.

They need places to fill up.

Costco understands this.

The company sees demand.

It sees customers waiting in long lines for cheaper fuel.

It sees an opportunity to provide value in a market desperate for relief.

But every time it tries to build, California says no.

Environmental reviews, climate action plans, lawsuits from neighbors, bans from city councils.

The company that sells $150 hot dogs and rotisserie chickens at a loss cannot get permission to sell affordable gasoline.

The consequences fall hardest on working families.

A typical California household drives about 12,500 m per year.

At 31 mp gallon, that requires roughly 400 gall annually.

At $4.85 per gallon, that is nearly $2,000 just for fuel.

In Texas, the same family would spend about $1,200.

California families pay $800 more per year simply because of where they live.

That money could go toward groceries, rent, or savings.

Instead, it goes to taxes and regulatory compliance.

For low-income families, the burden is even heavier.

They cannot afford to buy new electric vehicles.

They drive older cars with lower fuel efficiency.

They have longer commutes because housing costs push them to distant suburbs.

Rural communities face a different crisis.

When small gas stations close, the next option may be 20 or 30 m away.

Farmers, ranchers, and agricultural workers need fuel for their equipment.

Emergency responders need accessible fuel for their vehicles.

Tourists driving through need places to stop.

When those stations disappear, entire towns become harder to reach.

The supply chain stretches thinner.

The isolation grows deeper.

Nobody in the state capital seems to notice or care.

The state’s small gas station owners are disappearing.

The refineries are leaving.

The cities are banning new construction.

The regulations are crushing anyone who tries to compete.

And Costco, a company that could actually help, spends years fighting for permits that may never come.

This is what happens when policy ignores reality.

When ideology trumps economics.

When leaders decide that making fuel expensive is progress.

California drivers pay the price every single day at every single pump.

And there is no relief in sight.

The irony is thick.

A state that prides itself on consumer protection makes consumers pay