At first, it makes little sense that Alaska is the state with the highest average price for a gallon of regular. Famed for decades as one of the most oil-rich sections of the world, Alaska has a gasoline price of $3.06 per gallon, according to GasBuddy. That is against an average national price of $2.29, as well as South Carolina, which has the lowest price at $1.89 per gallon.

Generally, three things make up the price of gas. The first is oil, and the price of crude is near a multi-month low at $46 a barrel. Next is proximity to large refineries. And the last are state taxes and fees.

Alaska has a major advantage among all other states. It has the lowest gas taxes in America at $0.307 per gallon. That is against a national average of $0.489, according the American Petroleum Institute, and a high of $0.70 in Pennsylvania.

In terms of proximity to refineries, Alaska may be worst off among all states. Oil produced in the state must be moved hundreds of miles south. After some portion of that is refined into gasoline, it has to be moved hundreds of miles north, and then spread throughout a state of more than 663,000 square miles.

The good news for Alaska, and for California with the second highest average price per gallon at $3.04, is that prices are still dropping and may be under $3 soon. In Alaska the average price has dropped 16 cents in the past week, and it is 82 cents lower than a year ago. The national average is down by 35 cents from a week ago and $1.04 from the same time last year.

GasBuddy analysts said recently:

With the summer driving season now in the rear view, gasoline prices are likely to continue moving lower as demand tapers off and strict gasoline requirements are eased in the weeks ahead. Oil prices continue to be volatile, but GasBuddy still expects prices to eventually move lower in the weeks and months ahead due to the aforementioned factors.

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