People looking for low gasoline prices had best stay away from Alaska, California, Hawaii and Nevada. Oil prices may have increased in the past few days, but overall they have swung down over the past two months. As gas prices drop to $2.50 nationwide, based on the cost of a gallon of regular, with some states falling close to $2, living in states far from refineries or with high gas taxes are bound to keep prices well above the national average.

The average price for a gallon of regular in $3.11 in Hawaii, according to GasBuddy, $3.14 in Nevada, $3.37 in California and $3.39 in Alaska. In some California cities, the numbers are grimmer. The price of gas in Los Angeles is $3.58, in Santa Barbara $3.55 and San Diego $3.50.

Gas taxes and fees in three of the high-priced states are well above the national average of $0.489. Hawaii is third highest on the American Petroleum Institute list at $0.635. California is fourth at $0.601 and Nevada 12th at $0.523. Alaska is a notable exception. The oil-rich state has the lowest gas taxes and fees among all states at $0.307.

Moving oil from Alaska down the west coast of Canada and the United States and then moving gasoline back up is expensive. Hawaii has a similar problem. Gas stations are mostly supplied from Asia or the West Coast. California has several refineries, the largest of which are the Chevron USA El Segundo Refinery and the Tesoro-Carson. The refinery capacity, however, does not come close to handling the fuel needs of the population. And Nevada’s refinery capacity is tiny.

If there are economic benefits of low gas prices, the effects are regional, with some states that barely benefit at all because of the factors that keep the price of gasoline in these places high.

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