Friday, August 3, 2012

A "Stand Alone" Newsbite Concerning Gas Prices


From today's WSJ...

By Drew Johnson, fellow at the Taxpayer Protection Alliance

Crude oil costs make up about 76% of the cost of gasoline, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Thus $2.66 of a $3.50 gallon of gasoline is set before the oil is even refined.

Refining oil is the next step in the process — and the next expense for drivers. Gasoline is extracted from crude oil and additives, including lubricants and detergents to reduce engine deposits, are added. As of January 2012, the EIA found that refining was responsible for 6% of the cost of gasoline.

* 76 + 6 = 82. (SO WE'RE UP TO 82%)

Distribution and marketing—the part of the process most apparent to consumers — constitutes another 6% of gas prices. That portion of the cost includes the shipping and transportation of the gasoline, a markup to cover retailers' expenses, and any advertising created to appeal to customers.

* 82 + 6 = (WE'RE NOW UP TO 88%)

The remaining 12% — or almost 50 cents per gallon today — goes directly to federal, state and local governments in an array of sales and excise taxes.

* THAT'S 12% OF PURE PROFIT! PROFIT JUST FOR BEING THE GOVERNMENT! PROFIT FOR DOING NOTHING SAVE HOLD YOUR HAND OUT!

The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents on every gallon of gasoline sold in America.

* OK... SO THE FEDS MAKE 18.4 CENTS OFF EVERY GALLON OF GAS SOLD. HOW'S THAT COMPARE TO WHAT THE OIL COMPANIES MAKE... TO WHAT THE REFINERS MAKES... TO WHAT THE GAS STATIONS MAKE?

State gas-tax rates vary from a low of eight cents per gallon in Alaska to a jarring 49 cents per gallon in New York.

* SO... IF YOU BUY GAS IN NEW YORK STATE... YOU'RE PAYING (49 + 18.4) 67.4-CENTS JUST IN DIRECT FEDERAL AND STATE TAXES FOR EVERY GALLON OF GAS YOU PURCHASE.

Other states where it's steep to fill up include California and Connecticut — each with 48.6-cent-per-gallon gas taxes — And Hawaii, at 47.1 cents per gallon.

Some local governments have gotten in on the act, too.

* OH... THIS SHOULD BE GOOD! (READ ON!)

In California, local sales and excise taxes on gasoline average 3.1%, according to the Los Angeles Times. That works out to about 12 cents in local taxes for each gallon of gas, based on the state's current average of $3.80 per gallon.

* JEEZUS... SO WE'RE TALKING TAXES OF 18.4-CENTS (FED), 48.6-CENTS (STATE), PLUS 12-CENTS (LOCAL) FOR A GRAND TOTAL OF... .79-CENTS A GALLON GOING TO TAXES!

Skokie, Ill., a suburb north of Chicago, levies a gas tax of three cents per gallon.

You'll pay an extra nickel per gallon at gas stations in Eugene, Ore.

And the next time you're gambling in Las Vegas, you'll need plenty of cash left over to cover Clark County's 10-cent local tax on a gallon of gas.

In Florida, Brevard County (home to the Kennedy Space Center) [and hanging chads] expects to siphon more than $15 million from motorists this year, according to the newspaper Florida Today.

(*JUST SHAKING MY HEAD*)

Put this all together, and government makes far more from gas sales than all of the oil companies put together.

* ONE MORE TIME...

Put this all together, and government makes far more from gas sales than all of the oil companies put together.

* HOW SO...?

Exxon, for example, made only seven cents per gallon of gasoline in 2011.

* ONE MORE TIME...

Exxon, for example, made only seven cents per gallon of gasoline in 2011.

That's a drop in the bucket compared to the nearly 50 cents per gallon that federal, state and local governments rake in on an average gallon of gas pumped in the U.S.

* ON AN AVERAGE... (AS WE'VE SEEN, IT'S FAR HIGHER IN STATES LIKE NEW YORK AND CALIFORNIA!)

Most people have to drive — whether to work, to the grocery store, to pick up kids from school or for dozens of other reasons. For some families struggling to make ends meet, paying 50 cents per gallon in taxes may be the difference between driving to work and putting dinner on the table.

So the next time you begin to blame oil companies, speculators or service stations for high gas prices, remember that no one get richer off of gasoline than government.

* AND, FOLKS... WHILE THE ARTICLE DIDN'T GIVE THE FIGURES... IF MEMORY SERVES RETAILERS AVERAGE A PROFIT OF ONLY TWO OR THREE CENTS PER GALLON... AND REFINERS... BELIEVE IT OR NOT MANY HAVE LOST MONEY EVEN AS RETAIL PRICES HAVE SKYROCKETED.

* OH... AND FOLKS... DON'T FORGET... YOU'RE NOT JUST PAYING GAS TAXES - MANY OF US ARE ALSO PAYING OUTRAGEOUS TOLLS ($12 CASH TO CROSS THE GEORGE WASHINGTON BRIDGE FROM NJ INTO NYC) AND THEN OF COURSE GENERAL GOVERNMENTAL REVENUES (TAXES) ARE ALSO GOING INTO PAYING FOR ROADS.

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