Arizona still relies on California for about 33% of our gasoline and diesel. That means when California takes refining capacity offline, Arizona families feel it almost immediately. This is exactly why I sent a letter to President Trump urging him to invoke the Defense Production Act to stabilize and expand refining capacity in California. One economic report warned those refinery shutdowns could mean another $2 a gallon in Arizona. For families already stretched thin, that is real money.
The numbers are hard to ignore. Since 1980, California’s crude oil production has fallen by 57%. In the past few years, California has also taken major refining capacity out of the system. Valero’s Benicia refinery is set to idle, restructure, or cease operations, removing 170,000 barrels per day. Phillips 66’s Rodeo refinery stopped refining crude oil and shifted to renewable diesel, taking another 115,000 barrels per day out of traditional fuel production. Together, that is 285,000 barrels per day taken out of the regional supply picture while Arizona remains dependent on fuel coming from the West Coast.
The people who get hurt first are the ones least able to absorb it. Higher fuel costs hit working families hardest, and Arizona already faces added costs because of our fuel requirements. Tucson requires oxygenated gasoline in the winter, and Phoenix is subject to state fuel rules that make those blends more expensive to produce. When supply gets tighter, those costs get passed straight through to Arizona consumers.
That is why federal action matters here. My letter made the case that Washington should act now to discourage or prevent premature refinery shutdowns and conversions that tighten supply and drive up prices across our region. Over the longer term, Arizona also needs more options, including additional pipeline capacity and other realistic ways to strengthen supply. At 7.7 million people, this state should not be left this vulnerable to California’s refinery politics. Arizona families should not have to pay more every time California decides arithmetic no longer applies.
