USC Professor Warns: California’s Self-Created Energy Crisis

California is facing a fuel crisis of its own making, warns USC professor Michael Mische. For decades, the state has restricted domestic oil production while adding on taxes and regulations, even as demand remained high. The result is a growing dependence on foreign oil, with California now importing 78% of its supply. Much of it comes from regimes with weak environmental standards, higher emissions, and poor human rights records.

Gas prices reflect this failure. Since 2001, California prices have climbed 162 percent and are now about 43 percent higher than the national average.

The crisis is set to intensify. Two major refineries in Los Angeles and Benicia are preparing to close, and laws like SB 1137 threaten 15,000 more wells. This means fewer local jobs, greater reliance on imports, and even higher prices. Californians already pay the nation’s highest gas taxes, along with a hidden surcharge of five to seven dollars on every imported barrel.

The contradiction could not be more obvious. Sacramento blocks the cleanest and safest oil production at home, while it imports fuel from the Amazon, the Middle East, and even indirectly from Russia. Petroleum is not just fuel; it is the base for over 6,000 products, including fertilizer, eyeglasses, EV batteries, and heart valves.

Mische argues that lawmakers need to accept reality. California still relies on oil. If the state genuinely cares about affordability, equity, and environmental responsibility, it should simplify permits, reduce regulatory costs, and produce more local energy under the strictest safety and environmental standards available.

The choice is clear: continue sending billions overseas, or power California with California energy while protecting jobs, lowering costs, and securing the state’s future.