Gov. Beshear declares state of emergency to prevent price gouging

[DS1]

Source: WHAS11 coverage

There is some breaking news regarding high gas prices.

WHAS11 News has learned that Governor Steve Beshear plans to declare a state of emergency in Kentucky for this weekend.

Declaring a state of emergency will prompt Kentucky's price gouging laws to go into effect.

Sources tell WHAS11’s Mark Hebert that the governor is concerned about reports of people overreacting and getting into fights at gas stations in western Kentucky.

There are reports that gas around Paducah raised to $4.60 a gallon.

The governor is preparing to make the announcement at today.

WHAS11.com will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.

Read more: http://www.whas11.com/topstories/stories/WHAS11_080912_topstories_gas_prices.6be2bd8e.html

[BridgeTheGap]

1. Good. It's an appropriate move to make. n.t

[Uben]

2. Why is gas so high in Kentucky?

I paid $3.28/gal yesterday. I'm in Texas, but I see no reason for a shortage in Kentucky...anymore than here! I just don't see how it could be over a dollar a gallon more. At $4.60/gal, that's over 30% more than we are paying here.We are the ones getting hit by a hurricane and are having mass evacuations, so I could understand there being a shortage here, but Kentucky? Crooks?

[Anywho6]

3. Good! Just spoke with my sis in Louisville...

...and she said gas had gone up again from $3.74 to $3.85 just in the short time she was in a store this morning. Just ridiculous...

[Roland99]

6. $3.99 at most stations now. Some up to $4.29. BUT, Louisville has been high for a while

We normally average $0.50 - $0.60/gal over RBOB (Wholesale), which had dropped to $2.65 the other day while gas ROSE to $3.89!! It dropped to $3.65 yesterday but back up again today. 30 min. south of town it's $0.40/gal cheaper.

We've been getting gouged for some time. Averaging about $0.80-0.90 over RBOB the last few months.
http://www.louisvillegasprices.com/

But Kudos to Beshear!!

Fletcher would have let us all suffer.

[Roland99]

10. Was told (third-hand) of one station near downtown at $4.89.

[Pab Sungenis]

4. This is how Democrats deal with speculators who profit off other people's misery.

Republicans look for ways they can cash in, too.

[ColonelTom]

5. Probably in anticipation of supply disruptions from Ike.

A Triple-A spokesman agrees with this theory:

http://www.wave3.com/Global/story.asp?S=8918156

I believe we saw this before Katrina as well. Presumably oil facilities in the storm's path have been evacuated in advance, so there's likely to be a supply disruption regardless of whether the storm actually hits full force.

Obviously some stations may seize the opportunity to gouge, but the fact that prices are rising rapidly right now shouldn't be a shock.

[sarcasmo]

7. Kick, what would happen in this country if it were something more extreme?

People panic way to easy.

[auburngrad82]

8. Gas went up in North Carolina 40 cents overnight

And the storm hasn't even hit.

[Zuiderelle]

9. Hopefully the charges of gouging will be directed at the suppliers and not the retailers.

As it sounds from the end of the article, they are most likely completely to blame.

The company that supplies most of the gas to Louisville stations, marathon, has said gas is higher here because of reformulated gas which costs more to make.

But preliminary results of an investigation by Attorney General Jack Conway’s office are debunking Marathon’s explanation.

Marathon is the wholesaler that, according to Conway, supplies 95% of the gas to the Louisville market. That’s a monopoly in Conway’s mind.

So who do you think is to blame for the disparity in Louisville gas prices, the gas stations or the suppliers?

Conway says it’s just the wholesalers, mainly Marathon. Don’t blame your local retailers.

[TroglodyteScholar]

11. In middle Georgia....

....on my 2 mile drive home, I saw gas prices ranging from 4.19 to 4.59. I filled up at 3.71 last night.

:wtf: