California regulators voted Wednesday to clarify reporting requirements for refiners and major oil sellers in the state when they submit their supply projections to the California Energy Commission as part of the state’s attempt to prevent gasoline price spikes.
What happened: The vote makes refinements to the information that oil refiners and major marketers already have to submit to state regulators under SBX 1-2, a law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in 2022 tasking the CEC with collecting data to investigate the causes of gas price spikes and designing a cap on refinery profits, if appropriate.
What changed: The regulations approved Wednesday will “clarify the reporting requirements” and “define terms to facilitate accurate reporting,” said Jeremy Smith, deputy director of energy assessments at the CEC. He said the aim is to provide regulators with greater visibility into gas markets so they can identify near-term supply and demand conditions that may lead to price spikes.
The amendments include changes like increasing the sales threshold from 20,000 barrels to 50,000 barrels for the major marketers category and establishing the monthly reporting cadence. They standardize reporting requirements for categories like refinery inputs, shipments and fuels received by major marketers.
