We’re No. 1 — when it comes to the taxes we pay on a gallon of gas.
New York state is tops in terms of fuel taxes this year, according to the American Petroleum Institute, beating out California and Connecticut for the dubious honor.
And drivers in New York City and its suburban counties pay additional levies at the pump, making their gas taxes the highest in the nation.
In New York City, the average $4.04 price of a gallon of regular includes 69 cents’ worth of federal, state and local taxes.
That means when you reach into your wallet after a 20-gallon fill-up, you’re shelling out a whopping $13.80 in taxes.
The bill includes 8 cents in state sales taxes and 16.9 cents in local sales taxes per gallon, some of which is funneled into the MTA’s budget.
The Motor Fuel Excise Tax — 8 cents — goes into the state’s Dedicated Highway and Bridge Trust Fund. The fund was set up to pay for major road repairs, but over the years legislators have regularly hijacked billions to steer to the general fund.
A fraction of a penny a gallon goes to a state fund dedicated to petroleum-spill cleanup and to a fund earmarked for the state’s fuel testing program.
Then there’s the 17.8-cent Petroleum Business Tax.
The federal government grabs another 18.4 cents for every gallon of gas you buy.
The cost of crude oil accounts for about 76 percent of the price we see at the pump, according to the US Energy Information Administration. The oil company keeps about 19 cents of every $4.04 gallon of gas sold, and the refinery makes a little less than 2 cents.
The profit margin for your local service station can also be razor thin. In New York, retailers build in a markup of about 22 cents per gallon.
Overhead, including credit-card processing fees, eats up most of that amount. A gas station typically makes just 3 cents a gallon in profit, said Jeff Lenard of the National Association of Convenience Stores.
“Retailers often lose money on the way up as prices rise,” Lenard said. “Then they make their money on the way down by lowering the retail price slowly and taking a bigger cut.”
Per-gallon breakdown
Where your gas money goes:
Federal tax 18.4¢
State Petroleum Business Tax 17.8¢
State Motor Fuel Excise Tax 8¢
State Petroleum Testing Fee 0.05¢
State Spill tax 0.3¢
State sales tax 8¢
City sales tax in MTA region (4.375%) 16.9¢
TOTAL TAXES: 69.45¢
Refiner 23¢
Delivery 2¢
Gas station 22¢
Oil company $2.88