Fast Facts: Gas Prices
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}GAS PRICES
— Drivers are paying approximately 30 percent more than before Hurricane Katrina.
— Triple A South says drivers paid an average of about $3.04 a gallon for unleaded regular on Monday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}— Prices spiked 56 cents from two weeks ago, before Hurricane Katrina.
— The Energy Department reports a new record high for gas last week at $3.07 per gallon nationwide, which is $1.22 a gallon higher than last year's prices.
— In Georgia, a monthlong moratorium on gas taxes and a slight dip in wholesale prices helped drop gas to an average of $3.05.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}— In Tennessee, a group of Republican lawmakers urged the governor to temporarily halt the state's gasoline tax to give consumers a break.
— In Pennsylvania, Governor Ed Rendell is considering suspending the 30-cent-per-gallon state gasoline tax, which would cost the state $660 (m) dollars over a four-month period.
— Governors in Wisconsin and Indiana reject lawmakers' calls to reduce their states' gas taxes.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}— U-S Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources opens hearing on gas gouging allegations.
— Federal Trade Commission notes it cannot file charges unless it's a proven antitrust case.
WHY THE HIKE
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}— Much of the rise in gas prices stems from major disruptions in oil and gas production and delivery in the Gulf Coast states.
— Up to 80 percent, or one-point-two (m) barrels per day of production was halted due to hurricane.
— The facilities produce 1.4 (m) barrels of oil per day, equal to Saudi Arabia's output
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}(Sources: Associated Press and American Petroleum Institute)