Californians may get tax rebate to combat soaring fuel prices.

The governor of California said on Tuesday that he would try to give residents some relief from the high gas prices.

In his annual State of the State address, he said that no one has been nave about high gas prices and the uncertainty surrounding them.

Inflation, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and other factors have caused the average price of a gallon of gas in California to be the highest in the country and the most expensive ever recorded in the state.

He said that he proposed pausing the gas tax increase in January, but now it's clear we need to go further.

According to the governor's office, the relief would take the form of a tax rebate.

The state is flush with cash and the governor wants to make sure residents feel it in their bank accounts.

California has some of the most expensive gas in the nation because of strict environmental standards. Mr. Newsom wants to position the state as a leader in confronting climate change by setting aggressive emission reduction goals, banning the sale of new gas-powered cars and calling for an end to fossil fuel production.

He wants to move away from fossil fuels, not just as an environmental imperative, but as a way of relying less on foreign oil producers. President Biden banned imports of Russian energy into the United States.

Mr. Newsom said that we need to be fighting pollution, not bolstering it.