The average price of a gallon of regular gas has dropped almost 50 cents across the U.S. in the past month, and Georgia is slightly behind South Carolina and Texas for the nation’s lowest average price.

According to the most recent reading from AAA on Sunday, Georgia’s average price of $4.04 per gallon is $1.86 behind the highest U.S. price of $5.90 in California. Hawaii, at $5.60, and Alaska, at $5.35, are the next two highest. South Carolina has the lowest price at $4.02 per gallon, while Texas is at $4.03.

The price of gas in Statesboro has been consistently lower than other parts of Georgia, and at the Parker’s station on Highway 80 East, a gallon was $3.68 with a Parker’s card and $3.78 without one on Monday. Prices for both were 51 cents higher on June 10. Most stations in the Statesboro area remain well below, for now, the state average cost per gallon.

GasBuddy, a service that helps drivers find deals on gas, said prices in Georgia are, on average, 44 cents per gallon lower than one month ago — down from $4.48 on June 13. The average cost per gallon in the U.S. was $5.01 on June 13 and $4.53 on Sunday.

Even with the recent declines, gas is still $1.07 higher per gallon in Georgia than it was a year ago.

“We've seen the national average price of gasoline decline for a fifth straight week, with the pace of recent declines accelerating to some of the most significant we've seen in years,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “So far, we've seen the national average drop for 34 straight days, with over 25,000 stations now back at $3.99 per gallon or less, and thousands more stations will join this week.”

One reason gas prices have stayed lower in Georgia than in other parts of the nation is because the state tax on gas has been suspended since the state legislature approved a measure proposed by Gov. Brian Kemp in March.

Kemp extended the order through Aug. 13 and may extend it again after that. He also abated gas taxes in 2021 during a pipeline shutdown, and former Gov. Nathan Deal suspended gas taxes multiple times.

Georgia’s gasoline price normally includes a federal tax of 18.4 cents per gallon and a state tax of 29.1 cents per gallon. A number of cities and counties also charge taxes. Federal taxes on diesel fuel are 24.4 cents per gallon, while Georgia’s tax on diesel is 32.6 cents per gallon.

Those taxes normally collect about $150 million a month that Georgia uses to build and maintain roads, bridges and other transportation infrastructure.

Reasons behind decline

Analysts say that recent nationwide declines in gas prices come from lower demand at the pump and a drop in crude oil prices. According to AAA, the U.S. used 1.3 million fewer barrels of oil per day in the past week, while supplies rose by 5.8 million barrels.

“The decrease in demand, alongside declining oil prices, has helped to lower gas prices,” said Montrae Waiters, a spokeswoman for AAA. “As these supply/demand dynamics hold, drivers will likely continue to see relief at the pump.”

A month ago, some analysts thought prices would reach a national average of $6 per gallon by mid-August, but GasBuddy’s De Haan believes the decline in prices will continue.

“Barring major hurricanes, outages or unexpected disruptions, I forecast the national average to fall to $3.99 per gallom by mid-August," he said.

Global gas prices also have come down some in the past month, though not as much as the U.S. The average price per gallon in England has dropped from $8.80 per gallon to $8.58 and from $8.60 throughout Europe to $8.43.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil, the benchmark used in global markets, was almost $125 per barrel on June 10 and was down to $105 per barrel on Monday afternoon. Goldman Sachs had predicted in June that the average price for a barrel of Brent crude would be $140 a barrel between July and September.