On Monday 3/10, In Seattle the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline reached $3.48 which is said to be up more than 39 cents since late January.

The Energy Information Administration reports that the national average for the same grade of gasoline is $3.23. The jump in price is due to a rise in crude oil prices. The price of gas in western Washington is higher than most of the U.S. because of the lack of pipelines that connect us to the core of the U.S. refining system.

As reported by the state's Attorney General, while most of the oil that is consumed locally is processed locally, the production capacity has only grown by 4 percent since 2000. The tax on gas is at 54.4 cents per gallon, and since taxes are a significant factor to the price of gas, it is duely noted that Washington consumers pay more taxes than the rest of the country. 

According to the Attorney General's report, Washington gas prices are ranked as the 16th highest in the U.S.

Since it doesn't look like the gas prices are coming down anytime soon, here is a helpful listing of where you can find the cheapest gas prices in the region