Actually many places with real competition, near production and very little regulation in the U.S. did have $1.00 or so gallon gas, i.e. much of the south and near energy producing areas in LA for example.

I wouldn't be surprised to find out that gas retailers in California would continue to price their gas at ~$5.00 a gallon when they don't actually have any to sell (or conversely, aren't selling any at all) because of how inelastic and regulated the supply is.

Everyone in CA that I know is ready to be done with gas. Regrettably, Californians also pay some of the highest costs for electricity (more expensive than HI[1]) so we're out of the frying pan and into the fire. Nothing more American than regulatory capture (looking at you SDG&E and CPCU)

[1] https://www.cbs8.com/article/money/amped/san-diego-has-the-h...

edit: source for $1 gallon https://abc7news.com/gas-prices-lowest-in-a-decade-13-states...