Cheaper gas on Air Force Bases?

Akilae729

So over the summer i'm going to be working on an military base and I have a hour commute each way.

My roommate was trying to tell me that gas on base is way cheeper than off base. Like half price.

To me this seems like total bullshit. Is this total bullshit?

tardcore

I could imagine employees of the government would get some sort of discount.

Incenjucar

Considering the US military uses like 50% of the oil in this country, I imagine they have a pretty direct lines to sources, and would at the very least get the best possible prices.

Works for military grocery stores.

tofu

I work at a Navy base that has a gas station. It's usually about 20 cents cheaper than current prices.

Midshipman

The difference is likely due to taxes. No state taxes apply there. Cigarettes are ridiculously cheap at BXs and Commisaries because of this.

Regina Fong

It's usually cheaper than out in town, but not always by much. Don't plan on huge savings.

casper_27d

Midshipman wrote: »

The difference is likely due to taxes. No state taxes apply there. Cigarettes are ridiculously cheap at BXs and Commisaries because of this.

That is a dead on description to why things are cheaper, no gas/tobacco/alcohol taxes apply on military instillations.

Fizban140

I live on an Air Force Base, you are being fed complete bullshit. Gas is about 5 cents cheaper on base than off base. Alcohol is a little bit cheaper, but not a whole lot, a couple dollars. Also there is a surcharge attached to everything after which is about 5 percent. Oh and wal mart usually has better prices than our BX and commissary.

Thanatos

Fizban140 wrote: »

I live on an Air Force Base, you are being fed complete bullshit. Gas is about 5 cents cheaper on base than off base. Alcohol is a little bit cheaper, but not a whole lot, a couple dollars. Also there is a surcharge attached to everything after which is about 5 percent. Oh and wal mart usually has better prices than our BX and commissary.

Price of alcohol probably depends on what state you're in. Washington has ri-fucking-diculous liquor taxes, so I'm guessing it's way cheaper on bases in this state relative to what you'd pay off-base.

Mishra

From what I understand our gas stations are required to match the cheapest gas within 5 miles. or at least thats how the new gas station we're getting on base is going to work. It won't save you tons of money, but it'll save you the effort of hunting around. The comissary and BX are only llowed to charge a 3% markup from the cost to them to cover operating costs, and no taxes as has been said. For me out in LA that's a huge deal, for some of the folks out in the boonies walmart will do better. I forget if you need a CAC card for gas though, it's been a while since I was on a base with a gas station.

Edit: Also I notice your at USC, are you coming down here to LA or headed up to Edwards/Vandenberg by any chance?