Jeff Oliver, a Bost trucker from Vergennes, climbs down from his truck Friday during the Murphysboro Apple Festival. Oliver has been an employee of Bost Trucking Service for the past 15 years and said he has seen gas prices rise significantly in the past decade. Dan Bost, truck company owner, said high gas prices have affected everything from business operating costs to grocery store food prices. Bost said he has not been able to buy a new truck since 1999 because of the rise in fuel prices. – Steve Matzker | Daily Egyptian

Illinois has one of the highest gas price rates in the nation, yet rates are expected to rise.

“We charge sales tax on top of our other fees,” State Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, said. “When the price of a gallon of gas goes up, our tax goes up.”

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Mike Bost said his family has run the trucking company Bost Trucking Services, Inc. since 1933. He managed the company from 1982 to 1992 and continues to be an advocate for low gas prices.

The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability states Illinois has a 6.5 percent sales tax on gasoline. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration website, the average price of crude oil will rise from $100 to $107 per barrel in 2012.

Mike Bost said most trucking companies leave Illinois and base their business elsewhere because of the high gas prices. He said the truckers usually fill up for gas before they enter Illinois or after they leave.

“I believe we should ship over to a flat rate per gallon like most states,” Mike Bost said. “When you go into Missouri, they’re at least 10 cents below us because of the taxation we put on it.”

Other states with high gas prices are California, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Michigan and New York.

Mike Bost’s brother, Dan Bost, runs the trucking company now. Dan Bost said his trucks run on diesel fuel, an oil product.

He said West Texas Intermediate charges about $89 per barrel of oil, and Brent, which is located in Europe, charges about $114 per barrel. The companies used to have only about a $2 difference between their prices, Dan Bost said, but the two have had a great price difference for years.

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“I think the (West Texas Intermediate) price is pretty consistent,” Dan Bost said. “We’re where we should be. I think if oil stays the same or even drops a little, it’ll be helpful for our economy.”

He said most people think the U.S. is getting all of its oil from the Middle East, but that’s not true.

“We do a little bit, but we’re dealing more and more with our neighbors up north in Canada,” Dan Bost said.

He said his trucking company used to be twice the size it is now, but he had to downsize during the recession.

Eric Noggle, senior revenue analyst for Illinois COGFA, wrote in the 2011 Motor Fuel Report that while gasoline is just an everyday expense, the high prices are hurting customers.

“The comfort levels of consumers are affected because these higher prices force people to reevaluate their spending habits and look for alternative ways of getting from place to place,” Noggle said. “The higher the price of motor fuel, the more attention motor fuel prices receive.”

The COGFA states the national average of $3.53 a gallon for unleaded gas is expected to rise to $3.64 by 2012.