Gasoline prices averaged $3.738 a gallon in the Washington-Baltimore area in February 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that area gasoline prices increased 9.1 cents since last February when they averaged $3.647 per gallon. Washington area households paid an average of 12.2 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in February 2013, nearly unchanged from 12.4 cents per kWh in February 2012. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $1.112 per therm in February was less than the $1.157 per therm spent last year. (All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

At $3.738 a gallon, Washington area consumers paid close to the national average of $3.748 in February 2013. A year earlier, the price for a gallon of gasoline in the Washington area was also similar to the national average. In fact, the local prices for a gallon of gasoline have remained close to the national average in the last five years. (See chart 1.)

The 12.2 cents per kWh that Washington households paid for electricity in February 2013 was 5.4 percent less than the nationwide average of 12.9 cents per kWh. Last year, electricity prices for consumers in Washington were close to those for the nation. In the month of February, the local price for electricity has exceeded the national average in two of the last five years. (See chart 2.)

In February 2013, the price paid by Washington area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, was $1.112 per therm, 11.5 percent more than the national average of 99.7 cents. A year earlier, local area consumers paid 17.3 percent more per therm for natural gas compared to consumers nationwide. In each of the last five years, the per-therm cost for natural gas in Washington was at least 6 percent more than the U.S. average in the month of February. (See chart 3.)

The Washington-Baltimore, D.C.-Md.-Va.-W.Va. Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) includes the District of Columbia; Baltimore City and the counties of Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Calvert, Carroll, Charles, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s, and Washington in Maryland; the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Fredericksburg, Manassas, and Manassas Park and the counties of Arlington, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, King George, Loudoun, Prince William, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren in Virginia; and the counties of Berkeley and Jefferson in West Virginia.

 

Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, the 3 population size classes, 10 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 14 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and per 500 kWh are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm, per 40 therms, and per 100 therms are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

Price quotes for 40 therms and 100 therms of utility (piped) gas and for 500 kWh of electricity are collected in sample outlets for use in the average price programs only. Since they are for specified consumption amounts, they are not used in the CPI. All other price quotes used for average price estimation are regular CPI data.

With the exception of the 40 therms, 100 therms, and 500 kWh price quotes, all eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity.

The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits.  This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200, Federal Relay Service: 800-877-8339.

Table 1. Average prices for utility (piped) gas, gasoline, and electricity, United States and the Washington-Baltimore area, February 2012-February 2013, not seasonally adjusted

Year and Month	Gasoline per gallon		Electricity per kWh		Utility (piped) gas per therm
	United States	Washington-Baltimore	United States	Washington-Baltimore	United States	Washington-Baltimore
2012
February	$3.622	$3.647	$0.128	$0.124	$0.986	$1.157
March	3.918	3.892	0.127	0.124	0.978	1.092
April	3.976	4.051	0.127	0.124	0.951	1.156
May	3.839	3.797	0.129	0.124	0.907	1.071
June	3.602	3.460	0.135	0.133	0.927	1.146
July	3.502	3.455	0.133	0.133	0.943	1.110
August	3.759	3.722	0.133	0.132	0.960	1.194
September	3.908	3.823	0.133	0.131	0.953	1.068
October	3.839	3.706	0.128	0.124	0.962	1.053
November	3.542	3.473	0.127	0.120	0.994	1.102
December	3.386	3.353	0.127	0.120	1.004	1.101
2013
January	3.407	3.443	0.129	0.120	0.996	1.089
February	3.748	3.738	0.129	0.122	0.997	1.112