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U.S. gasoline demand — which earlier was expected to hold strong this summer despite soaring prices — is starting to show signs of cracks.

When industry pays more for diesel, it passes along the higher cost to customers and the financial pain ripples through the economy, driving inflation and squeezing everyday consumers. The only way out may be a painful one.

Legislation that aims to expand federal provisions against price gouging in the marketplace for gasoline and other fuels passed in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 19.

Gasoline prices in the U.S. have hit fresh peaks for the past 10 days, the longest run of consecutive records just as travel is expected to approach levels seen before the pandemic, according to auto club AAA.

Gasoline pump prices have risen above $4 a gallon in all states in the U.S. for the first time ever as the last holdouts — Kansas, Oklahoma and Georgia — saw prices rise overnight, according to auto club AAA.

The national average price of diesel dipped after a two-week surge, dropping 1 cent to $5.613 a gallon, the Energy Information Administration reported May 16.

Saudi Arabia’s energy minister said a dearth of refining capacity meant that gasoline and other oil products would remain expensive even if the world’s biggest exporters pumped more crude.

From record gasoline prices to higher airfares to fears of diesel rationing ahead, America’s runaway energy market is disquieting both U.S. travelers and the wider economy. But the chief driver isn’t high crude prices or even the rebound in demand: It’s simply too few refineries turning oil into usable fuels.

The U.S. president would have the authority to declare an emergency that would make the sale of gasoline at “excessive” prices illegal under legislation House Democrats plan to bring to the floor next week.

Retail gasoline and diesel prices rallied to a record just ahead of the nation’s summer driving season, a challenge for President Joe Biden and the Federal Reserve as they face the fastest inflation in decades.