AG says there’s nothing fishy about gas price increases

State officials say they’ve been eyeing the gas price spikes, but haven’t found anything fishy. Bob Brammer, a spokesman for Iowa’s Attorney General, says reduced activity at three gas refineries appears to account for the price increases.Brammer says the price spikes appear to be affecting a larger area than was the case last summer. Last year’s increases seemed to be very targeted and what he called “suspicious.” He says those increases also proved to be related to shortages.But Brammer says the Iowa Department of Justice is looking out for collusion among gas stations trying to illegally drive the prices even higher.Brammer says to prove those kinds of cases, they need whistle-blowers to come forward.