President Joe Biden has announced his support for suspending federal and state taxes on gasoline and diesel to contain the country’s unprecedented rise in fuel prices amid sanctions against Russia.
“I’m calling on Congress to suspend the federal gas tax for 90 days during the busy tourist season,” Biden said in a speech from the White House, noting that “we can also further lower gas prices in other ways.”
“That’s why my second action is to call on the states to either suspend the gas tax or find other ways to offer some relief,” he added.
The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents a gallon, and Biden’s federal efforts are likely to face major headwinds in Congress amid suspicion from both Republicans and members of his Democratic Party.
Media sources expected earlier today that Biden would call for a three-month suspension of federal taxes on gasoline and diesel to ease financial pressure.
These are a federal tax of 18.4 cents per gallon on gas and a federal tax of 24.4 cents per gallon on diesel. If the gas savings were fully passed on to consumers, citizens would save an estimated 3.6% on a canister of gas, while national averages are about $5 a gallon.
Source: Holm + cnbc