President Donald Trump said he intends to suspend the federal gas tax as part of a move to curb high prices at the pump.“Yeah, I’m going to reduce,” Trump said Monday in the Oval Office in response to a question about suspending the tax.He said he would suspend the tax “until it’s appropriate. It’s a small percentage, but it’s still money.”
The president told CBS News he would phase the tax back in “when gas goes down.”
The move would require an act by Congress to suspend the federal taxes of 18.4 cents per gallon on gas and 24.4 cents per gallon on diesel. The federal gas tax generates around $36 billion per year, which primarily goes to federal highways and public transit programs.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) on Monday indicated that he plans to introduce a bill to suspend the gas tax.
Democrats in Congress proposed a bill in March to pause the gas tax to provide relief to consumers. Former President Joe Biden also previously called for a three-month pause in the federal gas tax in 2022 as prices soared due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
