The federal government charges a tax of 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline and a tax of 24.4 cents per gallon of diesel. The three-month tax suspension – by the end of September – will cost about $ 10 billion, the White House said. “I fully understand that the gas tax holiday alone is not going to solve the problem,” Biden said in remarks delivered by the Southern Court Auditorium. “But it will offer families some immediate relief, just a little breathing space, as we continue to work to reduce prices in the long run.” But the idea may not have the reception Biden seeks from lawmakers in the Capitol. Senator Joe Manchin, DW.Va., told ABC News on Wednesday that he was not voting “yes” at the moment. “Now, doing this and putting another hole in the budget is something that concerns me a lot and people need to understand that 18 cents is not going to be straight – it was never what you see in 18 cents. “Just a penny to a penny comes out of that price,” Manchin said. Biden specifically called on companies to ensure that “every penny” from these economies is passed on to consumers. “This is not the time for speculation,” he said. President Joe Biden talks about gas prices at the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus in Washington, June 22, 2022. Evan Vucci / AP Biden also called on industry on Wednesday to use the profits to refine more oil and gasoline and lower pump prices. “My message is simple to the companies that run gas stations and set these prices on the pump: this is a time of war, of global danger, in Ukraine,” Biden said. “These are not normal times. Reduce the price you charge on the pump to reflect the cost you pay for the product on it now. Do it now, do it today. Your customers, the American people, need relief now.” The government is publicly pressuring oil companies to help Americans in a time of economic need. “Companies, of course, are accountable to their shareholders, but they really have to be accountable to their customers, their neighbors and their fellow citizens, just as this management does,” another senior executive told reporters. “And we hope that this is the spirit that the CEOs of these companies will take.” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is scheduled to meet with oil executives on Thursday. On Wednesday, Biden also called on states and local governments to provide “relief” to Americans by suspending their state gas taxes or take other remedial measures, such as delaying planned tax and fee increases or even deductibles. relief payments. State gas taxes average about 31 cents per gallon of gas, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School recently found that the tax cuts in Maryland, Georgia and Connecticut were, in fact, “passed on to consumers at some point during the tax break in the form of lower natural gas prices.” , but that lower prices “often were not maintained throughout the holidays”. In Maryland, 72% of tax savings were passed on to consumers. in Georgia, it was 58-65%, and in Connecticut, it was 71-87%, according to their analysis. President Biden remarks on efforts to reduce high gas prices and proposes temporary fuel tax relief at the South Court Auditorium at the Eisenhower Executive Building in Washington, DC, June 22, 2022. Jim Watson / AFP via Getty Images Asked why Biden specifically wants the federal tax moratorium suspended for three months, the official said the president wanted to balance the need for the “unique moment we are in” – especially during the summer driving season – with the fact that the tax provides significant revenue to the government to pay for highways and other transport projects. “The purpose of this suspension,” the official said, “is to address the unique moment we are going through, with particular emphasis on the summer driving season and the pain families are feeling at the pump right now, while acknowledging that in the long run “The gas tax is an important source of revenue for the federal infrastructure.” Revenues from gas taxes go to the Federal Government’s Motorway Fund, which provides much of the government’s spending on motorways and public transportation. Biden said his proposal would not affect the Highway Trust Fund, and a government official had previously told reporters that Congress could fill the $ 10 billion gap with “other revenue.” “I promise you that I will do everything possible to reduce the price of energy and the price of gas,” he said.
