Trump Says He Wants to Suspend the Gas Tax

President Trump said Monday that he supports suspending the federal gas tax “for a period of time” to help lower prices at the pump, which have spiked dramatically since the start of the war with Iran.

“I think it’s a great idea,” the president told CBS News during a phone interview. “We’re going to take off the gas tax for a period of time, and when gas goes down, we’ll let it phase back in.” The average national price for a gallon of gas was $4.52 on Monday, according to AAA. That represents a roughly 50% increase from where prices stood shortly before the war started in late February.

Trump’s comments come a day after Energy Secretary Chris Wright told NBC News that the administration was considering suspending the federal gas tax. “All measures that can be taken to lower the price at the pump and lower the prices for Americans, this administration is in support of,” Wright said. “We’re open to all ideas.”

However, the Trump administration doesn’t have the authority to suspend the gas tax unilaterally. Congress would have to pass a bill for the policy to go into effect. Some Republicans have come forward in support of legislation to pause the gas tax in the wake of Trump’s comments, but it remains to be seen whether the idea has enough bipartisan backing to become law.

If a bill does end up passing, it will only affect the federal gas tax, which is currently about 18 cents per gallon for regular gas and 24 cents per gallon for diesel. State gas taxes, which are nearly 33 cents per gallon on average, would still be in place unless state-level lawmakers take action. Since the start of the war, a handful of states — including Georgia, Indiana and Utah — have taken steps to suspend their gas taxes temporarily. The idea has also been a big subject for debate in the California governor’s race.

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