Harris proposes federal gas tax pause through 2026

What Harris proposed

Maryland Rep. Andy Harris has introduced legislation to suspend federal gasoline and diesel taxes through the end of 2026. The Republican said the temporary pause would provide immediate relief to families, commuters, small businesses and trucking workers facing elevated fuel costs.

The federal tax is 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline and 24.4 cents per gallon of diesel, Harris’s office said. AAA reported that regular gasoline averaged per gallon in Maryland on Sept. 15, compared with on the same date a year earlier. Fuel prices have increased amid instability connected to the conflict involving Iran.

Harris also called attention to the proposal’s timing before the November midterm elections.

Earlier positions and next steps

Harris opposed a similar idea in June 2022, when President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats proposed suspending the taxes for three months as gasoline prices rose. At that time, Harris described the proposal as an attempt by the Biden administration to divert attention from its handling of fuel costs.

Trump said congressional approval would be necessary.

Harris’s bill must pass both chambers of Congress to become law. The taxes are set in federal law and provide a major share of revenue for the Highway Trust Fund, which supports transportation spending. Suspending them would therefore require Congress to consider both the proposed relief for drivers and the effect on trust fund revenue.