Trump says administration is weighing suspension of federal gasoline tax
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President Donald Trump indicated his administration is considering a suspension of the federal gasoline tax, a move that would require congressional approval, as fuel prices remain high ahead of the midterm elections.
President Donald Trump told reporters on Tuesday that his administration is "thinking about" suspending the federal gasoline tax, a suggestion that would need to be enacted by Congress. The federal excise tax of 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.4 cents for diesel generates more than $23 billion annually for highway and public-transit funding.
The idea, first raised by Trump in May amid rising fuel costs linked to the conflict in Iran, comes as the national average price for regular gasoline reached $4.37 per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association, roughly a dollar higher than a year earlier. Analysts estimate that eliminating the tax would lower the price of a gallon of regular gasoline by about 4 percent.
When asked about the upcoming midterm elections, Trump expressed confidence that Republican candidates would perform well, adding that recent rallies were influencing voter perceptions of the party’s achievements. He also suggested that oil prices would decline once the war ends, though he did not provide a timeline for either the conflict’s resolution or congressional action on the tax proposal.