The federal fuel tax is a fundamental revenue source for the Highway Trust Fund (HTF), which supports critical transportation programs. Suspending the gas tax—even for a fixed amount of time—would deal a serious blow to the HTF, which is already unstable.
The purchasing power of the HTF continues to diminish. The federal motor fuel tax rate of 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.4 cents per gallon for diesel has not been raised since 1993. The growth in construction costs and the fuel efficiency of vehicles has caused the purchasing power of the federal gas tax to decline 80% since 1993. Baseline projections issued by the Congressional Budget Office this February indicate the Mass Transit Account of the HTF will run out of money in mid-2027, and the Highway Account will do the same in 2028.
A gas tax suspension would not necessarily guarantee savings for consumers. A variety of factors, such as supply and demand, affect the prices people actually see when they pull up to a fuel station. Although the Gas Prices Relief Act states producers and dealers of motor fuels who fail to lower prices to reflect the reduction in taxes shall be subject to monetary penalties, there is no definite mechanism to ensure motorists would see any real relief at the pump.
Pausing the gas tax would set an irresponsible precedent indicating gas taxes should not be collected when fuel prices are high. Additionally, undoing a gas tax suspension would be difficult and unpopular if one is enacted, especially if fuel prices have not come down, further threatening the largest source of revenue for the HTF.
ASCE strongly opposes any efforts to suspend the gas tax at the federal and state levels. ASCE supports the “user pay” principle, which is based on the idea that people who use and benefit from infrastructure assets, such as roads and bridges, should bear the costs associated with them. The Gas Prices Relief Act would disrupt a reliable user pay system and negatively affect critical transportation programs.
Urge your Senators and Representative to oppose the Gas Prices Relief Act of 2026 today!
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