{"690602":{"#nid":"690602","#data":{"type":"external_news","title":"Suspending federal gas tax wouldn\u2019t save drivers as much as they might hope \u2013 here\u2019s what goes into the price of a gallon of gas","body":"","field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWith gasoline prices still high \u2013 \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/gasprices.aaa.com\/\u0022\u003Eaveraging over US$4.50 a gallon\u003C\/a\u003E in mid-May 2026 \u2013 President Donald Trump said he wanted \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-gas-tax-high-prices-iran-war-85313468d583c40b79c59e34d8186ee7\u0022\u003ECongress to suspend the federal gas tax\u003C\/a\u003E, which is \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/tools\/faqs\/faq.php?id=10\u0026amp;t=5\u0022\u003E18.4 cents a gallon for gasoline\u003C\/a\u003E and 24.3 cents a gallon for diesel. States also charge their own taxes, ranging from \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/taxfoundation.org\/data\/all\/state\/gas-taxes-state\/\u0022\u003E70.9 cents a gallon for gas\u003C\/a\u003E in California to 8.95 cents in Alaska. \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.avalara.com\/blog\/en\/north-america\/2026\/04\/2026-gas-tax-holidays.html.html\u0022\u003EIndiana, Georgia and Utah have suspended their gas taxes\u003C\/a\u003E for at least some of 2026, and other states are considering similar measures.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs an \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=jjvorcAAAAAJ\u0026amp;hl=en\u0026amp;oi=ao\u0022\u003Eenergy economist\u003C\/a\u003E, I have seen how suspending those taxes does reduce prices, but not as much as politicians \u2013 or drivers \u2013 might hope. Research on past gas tax holidays has found that consumers get \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu\/issues\/2022\/6\/15\/effects-of-a-state-gasoline-tax-holiday\u0022\u003Eabout 79% of the reduction\u003C\/a\u003E in gas taxes. That means oil companies and fuel retailers keep about one-fifth of the tax cut for themselves rather than passing that savings to the public.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"36413","created_gmt":"2026-06-02 17:11:31","changed_gmt":"2026-06-02 17:12:52","author":"pdevarajan3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","publication":"The Conversation ","field_article_url":"","publication_url":"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/suspending-federal-gas-tax-wouldnt-save-drivers-as-much-as-they-might-hope-heres-what-goes-into-the-price-of-a-gallon-of-gas-282702","dateline":{"date":"2026-05-12T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2026-05-12T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"680403":{"id":"680403","type":"image","title":"Conversation-BobHarris-05122026.jpeg","body":null,"created":"1780420315","gmt_created":"2026-06-02 17:11:55","changed":"1780420315","gmt_changed":"2026-06-02 17:11:55","alt":"Gas Prices on Electronic Display with the gas station convenience store in the background at night","file":{"fid":"264659","name":"Conversation-BobHarris-05122026.jpeg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/06\/02\/Conversation-BobHarris-05122026.jpeg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/06\/02\/Conversation-BobHarris-05122026.jpeg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":196466,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/06\/02\/Conversation-BobHarris-05122026.jpeg?itok=_fC-AvGr"}}},"media_ids":["680403"],"groups":[{"id":"367481","name":"SEI Energy"},{"id":"1280","name":"Strategic Energy Institute"}],"categories":[{"id":"144","name":"Energy"},{"id":"151","name":"Policy, Social Sciences, and Liberal Arts"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"},{"id":"194611","name":"State Impact"}],"keywords":[{"id":"188853","name":"go-seiinthenews"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}