(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump confirmed Monday that he wants to temporarily suspend the 18.4-cent federal gas tax, with Republican lawmakers in both chambers announcing plans to introduce legislation hours later, but key details including duration, cost offset, and a phase-back trigger remain undefined.
“I think it’s a great idea,” Trump told CBS News. “Yup, 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.”
At a separate White House event, Trump said prices would “drop like a rock” once the Iran conflict ends, adding that any suspension would last “until it’s appropriate.”
U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., announced plans to introduce legislation suspending the tax, with Luna saying her office would work “directly with President Trump to ensure we deliver this win for the American people.” Neither bill had been filed as of publication time.
The national gas price average hit $4.52 per gallon Monday, according to AAA – up more than 50% since the U.S.-Iran conflict began Feb. 28 and up more than $1.38 from a year ago.
Iran’s continued blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway that carries about 20% of the world’s oil and natural gas, has kept upward pressure on prices.
Suspending the tax requires an act of Congress and would cost the federal government about $500 million a week, according to the administration.
That revenue feeds the Highway Trust Fund, which finances construction and repair of the nation’s roads, bridges, and transit systems.
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan think tank, warned in March that a suspension would speed up the fund’s insolvency while providing only marginal relief to consumers. The 18.4-cent suspension would offset less than half of last month’s price increase alone.
Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation in March to suspend the gas tax through October. Canada suspended its roughly 28-cent federal gas tax April 20 at a cost of about $1.74 billion (U.S.).
Similar proposals have surfaced in the U.S. during past energy price spikes.
Trump said Monday the Iran conflict remains unresolved, calling the current ceasefire “on massive life support” after rejecting Tehran’s latest peace proposal as “a stupid proposal, actually, done by people that have no clue as to the danger they’re in.”
Trump did not specify a price threshold or timeline for the phase-back, saying only the tax would return “when gas goes down.”
No bill text, co-sponsors, or committee pathway had been announced by either Hawley or Luna as of publication time.
The White House, asked for additional details, referred questions to the president’s earlier comments.
