[ News ] Biden calls on Congress to approve a 3-month gas tax holiday

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President Joe Biden on Wednesday called on Congress to pass legislation that would create a federal tax holiday on gas and diesel fuel for three months in an effort to lower prices at the pump.
 

The pause would trim 18 cents off a gallon of gas and 24 cents for diesel at a time when the summer driving season is getting underway. The legislation would cost an estimated $10 billion, a senior administration official told reporters on a call.
 

"I fully understand the gas tax holiday alone is not going to fix the problem," Biden said in remarks from the White House. "But it will provide families some immediate relief, give them a little bit of breathing room, so we continue working to bring down prices for the long haul."

 

Biden asked Congress to make the temporary adjustment in a way that doesn't harm the Highway Trust Fund, which gets its revenue from fuel taxes. Many lawmakers, mostly on the Republican side of the aisle, have cited the trust fund as a reason they wouldn't back a gas tax holiday, though some congressional Democrats have also been critical of it.
 

Biden said he is also calling on companies to increase refining capacity to lower prices in the long term, and gas station operators to come up with ways to bring down prices.
 

“These are not normal times, bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you are paying for the product,” Biden said. “Do it now. Do it today, your customers, the American people, they need relief now.”


 

The Biden administration will face an uphill battle to draw support in Congress for its gas tax holiday proposal. A number of Republicans have already come out in opposition to the plan, and even Democratic leaders have expressed some concerns.
 

“Well, we tried. And the Republicans blocked it,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday during a weekly press conference.