Biden calls for US petrol tax ‘holiday’ to tame fuel costs
JOE BIDEN has urged US lawmakers to suspend federal taxes on petrol and diesel for three months to help drivers facing surging costs at the pumps.
In an intervention ahead of November’s midterm elections, the American president also called on states to suspend their own individual petrol taxes or hand voters other kinds of relief.
The average cost of a gallon of petrol has hit about $4.96 (£4.05) in the US, according to the American Automobile Association. That is slightly down from the recent all-time high of $5 but represents an $1.89 increase compared to just a year ago.
Petrol prices are a key issue in the US ahead of the midterm elections, with polls currently suggesting that Mr Biden’s Democrats face heavy losses.
However, the president’s call for a tax cut may get a lukewarm reception in Congress, where lawmakers have cast doubt on the usefulness of a holiday.
The driver of a Ford Focus, for example, would only save about $2.34 each time they filled up their tank under Mr Biden’s proposed relief.
The federal tax on petrol is currently 18.4 cents a gallon, while the tax on diesel stands at 24.4 cents.
Republicans have blamed the current situation on the administration’s progreen energy policies, including an early decision to halt new drilling licences for oil and gas on federal land.
Mitch Mcconnell, the Republican minority leader in the Senate, said earlier this year: “They’ve spent an entire year waging a holy war on affordable American energy, and now they want to use a pile of taxpayers’ money to hide the consequences.”
Even some of the President’s fellow Democrats have warned that energy companies may not pass on the savings, or could even raise prices regardless.
Democrat Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, has previously described a holiday as “good PR” but added there was “no evidence to think that the oil companies would pass that on to the consumer”.
Mr Biden and his allies have criticised the oil and gas industry for making “excessive profits”. Economists warn there is little the White House can do in the face of global market forces.