Biden touts a summer petrol tax holiday when the price reaches about $ 5 per gallon.

In addition, many legislatures are out of session that year and are not expected to return to the capital until January.

Nonetheless, Biden said the decision would help ease the tight budgets faced by many families as prices rise, from gasoline tax to both federal and state legislators 90. Encouraged to provide a day break.

He also asked oil companies to increase the number of refineries that produce gas for cars. And he said companies should not maintain it themselves, but pass on the slightly lower price of gasoline per barrel and the savings on gasoline tax holidays to consumers.

“I call on businesses to give this to consumers all the pennies of this 18-cent reduction,” Biden said, referring to the federal petrol tax. “I don’t have time to make money right now.”

If all four of the federal gas tax exemptions, state breaks, increased refining, and companies that take over the low prices of gasoline are implemented, prices could fall by $ 1 per gallon, he said.

Democrats blame gasoline tax suspension

However, members of his own party do not seem to be participating.

Oregon Democrat Peter Defazio, chairman of the US House of Representatives Transport Infrastructure Committee, rejected the idea of ​​a gas tax holiday before Biden gave an afternoon speech.

“Although in good faith, this policy can only provide a small relief, and a $ 10 billion hole in the Highway Trust that needs to be filled if you want to continue repairing a collapsing bridge and deal with the surge in road deaths. Just open it and build a modern infrastructure system, “De Fazio said in a statement.

“In addition, encouraging state governments to stop gasoline taxes undermines the impact of bipartisan infrastructure legislation by reducing the funds available to the state to spend on improving infrastructure,” said Defazio. I continued.

“We will see where the consensus is for the president’s proposals in the House and Senate,” California Democrat Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.

Democrats submit bills to fix prices and cut prices

“The most important thing we can do to lower gas prices is to crack down on big oil operations on the oil market,” said Senate leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat in New York.

Jason Furman, chairman of the Economic Advisers Committee during the Obama administration, said Tuesday that gas tax holidays would not bring much relief to drivers.

“Whatever you think about the benefits of a gas tax holiday in February, it’s a worse idea now,” he says. Tweet.. “Currently, refineries are even more constrained, so supply is almost completely inelastic. Most of the 18.4 cent savings are pocketed by the industry, perhaps a few cents passed on to consumers.”

“I had speculated that two-thirds of the profits could come to consumers,” Ferman said earlier this week, “probably overly generous at the time.”

“Anyway, it’s going to be even less now. Consumers expect to get at most one-third of the profit,” he wrote.

He added that national petrol tax holidays are likely to increase inflation. But it’s still going in the wrong direction. “

Gasoline prices are rising

The national average price of a gallon of gasoline has steadily risen from about $ 3.30 in January this year to just under $ 5 in mid-June. according to AAA.

According to AAA, Georgia ($ 4.46), Louisiana ($ 4.51), Tennessee ($ 4.58), and North Carolina ($ 4.60) are among the lowest gasoline prices in the country.

The US gasoline tax was finally raised in 1993 from 14.1 cents per gallon to 18.4 cents. The national tax on diesel is 24 cents a gallon.

These states have been hit hardest by inflation | Wednesday morning coffee

Much of that money goes to the Highway Trust, about 80% of which comes from gas taxes and is used to fund road construction and other transportation infrastructure projects.

The US gasoline tax has nothing to do with inflation. In other words, nearly 30 years after it was last raised, more than 45% of its purchasing power has been lost. according to Peter G. Peterson Foundation.

The United States is not the only country facing high inflation and rising gas prices.

Gasoline prices per gallon are higher than in the United States in more than 90 countries, including Hong Kong ($ 11.35), Israel ($ 8.71) and Canada ($ 6.55). Website Track world prices.

Capital Star Washington reporter Jacob Fisher contributed to the story.