AMERICANS have been suffering at the pumps in 2022 after gas prices across the country reached record highs.
To relieve the stress ahead of the July 4th weekend, President Joe Biden revealed that he is considering suspending federal gas tax at the pumps.
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What is the Federal Gas Tax holiday?
On June 20, 2022, Biden told reporters in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, that he is hoping to make a decision on pausing the federal gas tax soon.
“I hope to have a decision based on the data I’m looking for by the end the week,” Biden said, via CNN.
The pause would essentially save Americans around 15 cents per gallon, but it would require Congress to act soon.
One White House official told CNBC that getting Congress to approve such measures would be challenging.
“Republicans don’t want gas prices to come down,” the official said.
“They want Biden to suffer.”
Another money-saving option Biden is considering is gas rebate cards, but it is unclear how those would work.
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What is the national average gas price?
On June 20, the national price per gallon was $4.98, according to ABC News.
This price has been a burden on households for months and is only expected to worsen as the summer months go on.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on This Week with George Stephanopoulos that the Biden administration is open to considering money-saving moves to help this financial situation.
“Gas prices have risen a great deal, and it’s clearly burdening households,” Yellen said, via ABC News.
“So [the president] stands ready to work with Congress and [gas tax holidays are] an idea that’s certainly worth considering.”
Many believe that soaring prices and food shortages are signs we are headed into another recession.
Tesla founder Elon Musk has also been vocal in recent weeks about his concerns about a recession, he even went as far as cutting 10 percent of Tesla’s workforce because he had a “super bad feeling” about the economy, according to Insider.
The last recession happened between December 2007 and June 2009.
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Who sets gas prices?
Many people believe that the government controls gas prices, but that is not true.
The American Petroleum Institute revealed that it is actually the price of crude oil that determines how much we pay at the pump.
“Oil prices are at a seven-year high amid a persistent global supply crunch, workforce constraints, increasing geopolitical instability in Eastern Europe, the economic rebound following the initial stages of the pandemic, and policy uncertainty from Washington,” the API states.
While the government does not control prices, the API notes that there are things that they can do to help mitigate the situation, including passing policies that increase the supply in the United States.
Right now, the primary factors impacting the price of gas, according to the API, include the cost of global crude oil (61 percent), refining costs (14 percent), distribution and marketing costs (11 percent), and federal and state taxes (14 percent).
