(The Center Square) — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has again extended the suspension of state taxes on motor and locomotive fuel.
On Thursday, Kemp signed an executive order to suspend the taxes and extend a supply chain state of emergency. The orders are valid through Oct. 12.
Kemp first suspended the state’s gas tax in March when he signed House Bill 304. He subsequently signed several executive orders to extend the moratorium.
“With our nation experiencing 40-year high inflation, ongoing supply chain challenges, and some of the highest gas prices ever, Democrats in D.C. continue to spend taxpayer money with no regard for the costs and its impact on hardworking families,” Kemp said in an announcement.
“While these politicians continue to double down on bad policies, we are using the means available to us to provide much-needed relief to Georgians,” the governor added. “As I’ve said since we first suspended the fuel tax back in March, we can’t fix everything Washington has broken, but we can use the resources we have as a result of our responsible budgeting to keep more money in the pockets of hardworking Georgians.”
Democrat Stacey Abrams, who is challenging Kemp in November, has called on the governor to suspend the gas tax for the rest of the year. However, on Twitter, Andrew Isenhour, a Kemp spokesman, said, “a governor is not empowered to suspend collection of the gas tax beyond a month at a time, by law.”
Gas prices continue to drop, and a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in Georgia stands at about $3.37, below the national average of about $3.83. However, that remains above the average from a year ago, when it was $2.98 in Georgia and $3.17 nationally.
“Georgia drivers continue to see relief at the pumps,” Montrae Waiters, AAA-The Auto Club Group spokeswoman, said in a news release earlier this week. “But now we need to keep an eye on the weather as hurricane season arrives. These storms can affect prices by disrupting oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and impacting large coastal refineries.”
Georgia collects 29.1 cents a gallon on gasoline and 32.6 cents a gallon on diesel fuel, and the state typically collects about $170 million per month from the gas tax.
By T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor
