Today President Joe Biden called on Congress to pass legislation suspending the federal tax on gasoline for July through September, “to give Americans a little extra breathing room as they deal with the effects of Putin’s war in Ukraine.”

Not Much Savings

Put the emphasis on “little.”

The average driver drives 1,125 miles per month, and the average car gets about 25 miles per gallon, so the average driver uses about 45 gallons per month. The federal gas tax is 18 cents per gallon. Multiply that by 45 and you get $8.10 saved, or $24.30 for the three months.

How does that compare with what the rise in gas prices has cost the average driver since Biden took office?

At monthly average prices throughout 2020, the last year of Donald Trump’s presidency, the average driver would have spent $1,171.17 on regular gas. For 2021, $1,620.63, up by $449.46. For 2022 so far, $1,103.72. Add the next six months, assuming gas prices remain unchanged other than subtracting the federal tax for three months (though I suspect instead they will rise further as the war in Ukraine drags on and Biden’s anti-fossil fuel policies continue), and the combined cost for 2022 would be $2,407.82. That’s $1,236.65 more than in 2020. Add 2021’s $449.46, and you get a combined extra cost of $1,686.11.

In the end, Biden’s proposed 3-month gas tax break would save the average driver just 4% of the extra cost of fuel over 2021–2022.

Beware the Long-term Cost

But that’s not all. Our government has long been in the habit of deficit spending—pushing costs off on future taxpayers.

That’s what this measure will do, too, because it will, according to the White House, cost the Highway Trust Fund $10 billion. That’s money needed for highway maintenance and repair.

Our highways aren’t going to stop deteriorating just because Biden’s decided to suspend the gas tax for three months. They’ll go right on doing what they always do. That means this $10 billion cost is going to come back to haunt us—sometime. It will have to be paid, whether we like it or not.

Biden’s face-saving gesture—his declared intention to wean America off of fossil fuels has been the primary cause of rising gas prices—is clearly meant to try to win public support for his party in the upcoming midterm elections. It certainly won’t do any good for the American public in the long run.

Photo by Robert Linder on Unsplash.