US President Donald Trump has promised to temporarily suspend the federal gasoline tax in order to ease the situation of Americans in the face of record price increases caused by the situation around Iran, as well as the approaching holiday season.
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“Yes, we are going to abolish the gasoline tax for a certain period of time, and when prices decrease, we will introduce it back in stages.… We will definitely take steps in this direction. Yes,” the CBS News channel reports Trump’s words.
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According to the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the federal excise tax is 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline and 24.4 cents per gallon of diesel. However, its cancellation requires the approval of Congress, which remains a platform of disagreement between Republicans and Democrats.
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The cost of fuel in the suburbs of the American capital has jumped to record levels. As the agency found out, the price of premium gasoline in Bethesda, Maryland, is about $6.19 per gallon. For regular gasoline, motorists will have to pay $ 5.19 per gallon.
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At the same time, according to the American Automobile Association, the average price in the country is 4.5 dollars per gallon (88 rubles per liter), which is about one and a half dollars higher than the same indicator at the time of the start of the US operation against Iran, which was 2.98 dollars per gallon (58 rubles per liter).
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Thus, the abolition of the federal excise tax of 18.4 cents will lead to a decrease in the cost of gasoline by about 4.1%. In the case of diesel fuel, the savings will be slightly higher: at the same average price, the abolition of the 24.4 cent tax will reduce the price tag by 5.4%.
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On February 28, the United States and Israel began attacking targets in Iran; more than 3,000 people became victims of aggression. Washington and Tehran announced a cease-fire on April 8. The negotiations that took place in Islamabad after that ended in vain. No resumption of hostilities has been reported, but the United States has begun a blockade of Iranian ports.
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Due to the escalation of the conflict, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has practically stopped. This is a key supply route to the global market of oil, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas (LNG). As a result, fuel prices have increased in most countries of the world.
