Sponsors (8)
The bill temporarily lowers federal gasoline excise taxes to provide consumer relief when pump prices exceed $3.99/gal while preserving highway and tank-cleanup funding by shifting the lost excise revenue onto the general fund, trading short-term reductions in fuel costs for increased pressure on federal budgets and potential cash-flow risks for infrastructure and cleanup programs.
Drivers and consumers pay lower federal gasoline excise taxes in months when national average pump prices exceed $3.99/gal, reducing retail fuel costs for households and commuters.
Transportation programs and workers are protected from a loss of Highway Trust Fund receipts because the Treasury must transfer amounts equal to suspended excise tax receipts, preserving funding for roads and transit projects.
Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) cleanup funding is preserved because required transfers replace any lost excise tax receipts attributable to the LUST financing rate, maintaining environmental cleanup programs.
The general fund (and therefore taxpayers broadly) bears the cost of replacing lost excise tax revenue, increasing pressure on federal budgets and potentially crowding out other priorities.
If Treasury transfers are delayed or mismanaged, highway and tank cleanup programs could face temporary cash-flow disruptions despite the replacement requirement, disrupting projects and payments to contractors.
Oil and gas producers lose certain tax benefits (e.g., intangible drilling cost deductions and some credits) during the months covered by the suspension, reducing after-tax returns for producers and some smaller energy businesses.
Based on analysis of 1 section of legislative text.
Automatically reduces the federal fuel excise tax when national gasoline prices exceed $3.99/gal, replaces lost trust-fund receipts from the general fund, and suspends certain oil tax benefits for months the reduction applies.
Official title: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to temporarily suspend certain fuel excise taxes for fuel separated during periods in which the national average price of gasoline exceeds $3.99 per gallon, and to prohibit certain credits or deductions for oil and gas companies during such periods.
Introduced April 30, 2026 by Brendan Francis Boyle · Last progress April 30, 2026
Creates a temporary, automatic cut in the federal excise tax on certain fuels when the national average price of gasoline rises above $3.99 per gallon. The tax is lowered by one cent for each cent the average price exceeds $3.99 (never below zero), while the Treasury replaces lost Highway Trust Fund and Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund receipts from the general fund. The bill also suspends several oil-industry tax benefits for any month the fuel-tax suspension applies, and the tax changes apply to tax years starting after December 31, 2025.