Gov. Mike Braun extended the Indiana’s gas tax holiday for the third and final time Thursday, stating that any future tax extensions would require support from the state legislature.
The extension will last 30 days, Braun said, which will carry gas price savings “through the heavy travel time of summer.”
In June, the gasoline usage tax would’ve been $0.251 per gallon and the gasoline excise tax is currently $0.37 per gallon, which saves those at the pump more than $0.62 cents per gallon, according to the Indiana Department of Revenue.
Indiana’s gas prices are the lowest in the county at $3.125 per gallon of regular gasoline, according to AAA.
More Top Picks Coolers
“I want to make sure that Hoosiers, not only when it comes to gasoline costs, are able to know that we’re doing everything we can to make their lives easier, even though that inflation that all of us have been shouldering comes from a prior administration’s policies,” Braun said, referencing prior comments he’s made on former President Joe Biden administration’s policies leading to inflation.
Since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in February, gas prices have increased as the Strait of Hormuz, a major shipping port globally for oil, has been closed many times.
Referencing the attack in Iran, Braun said that Iran “has been pushing the envelope, oil prices have come down.” But, “you can’t rule out anything,” happening in the Middle East and Strait of Hormuz, he said.
Braun said his extension of the gas tax holiday is an example of “using every tool you can in your toolbox” to lower costs. Amid the freeze, state revenues “are exceeding expectations,” he said, as his administration has worked toward cost savings in how government operates.
“I’ll continue to do everything I can to make sure that the average Hoosier family is going to have as much relief as the state government can provide, but most of that comes with running it well and making sure we’ve got that fast economic growth,” Braun said.
Braun said he hasn’t talked to legislative leadership about a future extension but stressed that any future extensions would require support — and possibly a special session — from the state legislature.
Earlier this week, Braun directed his administration to make local governments whole amid the state’s gas tax holiday.
The Office of Management and Budget Secretary Lisa Hershman will coordinate with the State Budget Agency and Department of Revenue to calculate how much money is needed to make local governments whole, according to a release from the state.
Chad Ranney, the state budget director, will bring the formal request to transfer funds from the State Highway Fund for April and May to the Board of Finance on July 21. If the transfer is approved, local governments would receive funds from the comptroller within five to seven business days, according to a release from the state.
If needed, similar requests will be made at the August and September Board of Finance meetings. Local governments can expect to be made whole no later than November 1, according to the release.
“This is only possible because Hoosiers demand commonsense fiscal management, and we’ve delivered,” Braun said in the release. “We are running government more efficiently and as a result, we have the resources to offer tax relief while supporting local partners.”
Each month that the gas usage tax is suspended the state doesn’t receive $50 million in revenue and each month that the gas excise tax is suspended the state doesn’t receive $90 million in revenue, Braun previously said. The state did not suspend the excise tax the first month, he said.
Since April, and including the new extension for July, the state will miss out on $470 million in revenue.
Lake County Board of Commissioners’ President Michael Repay, D-3rd, said the gas tax holiday is “short sighted.”
More Top Picks Deer Repellent
“What people in the State of Indiana want are policies that control those costs always,” Repay said. “What we want is sustained affordability in Indiana. If the governor can’t do that, he should go back to doing what he did before becoming the governor of the State of Indiana.”
When Braun announced that local government units will be made whole amid the gas tax holiday, Repay said he solved the problem of high gas prices “on the backs of locals” and now wants praise for solving a problem he created.
“I’m not willing to applaud him on that,” Repay said.
Portage Mayor Austin Bonta wrote in a Facebook post that Braun’s announcement to make communities whole amid the gas tax holiday “is a big win for cities and towns that have been waiting to see if all their planned projects will go through this year.”
“I believe that Governor Braun’s decision to suspend the gas tax was the right decision in light of soaring gas prices, and my team understood that it might mean receiving less paving revenue this year and that we might have to adjust accordingly to those losses,” Bonta’s post read.
It is estimated that $52 million in local revenue for road paving has been lost since the gas tax holiday was implemented, Bonta stated in the post, adding that he wasn’t sure how much Portage would be reimbursed.
“That said, this move by Governor Braun to make sure planned projects stay running through this year is a big deal, and I greatly appreciate the effort that’s been put in to make sure this was financially possible and the decision now to move forward with it,” Bonta said.
In the post, Bonta reminded residents that construction during the summer is common and necessary.
“It just would not feel like summer in Indiana without road construction everywhere you go, and as much as we sometimes complain about it, we definitely do not actually want to go on for a very long time without it,” Bonta said.