Gov. Mike Braun extended the gas tax holiday in Indiana for another 30 days, with the option to extend up to 120 days, citing a new reason for the energy emergency.
The new emergency stems from the disruptions to the global oil shipping in the Black Sea and Kerch Strait as the war. between Russia and Ukraine escalated into drone battles in recent weeks and the disruption to the Alberta Oil Sands Region from the Canadian wildfires, Braun said at a press conference Wednesday.
Braun first issued an energy emergency in April after gas prices began rising in the aftermath of the U.S. and Israel attacking Iran, which has led to the repeated closure and opening of the Strait of Hormuz, a major shipping port globally for oil.
In working with Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, Braun said it was determined that a new cause for the energy emergency allows him to declare another such emergency for up to 120 days. Braun said he will review and renew the emergency every 30 days, like he did under the previous energy emergency.
“It’s an additional burden that you got to take into account. The Iran conflict has got its own ebb and flow to it. When you had two other issues come into play, to me and the attorney general, as well as members of both chambers, felt the same way,” Braun said.
Rokita said in a statement that nothing in Indiana’s emergency powers statutes prevent the governor from declaring separate emergencies based on different factors.
“It is within the governor’s authority to give Hoosiers temporary and much needed relief at the pump based upon changed conditions. Frankly, the General Assembly really needs to update this law so it can be better utilized by the governor and enforced by the attorney general in the future,” Rokita said.
Braun said he will continue to take administrative measures to fund roads and infrastructure as well as work with the State Board of Finance monthly to ensure local governments are made whole amid the gas tax holiday.
In the 2027 legislative session, Braun said he will work with the legislature to replenish lost revenues from the gas tax holiday. The state is projected to have more than $5 billion in reserves, he said.
“My recommended budget will tap our reserves to keep state and local infrastructure projects fully funded. This action will make life more affordable for Hoosier families and provide immediate, substantial relief from continuing high gas prices,” Braun said.
Braun said he’d also like state legislators address long-term road funding, which was last addressed by the state legislature in 2017. Until then, Braun said he will work to provide relief at the gas pump.
The current gas tax holiday will go into effect Aug. 7 through September 5, with the governor reevaluating the situation within the next 30 days to decide if another extension is needed, according to a press release from the governor’s office.
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Braun first suspended the gasoline usage tax in April, then expanded the gas tax holiday to include the gasoline excise tax in May. Since May, both taxes have been suspended.
Each month that the gas usage tax is suspended the state misses out on $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.
Since April, and including the new extension for August, the state will miss out on $610 million in revenue.
Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers, said in a statement that he supports Braun’s decision to continue the gas tax holiday and acknowledged that the taxes paid at the pump fund road maintenance and improvement.
“As we prepare for the next state budget, our intent is to work with the governor and our colleagues in the Senate to identify existing resources and continue making the infrastructure investments that support Hoosiers, businesses and our growing economy,” Huston said.
State Sen. Ryan Mishler, R-Mishawaka, the chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, said in a statement that Senate leadership understands that gas prices have caused financial hardship “and agree we need to do what we can to keep costs as reasonable as possible.”
“I will continue to work with both Gov. Braun and our colleagues in the House during the 2027 budget session to make it a priority to try to find additional resources to reinvest in Indiana’s transportation infrastructure,” Mishler said.
State Rep. Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie, chair of the House Roads and Transportation Committee, said in a statement that he supports Braun’s decision.
“I commend the governor for his continued efforts to reduce the cost burden for Hoosiers at the pump. Indiana is fortunate to be able to finance this tax holiday and provide relief for Hoosiers while still maintaining the safety and quality of our roads and infrastructure,” Pressel said.
State Rep. Gregory Porter, D-Indianapolis, said in a statement that Hoosiers deserve relief at the pump and that “the need supersedes the process.” But, Porter said Braun should call on President Donald Trump to end the war in Iran, “which would have been a true ‘affordability announcement’.”
“Every day this war continues and we keep our gas tax suspended to protect Hoosiers, that’s money we are losing for our roads, our schools, our healthcare and more. Indiana can’t be on the hook for Washington D.C.’s reckless actions forever,” Porter said.
State Rep. Cherrish Pryor, D-Indianapolis, said in a statement that she supported the extension of the gas tax holiday, and that she was pleased Braun took action. But, Pryor said a permanent solution would be for Braun and Indiana’s congressional delegation to call on Trump to end the war in Iran.
“We are in week 22 of the war that Trump said would last four weeks at most. Every day that fighting continues is another day that prices at the pump, the register and everywhere else will continue to rise,” Pryor said.
Indiana Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Tallian said in a statement that Braun “is using questionable legal authority to give cover to Trump for his undeclared war against Iran and the mess it created with oil prices worldwide.”
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“Braun is making up excuses — this time the long-running war in Ukraine and the Canadian wildfires — as reasons for a second energy emergency,” Tallian said. “The truth is that he’s grasping at straws to outlast Trump’s unpopular war in the Middle East.”