Asheville Citizen-Times
Rep. Heath Shuler is proposing a 45-day federal gasoline tax holiday as a way to provide relief to people and businesses facing record prices at the pump.
The average car driver in the Asheville area would save about $13 under the proposal.
But Shuler's spokesman Andrew Whalen said Western North Carolina residents are likely to get lower gas mileage and drive longer distances because the area is rural and mountainous.
In addition, lower gasoline prices would boost the economy because they would likely increase the number of tourists traveling to the Biltmore Estate or other area attractions, he said.
Shuler, D-Waynesville, proposed the temporary halt to the 18.4-cent tax as an amendment to legislation proposed by House Republicans to promote off-shore oil drilling.
The House Rules Committee rejected the amendment on Wednesday, but Shuler is expected to propose the idea as a separate bill.
Without Republican support, however, the legislation has no chance of being passed in the GOP-controlled House.
“As gas prices continue to climb, Congress should be working to provide immediate assistance to our small businesses and families,” Shuler said. “Higher fuel costs place a particularly difficult strain on those in rural communities like ours where alternative forms of transportation are not available.”
Revenues from the federal gas tax are placed into the Highway Trust Fund, which is used for interstate road construction, repair and other transit projects.
Shuler's amendment offsets potential losses to the trust fund by suspending tax breaks and incentives to oil companies.
The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in the Asheville metropolitan area was $3.88 on Wednesday, according to AAA. That's $1 per gallon more than the price of regular gasoline in the state one year ago.
According to the Federal Highway Administration, the average American drives 13,476 miles per year. The average car got 22.6 miles per gallon in 2008, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Under current gasoline prices, the average driver would spend $2,313 per year on gasoline, $596 more compared to the annual cost based on the price a year ago. A 45-day federal tax holiday would save the average driver in Asheville $13.23.
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has introduced legislation that would suspend the federal gasoline tax whenever the price exceeded $3 per gallon.
No action has been taken on the legislation since it was introduced in March.