Governor Brian Kemp allowed Georgia’s moratorium on state gas and diesel taxes to expire on Tuesday night, after first introducing the moratorium in May and renewing it six times since then.
In 2022, Georgia’s gas tax was 29.1 cents, and the diesel tax at 32.6 cents, but that’s going up on Wednesday, January 11, to 31.2 cents and 35 cents, respectively. As of January 10, before the taxes took effect, Georgia’s average gas price was $2.808, below the national average of $3.270, according to AAA Gas Prices.
At the beginning of December, Kemp shared his legislative priorities and highlighted the role the moratorium played in combating the impact of inflation for Georgians.
“In total, we have saved Georgians well over a billion dollars at the pump as a result. Those savings could then be spent on groceries, school supplies, clothing for children, and other necessities,” he said.
But in previewing his goals for 2023, Kemp didn’t suggest further extensions of the moratorium but noted that legislators would move to other policies, including a second one-time tax refund and homeowner tax relief.
“As I renew this suspension, I also want to remind everyone that this was always intended as a short-term answer to a much larger issue, namely the failure of those at the federal level to work towards energy independence,” he said.
According to Trading Economics, in December 2022, Georgia’s inflation rate was at 9.8 percent, the lowest level since May 2021, and down from 2022 peaks of 13.9 percent in January, 13.3 percent in May, and 11.5 percent in September.
Georgia Budget and Policy Institute Director of Legislative Strategy and Senior Fiscal Analyst Danny Kanso told The Georgia Star News in a statement, “Georgia’s gas tax is an essential part of our state’s revenue system that finances improvements to and maintenance of our state’s infrastructure. Since the gas tax was reformed in 2016, our state has made significant strides forward to ensure that Georgia’s infrastructure is sustainable and capable of meeting the needs of the nearly 11 million residents across our state—and resuming collection of motor fuel taxes will allow this vital progress to continue.”
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Eric Burk is a reporter at The Georgia Star News and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Brian Kemp” by Governor Brian Kemp. Background Photo “Gas Pump” by Dawn McDonald.
