Senator Brian Jones calls out gas price being too high in the state and urges Gov. Gavin Newsom to copy President Joe Biden’s call for a suspension on the gas tax.
California state Senator Brian Jones wants state lawmakers to follow President Joe Biden’s call for a suspension on the gas tax in the Golden State.
After state Democrats repeatedly shot down Republicans’ proposal for a suspension on the gas tax introduced in June 2021, Jones thinks Biden’s call for a suspension will encourage the Democrats to follow suit.
“President Biden gets it, yet the wealthy Democrat Governor Newsom and California Democrat legislative leaders still don’t,” Jones said.
Instead, Democrats said they wanted to “investigate” oil companies for the high cost of gasoline.
In June, Biden called for a three-month suspension of the federal gas tax “since Putin began amassing troops on the border of Ukraine” according to a White House press release.
Currently, the federal government charges an 18 cent tax per gallon of gas and a 24 cent tax per gallon of diesel, the press release noted.
“Today marks the one-year anniversary of California state Senate and Assembly Republicans calling for a state gas tax suspension,” Jones said at the time. “I am encouraged that President Biden has endorsed our efforts and supports suspending the federal gas tax.”
Cutting the federal and state gas tax would bring down prices by 70 cents per gallon, Jones said.
Due to the state’s annual tax increase, gas prices increased 5.6 percent on July 1, hurting consumers’ pockets even more.
“The state has a record $97 billion budget surplus. California’s infrastructure can still be fixed without the need for your tax dollars at the pump,” Jones said in a video posted to Twitter with the hashtag #GasIsTooDamnHigh.
Jones said in a July 7 tweet that “Government taxes, fees, and mandates add almost $1.50 on every gallon of gas. #GasIsTooDamnHigh #SuspendTheGasTax.”