ATLANTA — Georgia drivers could soon see some relief at the pump as a 30-day suspension of the state’s gas tax takes effect Tuesday.
Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency suspending the 33.3-cent-per-gallon tax on unleaded fuel and the 37.3-cent-per-gallon tax on diesel through Oct. 29.
“We don’t want to take more of your money from you. We want to keep more of it in your pocket,” Kemp said.
Kemp says the suspension is intended to help Georgians and small businesses deal with volatility in the global fuel market.
The suspension comes as AAA puts the average price for a gallon of regular gas in metro Atlanta at $4.22. At this time last year, the average was about $2.88 per gallon.
Nationwide, the average price of gas is around $4.42 per gallon, while diesel is averaging $6.44, according to GasBuddy.
Georgia Tech energy economist Dr. Matthew Oliver says drivers should not expect prices to immediately fall by the full amount of the suspended tax.
“While I don’t expect prices to come down by 33 cents, they will come down by most of that but not fully 33 cents,” Oliver said.
Oliver says gas currently at stations has already been taxed, meaning drivers should begin noticing lower prices as stations receive new shipments.
“It should be pretty quick, would be my prediction,” Oliver said.
Oliver also explained that the cost of the tax is shared between consumers and sellers.
“That tax amount gets split between the buyers and the sellers, but with gasoline in particular the majority of the share of that tax is borne by the consumers,” Oliver said.
The emergency declaration also suspends state weight limits on commercial vehicles, which officials say will help reduce prices at grocery stores.
The latest suspension follows another pause earlier this year that lasted more than 60 days amid price spikes brought on by the conflict in Iran. The current conflict has now entered its eighth month.
Money collected through the state gas tax funds road and bridge projects across Georgia. The monthlong suspension is expected to cost the state millions of dollars in lost revenue for those projects.
WSB Radio’s Ashley Simmons & Michelle Wright contributed to this story.
