John McCain and the Gas Tax's Summer Vacation

Recently Senator John McCain of Arizona proposed giving Americans a break from the fuel taxes paid at the pump. Specifically he calls for a hiatus on the taxing of gasoline and diesel fuels from Memorial Day to Labor Day 2008. The taxes currently in place are 18.4¢ per gallon of gasoline and 24.4¢ per gallon of diesel. I think this is a good short-term plan to take a little of the squeeze off of the American wallet, but I know that he cannot continue it beyond Labor Day.

On a weekly basis, I drive to and from work, the grocery store, and other miscellaneous errands. I usually have to refill my gas tank every 10 days or so. This gas tax rebate would save me an average of $1.90/week. Over the course of the rebate that would be about $25 for my car. My husband's car would save about $2.76/week for a grand total of about $37 for the summer. This is barring any vacations we might take during this time. We plan on going on vacation this summer. So the average savings will increase, but we do not know where we will be headed so I do not know how much this tax break will save us on that account.

If this tax break plan passes (I am not holding my breath), we would probably use the money to pay a few bills that we have accumulated like my credit card. This does not seem like a lot of money, all things considered, but it is $62 more than we would have if we paid the taxes all summer. I think, if nothing else, it will give us a little more spending money for our vacation, which is always a happy thought.

There are several immediate benefits to this tax holiday. One of those is that those truck drivers, who are striking, will have part of their fuel bills lifted for a few months. As I wrote in "Rumors Swirling of Trucking Strike," there is a serious need for the reduction in the price of diesel for independent truck drivers. If this tax break were to happen, truckers could see savings of $145 per fueling (based on the numbers in that article). Trucking companies will see these same kinds of savings, which will in turn be passed on to the consumers because part of what we pay in the stores comes from what they pay to get the product to the stores.