President Donald Trump announced on May 11 that he wants to suspend the federal gas tax for a period of time, and the question every driver wants answered is simple: how much money will I actually save?

We ran the numbers. The savings are real, and for families filling up multiple times a month, they add up fast.

In a phone interview with CBS News, Trump called the idea “great” and laid out a straightforward plan: take off the gas tax temporarily, then phase it back in once gas prices come down.

CBS News reported the Trump interview and the immediate policy backdrop:

President Trump told CBS in a May 11 phone interview that he wants to take the federal gas tax off for a period of time and phase it back in when gas prices come down. The report placed the statement in the middle of a sharp fuel-price squeeze, with the national average sitting above $4.50 per gallon and families feeling the increase every time they drive to work, school, church, or the grocery store.

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CBS also tied the announcement to the actual tax burden at the pump. The federal levy is 18.4 cents per gallon on gasoline and 24.4 cents per gallon on diesel, and pausing it would cost Washington roughly a half-billion dollars per week while the pause is in effect. That is money currently collected through every gallon drivers buy.

CBS noted the key legal point as well. The president can push the plan, but Congress has to change the law because the tax is statutory. That is why the political response matters. Senator Josh Hawley said he would introduce legislation in the Senate, and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna said she would introduce a House bill and work directly with President Trump to deliver the gas-price relief.

The federal excise tax on gasoline is 18.4 cents per gallon. On diesel, it is 24.4 cents per gallon. Those figures include a 0.1-cent-per-gallon Leaking Underground Storage Tank fee that most people have never heard of but pay every time they fill up.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration breaks down the federal fuel-tax math that drivers pay into every gallon:

The federal tax burden on retail motor fuel is listed at 18.40 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.40 cents per gallon for diesel. That total is not one single line item. For gasoline, the federal excise tax is 18.3 cents per gallon, with an additional 0.1 cent per gallon for the Leaking Underground Storage Tank fee. For diesel, the federal excise tax is 24.3 cents per gallon, plus the same 0.1 cent fee.

That federal amount is separate from the state taxes drivers also pay. EIA lists average state-level taxes at 32.61 cents per gallon for gasoline and 34.76 cents per gallon for diesel as of its posted table, while noting that local and county taxes are not included in those state figures. In plain English, Trump is targeting the federal layer that applies across the country. State and local fuel taxes would still depend on where a driver fills up.

If the full 18.4 cents per gallon reaches your pump, here is what a suspension saves you on gasoline:

A 12-gallon fill-up, typical for a compact car, saves you $2.21. A 15-gallon fill-up saves $2.76. A 20-gallon fill-up for a truck or SUV saves $3.68.

Now multiply that over a month. If your household burns 60 gallons a month, you save $11.04. At 80 gallons, you save $14.72. And if you are a two-car family or a commuter burning through 100 gallons a month, you pocket $18.40 every single month the suspension lasts.

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Diesel drivers save even more per gallon because the tax is higher. A 20-gallon diesel fill-up saves $4.88, and a 25-gallon fill-up saves $6.10. For truckers and small business owners running diesel fleets, those numbers compound quickly.

CBS News added the practical pocketbook estimates for drivers:

Drivers nationwide were paying an average of $4.52 per gallon for regular gasoline on May 11, according to the AAA figure cited in the CBS MoneyWatch breakdown. If the full federal gasoline tax were suspended and passed through at the pump, that same national average would move to roughly $4.34 per gallon. On diesel, CBS placed the full-suspension estimate around $5.39 per gallon based on that day’s pricing.

The same breakdown cited Andrew Lautz of the Bipartisan Policy Center, who put the sedan savings at up to about $2 per fill-up at national-average prices. In a higher-priced California SUV example, the estimated per-tank savings came in around $2.36 to $3.09. CBS also noted the procedural piece: Congress has to approve a suspension because the gas tax is set in federal law.

That means the personal savings are not a mystery. For a normal gas tank, the benefit is usually a few dollars each time. For a commuter, a two-car family, or a small-business owner who fills up repeatedly, the monthly savings can climb into the double digits while the suspension lasts.

One honest caveat: the full 18.4 cents may not land entirely in your pocket. Some analysts expect the market to absorb part of the savings before it hits the pump.

Axios pointed to the main caveat on how much of the tax cut may actually show up on pump signs:

The Bipartisan Policy Center estimate cited by Axios put the consumer price reduction from a federal gas-tax holiday at roughly 10 to 16 cents per gallon. That is lower than the full 18.3-cent federal gasoline excise tax because the energy market does not always pass every penny of a tax cut directly to consumers. Some portion can be absorbed before it reaches the retail price.

That caveat changes the range, but it does not erase the savings. At 10 cents per gallon, a 15-gallon fill-up saves $1.50 and a 20-gallon fill-up saves $2. At 16 cents per gallon, those same tanks save $2.40 and $3.20. Over a month, a household using 80 gallons saves $8 at the low end and $12.80 at the higher pass-through estimate.

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Axios also noted the same congressional hurdle. A gas-tax holiday is a familiar proposal whenever pump prices jump, but it still has to move through Congress. The political question now is whether lawmakers will act quickly enough to turn Trump’s push into relief drivers can see on receipts.

Even at 10 cents per gallon, a family using 80 gallons a month saves $8 every month. At 16 cents, that jumps to $12.80. Over the course of a summer driving season, you are looking at real money back in your pocket.

Because the tax is set by federal law, Congress has to act. Republicans in both chambers moved immediately. Senator Josh Hawley announced he would introduce legislation that same day.

On the House side, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna said she would file a bill and work directly with President Trump to get it done.

Trump put this in motion. Now Republicans in Congress have a chance to put real relief on his desk. Every day they wait is another day families are paying a tax they do not have to pay.

The math is not complicated. Whether you drive a sedan, an SUV, or a diesel truck, a federal gas-tax suspension means money back in your wallet every time you pull up to the pump. For millions of American families stretched thin by $4.50 gas, that is exactly the kind of relief that matters most.

 

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