Chris Yarzab https://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisyarzab/51184837441

Democrats’ multi-trillion dollar tax and spend bill includes a nearly $13 billion energy tax on crude oil, a tax hike that will be paid by consumers in the form of rising gasoline prices.

Gas Tax Increase on Autopilot

Section 136701 of the bill would impose a 16.4 cents per barrel tax on crude oil and petroleum products beginning in 2022, a tax increase of $12.77 billion according estimates from the Congressional Budget Office.

Further, the per barrel tax is pegged to inflation, meaning the tax hike is set on autopilot and will automatically ratchet up each year without Congress having to vote again. As gas prices and the cost of consumer goods rise, so too will the amount of the tax levied.

Exacerbates Gas Crisis

Democrats proposed oil tax comes when Americans are facing average gas prices of $3.49 per gallon throughout November, marking 12 straight months of rising gas prices and the highest retail gas prices since August of 2014.

In a stated effort to relieve rising gas prices, the Biden Administration announced last week that it was authorizing the release of 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an amount only equal to roughly 2.5 days of U.S. crude oil consumption. Yet at the same time, Democrats and the Biden Administration continue to back a $13 billion tax on crude oil that will lead to rising gas prices and exacerbate the crisis.     

Violates Biden’s $400,000 Tax Pledge

This tax hike is a clear violation of President Biden’s pledge not to raise any form of tax on anyone making less than $400,000 per year. Officials within the administration have repeatedly admitted taxes that raise consumer energy prices are in violation of President Biden’s $400,000 tax pledge.

Biden’s own Secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg, previously acknowledged that increasing gas taxes would violate President Biden’s pledge.

“The President’s made a commitment that this administration will not raise taxes on people making less than $400,000 a year,” Buttigieg told Bloomberg Radio’s “Sound On” show in February. “And so that rules out approaches like the old-fashioned gas tax.” Buttigieg’s comments walked back his previous call to raise the gas tax and index it to inflation during confirmation hearings.

Americans for Tax Reform opposes the Democrat oil tax and urges all members of Congress to oppose President Biden’s multi-trillion dollar tax and spend bill.