Mechanicsville, MD- Gas prices in Maryland are set to get higher in July 2022. A bill sponsored by District 4 State Senator Michael Hough failed to get out of both the House of Delegates and Senate committees this session.
The bill introduced by Senator Hough would have repealed the automatic annual increase that was passed in 2013.
Maryland SENATE BILL 337 by David M. Higgins II on Scribd
“What I think this legislation does is what we should’ve done in the first place. If people want to raise the gas tax there should be a vote to raise it. There shouldn’t just be an automatic gas increase that’s in place every single year and doesn’t require a vote,” Senator Michael Hough said.
This year’s gas tax raise would amount to an 8% increase on July 1, 2022.
“Without the passing of this legislation, there will be a $37 million dollar tax increase in FY23 on Marylanders which will go up in the fiscal year 2027 up to a $117 million dollar tax increase,” Hough said in an interview with WMDT.com.
Gas tax revenue goes to the Maryland Transportation Trust Fund, which can be used for roads, bridges mass transit, and maintenance.
If the automatic gas tax increase is repealed or paused, revenues in the trust fund decreased by $37 million next year alone.
The Bill was sponsored by several Delegates and Senators including Southern Maryland Senator Jack Bailey(R) and in the House, Delegates Matt Morgan(R), Mark Fisher(R), and Jerry Clark(R).
The bill ultimately failed to leave Senate’s Budget and Taxation Committee and the House’s Ways and Means Committee.
Maryland recently had a 30-day ” Gas-Tax Holiday” due to rising costs of fuel. The temporary tax holiday lasted from March 18-April 17, 2022. Multiple leaders attempted to extend the holiday until at least Memorial Day 2022, but that measure failed also.
The Maryland General assembly is out of session for 2022, but the Governor can call a special session (Const., Art. II, sec. 16; Art. III, sec. 14).