Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Climate Change

‘Gas Tax’ Sounding Like a Four-Letter Word to the White House and Senate

Transportation groups of all shapes and sizes have been concerned that the Senate's forthcoming climate bill could set back the prospects for a federal transportation measure by imposing extra carbon fees on Big Oil -- which would then be passed on to customers at the pump, effectively increasing the gas tax for purposes other than funding new infrastructure projects.

050217_lindseyGraham_hmed_4p.hmedium.jpgSen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) joined the White House in denying that his forthcoming climate bill would feature a "gas tax." (Photo: MSNBC)

But it looks like there's no need to worry. The Obama administration yesterday gave a statement to the Wall Street Journal that sought to lock down any attempt to associate the Senate climate plan with higher fuel charges: “The Senators don’t support a gas tax, and neither does the White House."

A spokesman for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), the climate proposal's sole GOP sponsor, also denied that the bill would include a gas tax. The bulk of the back-and-forth is a semantic battle that reflects how politically poisonous a gas tax increase remains for both parties in Washington.

But it may also suggest that Graham and his co-authors are moving away from the carbon fee they had originally conceived. Graham described the idea to The Hill last month as "an assessment on what they do in the carbon world. They are creating a carbon product, they are going to pay a fee." The cost of such a fee, he added at the time, would be partially passed on to customers at the pump.

On the whole, the fact that the White House is already denying the existence of a gas tax more than a week before the climate bill is set to emerge may not bode well for its future (not to mention that of the still-stalled six-year transportation legislation).

"So Much For Kerry-Graham-Lieberman Global Warming Gas Tax?" the press office of Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) tweeted.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Zivarts: How ‘Week Without Driving’ Is Having An Impact

Needing to drive in a car-dependent society is not some sort of moral failure. A one-week teach-in can help elected officials see that.

August 5, 2025

Tuesday’s Headlines Smile, You’re on Candid Camera

Automated traffic enforcement cameras are easy to hate, until you start looking at how much they make streets safer.

August 5, 2025

Trump’s Transportation ‘Funding Freeze’ Was Just the Tip of the Iceberg, GAO Says

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was slow to get money out the door even before the current president threw the process into chaos. This must change.

August 4, 2025

Monday’s Headlines Hit the Beach

North America needs more coastal bikeways like those in European beach towns, David Zipper writes in CityLab.

August 4, 2025

Bus Rapid Transit Can Work … If Cities Follow the Formula

It sure beats the current method of guessing or simply basing the route on how strongly a given neighborhood opposes or supports it.

August 1, 2025

Friday Video: We’re All Paying For ‘Free’ Parking, Whether Or Not We Drive

Parking mandates aren't the only reason why your city has so much asphalt. Check out the hidden reason why so many businesses build way more parking than they need.

August 1, 2025
See all posts