State lawmakers voted nearly unanimously Wednesday afternoon to pause North Carolina's gas tax in the midst of high prices caused by the war in Iran.
The suspension of the state's 41-cents-a-gallon tax will last until Nov. 30. Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, was the only legislator voting no.
Sen. Michael Lazarra, R-Onslow, says reserve funding will make up for the loss of gas tax revenue, which funds road projects.
"This bill adequately balances the need to provide relief for all North Carolinians while stabilizing the DOT's budget during this initial pause," he said.
Pausing the gas tax is expected to cost around $360 million — transportation funding that Senate leader Phil Berger says the state will backfill from an inflation reserve fund to avoid any disruption to road projects and maintenance.
"We're able to do this because over the past 15 years, Republicans in the General Assembly have been good stewards of the people's money, have reduced taxes, have balanced budgets, and have created substantial reserves," he said during a news conference.
Wednesday's vote comes in a special legislative session called just weeks before the midterm election. Democrats say the timing is political: The announcement of a special session came on Saturday, one day after news reports that national Republican groups are shifting campaign funding from North Carolina to Kansas due to U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley's faltering poll numbers against former Gov. Roy Cooper.
"They think you're too stupid to do the math," Senate Minority Leader Sydney Batch, D-Wake, said of her GOP colleagues. "They're hoping you don't realize that even if we wipe out every penny of the state gas tax today, we will still be paying more at the pump then than we were last year. There is still not a single thing that these cowards are willing to do to address the real issues."
Still, Democrats voted for the suspension of the gas tax, and Gov. Josh Stein has signaled support for the measure — although he says it should have happened sooner. Berger was asked about the idea by reporters in the spring, as gas prices reached $4 per gallon, and he called it a "feel-good kind of thing" that wouldn't make a major difference for consumers.
"The pressure on individual citizens is much greater now than it was then, and it still feels good," Berger said Wednesday when asked about his previous comments.
The bill would also allow farmers to use dyed diesel fuel — which is untaxed but only allowed for off-road and agricultural purposes. That's similar to an executive order issued last week by Gov. Josh Stein.
The bill now heads to the governor's desk, and the gas tax pause will take effect immediately when it's signed. The N.C. Department of Revenue is tasked with notifying fuel retailers and others about the change.
"We make it clear in the bill that it's expected that it will be passed along" to consumers. "We will be looking at that, and we'll see whether or not they do."
Senate Republicans rejected an amendment from Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, D-Wake, that would have given the attorney general the power to address consumer complaints about fuel retailers that don't lower prices under the tax pause.
Some Democrats also questioned why the tax pause will end Nov. 30, given the possibility that the war in Iran could result in high gas prices for months to come.
"It seems like kind of a natural time when it's one of the most heavily traveled time periods at the end of November in the entire year, because of Thanksgiving," responded Sen. Michael Lee, R-New Hanover.
