It’s only a matter of days now until we, the patriotic citizens of the United States of America, celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nationhood: The day in which we declared our independence from what was then ‘Great’ Britain, the most powerful empire in the world. That declaration and the revolution that followed were caused, in large part, by what were for the time onerous and unbearable taxes.
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Now, in one of our modern era’s great ironies, six states are marking the occasion by hiking gas taxes.
Beginning July 1, drivers in California, Washington, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, and Mississippi are scheduled to see higher state gas taxes. In other words, as the country prepares to celebrate casting aside a tax-heavy king in favor of freedom, these states will use the occasion to fatten government coffers one gallon at a time.
The worst offenders will be no surprise. California, Washington and Illinois — we’ll call them the Axis of Glut.
Their governors are often the first to fake outrage when gas prices rise. They blame oil companies. They blame “price gouging.” They blame world events. They blame everyone except the politicians who keep piling taxes, mandates, and regulations onto every gallon drivers buy.
Yet these same states already have some of the worst gas prices in the nation, some of the highest gas taxes in America, and now they are getting ready to raise those taxes again.
We saw California’s impeccably coiffed Governor Newsom complaining about this only recently, after which he got roundly smacked down by the Secretary of the Interior.
Read More: ‘Rockets and Feathers’: Why Gas Prices Stay High Even As Oil Falls
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Burgum Takes Newsom to the Cleaners on CA’s Gas Prices, Then the Oil and Gas Assoc. Finishes Him Off
Gas prices in most places have been sinking gradually. This is in part due to increased production, and in part it seems because of some hope of a U.S. – Iran deal, although the outlook on that is akin to being on a huge roller-coaster at the moment. But these states are making it worse.
As of June 8, the national average for regular gas was $4.164, down 38.2 cents in a single month. That is welcome relief for families, workers, small businesses and anyone trying to get through summer. But the national average would look even better if it were not being anchored down by tax-heavy states that treat drivers like a rolling ATM.
The problem is not limited to the six July 1 tax-hike states. Seven of the ten most expensive states for gas are run by Democratic governors. That is not a coincidence. Taxes play a major role in the high-price reputation of many of these states. So do their regulatory regimes, special fuel rules, anti-energy policies and climate mandates that make fuel harder to produce, refine, transport and sell.
One of the primary claims of these states is that the gasoline taxes are meant to keep the public roads in good order. But is that really the case? We might note as well that California, with the highest gasoline and diesel prices in the nation, also has the second-worst roads in the country. Alaska, right here where I sit as I write this, has the worst – but California doesn’t have our severe winters to challenge its highway maintenance issues.
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No, in the case of California, it’s just incompetence, not weather.
So, get out and enjoy that Independence Day! If you’re in one of these high-tax blue states, this November, remember the Revolution, the taxation without representation that prompted it, and get out to that voting booth. That’s the only way this mess will get fixed.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump’s leadership and bold policies, America’s economy is back on track.
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