HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Gas prices jumped Tuesday in Pennsylvania, a sentence that could’ve been said nearly every day for the past month.

“When you’re paying $4 or more to fill up your tank, you feel it,” said congressional candidate Janelle Stelson outside a gas station this week. The price was $4.24 a gallon. It jumped to $4.29 less than 24 hours later, among the tamer daily spikes Pennsylvanians have experienced.

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The gas tax in the state is 57 cents a gallon. State Sen. Lisa Boscola (D-Lehigh/Northampton) wants to suspend it for 60 days.

“Everything’s about affordability, right? That’s all we hear. Affordability. Affordability,” Boscola said. “If it’s really affordability, and you know these prices are impacting people’s pocketbook, why aren’t we doing something about it?”

Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Adams/Franklin) agreed, writing it’s a moral issue.

“Doing nothing while families struggle is not neutrality. It is a decision — a decision to allow hardship to deepen when relief is possible,” Mastriano said.

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But would suspending the gas tax work to lower prices? Maybe a little, experts said, but it’s assessed on the wholesale price, so Pennsylvanians won’t be able to subtract 57 cents from the price on the sign. How much tax to pass on, or not, is up to each of the 4,000 gas stations in the state. Capitalism’s market forces and profit motives are also in play.

Then there’s PennDOT, which relies on gas tax money to maintain roadways. It takes the largest chunk of the tax, but other agencies benefit too, such as Pennsylvania State Police.

“We can float a bond,” Boscola said. “We do it many times. Float the bond for 60 days.”

She makes it sound simple. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said it isn’t. He suspended the tax there in 2022 and said Floridians didn’t see much relief, concluding the government’s ability to influence fuel prices is marginal.

A Washington Post editorial concluded: Slashing gas taxes is good politics but terrible policy.

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