JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The average price for a gallon of gas in Florida is nearing the $4 mark.
The last time the state saw gas prices this high was all the way back in July of 2022.
Now, Florida’s Democratic lawmakers are calling for state leaders to the same thing they did last time: Suspend the state’s gas tax.
Floridians are feeling the pinch at the pump, as the conflict in the Middle East continues to drive up the price of gas.
The average price for a gallon of gas in Florida is nearing the $4 mark.
The last time the state saw gas prices this high was all the way back in July of 2022.
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“Hurting pretty good,” Duval driver Lauri Philip said.
But some said they’re willing to wait out the pain.
“They were a lot higher three or four years ago,” another driver, Dave Wilson, said.
When gas prices skyrocketed in 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis called for a five-month suspension of the state’s gas tax.
In the end, the Florida Legislature approved a one-month gas tax holiday, which cut the price of a gallon of gas by about 25 cents that October.
Now, with gas prices climbing again, House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell (D-Tampa) and other Florida Democrats are calling on their Republican colleagues to run back the playbook.
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“Since the War in Iran gas prices in Florida have increased by at least around a dollar a gallon and so people could really use some relief right now,” Driskell said.
The one-month holiday in 2022 cost the State of Florida roughly $200 million.
But Driskell argued the state could easily afford the cost, pointing to the state’s healthy reserves.
“The Governor’s always bragging about our rainy-day fund. I would say to the Governor, sir, it’s raining for Floridians right now,” Driskell said.
Even with session technically over, the legislature still has an opportunity to act.
That’s because state lawmakers still have to pass an annual budget, and along with the budget there’s the annual tax package.
Back when the gas tax was suspended in 2022, lawmakers used the tax package as the vehicle to make it happen.
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Floridians we spoke to at the pump said they’d appreciate any relief they can get.
“Cause it would mean we save some money in our pockets,” Philip said.
Even those who aren’t panicking over prices at this point.
“Sure, every bit helps, but I’m not that concerned with it,” Wilson said.
Action News Jax reached out to the Governor, House Speaker and Senate President asking if they’d support including another gas tax holiday in this year’s tax bill.
The Senate President declined to comment and we did not hear back from the Governor or House Speaker.
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