Fill It Up: Maryland Gas Tax Holiday Ends Saturday Night

MARYLAND — The 30-day suspension of Maryland's gas tax — which helped fuel prices drop nearly 60 cents per gallon — ends on Saturday. Lawmakers enacted the holiday and Gov. Larry Hogan immediately signed it into law to give drivers relief at the gas pump.

Friday's average price for a gallon of regular gas in Maryland was $3.67, while the national average was $4.07, according to AAA.

One month ago, Marylanders paid $4.25 on average for a gallon of gas. A year ago, regular gas averaged $2.75 per gallon in the state.

The state set a new record high on March 11 when the price of gas averaged $4.30, AAA said.

Starting at midnight on Sunday, April 17, all retail motor fuel purchases will again be taxed by the state. State Comptroller Peter Franchot, who called for a 90-day gas tax holiday, urged Maryland drivers to fill up before Saturday evening to avoid a rush on gas stations as the holiday ends.

The Maryland General Assembly passed legislation to suspend the 36-cent state tax on gas and diesel fuel for 30 days, which Hogan signed into law on March 18. Legislators did not extend the 30-day holiday before they adjourned late week.

“A 90-day state gas tax holiday would have provided more substantial savings to hardworking Marylanders trying to make ends meet with everyday costs rising due to inflation,” Franchot said in a press release. “It’s great that we were the first state to enact a gas tax holiday, but it’s distressing that we’re also the first state to let it expire when we have such a huge surplus that could have easily absorbed a longer holiday.”

Maryland's gas tax of 36 cents per gallon paused for 30 days for both regular and diesel fuel. NBC Washington said the suspension runs through 11:59 p.m. on April 16.

"As soon as the gas tax (holiday) went into effect in Maryland, we saw immediate declines. It was overnight. It was rapid," AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman Ragina Ali told WBAL.

Gas prices will probably increase as the gas tax is reinstated, Ali said. President Biden has ordered the release of oil from the country's strategic reserves to help offset the high gas prices.

Maryland has reported $7.5 billion in unanticipated revenues in the last 18 months, thanks largely to federal pandemic aid and higher-than-expected sales and income tax revenues. During the one-month holiday, an estimated $100 million was saved by Maryland consumers.

"The reality is that the 47 members of the state senate [and] 141 of the Maryland house of delegates are regular people. I went to the gas pump Saturday, and I spent 104 dollars at the gas pump," Maryland State Sen. Cory McCray told FOX 5 Friday.