(Bloomberg) -- Not since 2008 have US gasoline prices fallen so much in one day, a welcome relief to drivers following months of dizzying fuel prices that surpassed $6 a gallon in some states.The national average for a regular gallon of gasoline fell to $4.72, according to auto association AAA, with 13 states ringing in less than $4.50. A recent sell off in crude oil futures, which have given back much of their surge in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, helped bring down prices. Summer driving demand is also below average with consumers reeling from inflation. The lowest gas prices in the US are currently in South Carolina and Georgia at $4.23 a gallon.
The plummet comes just weeks after President Joe Biden proposed the federal gas tax holiday, which, if enacted, would waive the 18.4-cent national tax for three months.
To ease the burden, several states have been experimenting with their own gas tax holidays, including Maryland with mixed results. New York suspended its 16-cents-a-gallon gas tax on June 1 for the rest of 2022. Georgia extended its 29-cents-a-gallon gas tax holiday through July 14. Connecticut is waiving its 25-cents-a-gallon gas tax through June 30. Florida has a 25.3-cents-a-gallon gas tax holiday planned for October. And although California hiked its gas tax on July 1, it will be providing “ inflation relief” to residents of up to $1,050 this Fall, as part of a distribution from a budget surplus.
California persists as the outlier as the only state over $6 a gallon, currently at $6.15.
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