Cheaper gas goes away as Maryland reinstates its gas tax

Eastern Shore of Virginia residents who for the last 30 days have enjoyed saving money on gasoline by filling up in Maryland now don’t have that option.  The Maryland legislature which instituted the 30 day suspension of the gas tax in March adjourned last Monday without extending it. Governor Youngkin proposed a similar suspension in Virginia but was met with resistance from the Democratically controlled Senate.   Democarats claim that the savings per household would not be significant enough to warrant  the losses to the state transportation fund that would occur as a result of suspending the tax.   There have been other proposals including sending a one time direct payment to Virginia taxpayers.  With the General Assembly session currently on hold due to budget negotiations,

Gasoline prices on the Eastern Shore  have fluctuated from a high of. $4.15 per gallon to a current average of $3.85  which is over a dollar more than last year’s prices. The average price for regular gasoline in January 2020 was $2.61 per gallon. Experts say we can expect gas prices to rise again over the next several weeks.  They claim that the situation in Ukraine may be responsible for the continuing rise in prices.