Rep. Russo Votes for Gas Tax Holiday, Says Ohioans Need More Than 90 Days of Relief
COLUMBUS — State Rep. Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) today voted in favor of a 90-day gas tax holiday to provide immediate relief to Ohio drivers facing high prices at the pump.
The legislation temporarily reduces Ohio’s motor fuel tax and uses state General Revenue Fund (GRF) dollars to replace road maintenance and construction revenue that would otherwise be collected during the tax holiday.
“We all know the real cause of record high gas prices at the pump: President Trump’s reckless, failed war in Iran,” said Rep. Russo. “This bill does nothing to address the rising housing, grocery, or utility costs that make the middle-class lifestyle increasingly more difficult for more Ohioans every day. Gas prices have spiked to historic levels and even without the gas tax, Ohioans will be paying more as a direct result of bad policies from the Trump administration. We have an obligation to call that out. Yet, it takes an impending election in just 35 days to suddenly motivate Republicans to put a small and temporary bandaid on the affordability crisis Ohioans have been facing for months.”
For Ohio families, the cost of living does not begin and end at the gas pump. Housing, utility bills, health care, childcare, groceries and property taxes all determine how much money families have left at the end of the month. For families who are choosing between filling up the tank and paying another bill, immediate relief matters. But the high cost of living stretches far beyond the gas pump.
Ohio’s affordability crisis didn't start five weeks before an election. Ohioans have struggled with high gas prices, utility bills, housing costs and health care expenses for years. Gas prices peaked at an average of $4.83 in May, as the busy travel season began. But Republicans ignored the struggle until it was politically expedient, that is, when they realized weeks before election day that their gubernatorial candidate was behind in the polls.
Ohio House Democrats offered an alternative plan that would have provided immediate gas tax relief while making the state's resources go further for Ohio families. That proposal would have used the $1 billion previously allocated for the owners of the Cleveland Browns stadium, and would have included a $150 residential energy rebate, strong enforcement to ensure gas tax savings reach consumers, and expanded homestead property tax relief. The plan was ignored by House Republicans.
Rep. Russo said today's vote is part of the broader fight for affordability that Ohio House Democrats have been pursuing throughout the last few years. The gas tax holiday provides needed temporary relief for motorists, but Ohio families continue to face higher costs for housing, groceries, health care, and utilities especially going into winter and the holiday season.