Center Square NJ: New Jersey poised for dramatic increase in gas tax tied to decreased gas prices, empty roads

by Joe Chen

(The Center Square) – A recent Garden State Initiative analysis suggests that the lower gas prices and empty roads in New Jersey will lead to a gas tax increase unless the Legislature steps in. The crowd sourced traffic site INRIX, for example, found that there was approximately 55 percent less traffic in New Jersey on March 24 than a month earlier on the same day, suggesting less gasoline consumption. “New Jersey’s Gas and Convenience Store Association (NJGCA) reported just last week that gas sales volumes are down 65%,” Regina M. Egea, president of the Garden State Initiative, told The Center Square. “So without the Legislature stepping in to revise the statutory language from 2016, the state’s Treasurer will announce an increase to New Jersey’s gas tax before September 1 at exactly the wrong time.”

The 2016 law gives the treasurer authority to raise the gas tax if it fails to generate at least $2 billion a year for the state’s Transportation Trust Fund.

Read the full report here.