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In addition to the 18.4 cents per gallon federal gasoline tax, the states also tax gasoline at varying rates and for varying reasons. Some states have sales taxes added to gasoline taxes while others have inspection fees, environmental fees, leaking underground storage tank (LUST) taxes, etc. The Federation of Tax Administrators has estimated the gasoline excise taxes, along with other state taxes and fees, to arrive at an estimate of the amount consumers are paying per gallon in each state. According to those estimates, Pennsylvania currently has the highest per gallon tax rate for gasoline; the Pennsylvania rate includes the Oil Franchise Tax for Maintenance and Construction, a variable rate tax adjusted annually. California, with an additional sales tax, and North Carolina, with an inspection fee, have the next highest rates. Alaska, with an 8-cent gasoline tax rate, has by far the lowest gasoline tax rate of any state.
State Gasoline Taxes (Cents per Gallon)
Supporting Information
| State | Excise Tax | Additional Fee or Tax | Total | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama (1) | 16.00 | 2.00 | 18.00 | Inspection fee |
| Alaska | 8.00 | 8.00 | ||
| Arizona | 18.00 | 1.00 | 19.00 | LUST tax |
| Arkansas | 21.50 | 0.30 | 21.80 | Environmental fee |
| California | 36.00 | 6.50 | 42.50 | Includes prepaid sales tax (8) |
| Colorado | 22.00 | 22.00 | ||
| Connecticut | 25.00 | 25.00 | Plus a 8.1% Petroleum tax (gas) | |
| Delaware | 23.00 | 23.00 | Plus 0.9% GRT | |
| District of Columbia | 23.50 | 23.50 | ||
| Florida (2) | 4.00 | 24.53 | 28.53 | Sales tax added to excise (2) |
| Georgia | 7.50 | 11.80 | 19.30 | Sales tax added to excise |
| Hawaii (1) | 17.00 | 17.00 | Sales tax additional | |
| Idaho | 25.00 | 1.00 | 26.00 | Clean water tax (7) |
| Illinois (1) | 19.00 | 1.10 | 20.10 | Sales tax add., environmental & LUST fee (3) |
| Indiana | 18.00 | 18.00 | Sales tax additional (3) | |
| Iowa | 21.00 | 1.00 | 22.00 | Environmental fee |
| Kansas | 24.00 | 1.03 | 25.03 | Environmental & Inspection fees |
| Kentucky | 26.20 | 1.40 | 27.60 | Environmental fee(3,4) |
| Louisiana | 20.00 | 0.13 | 20.13 | Inspection fee |
| Maine | 30.00 | 30.00 | (5) | |
| Maryland (5) | 30.30 | 30.30 | ||
| Massachusetts | 24.00 | 24.00 | ||
| Michigan | 19.00 | 19.00 | Sales tax additional | |
| Minnesota | 28.50 | 0.10 | 28.60 | Inspect fee(5) |
| Mississippi | 18.00 | 0.40 | 18.40 | Environmental fee |
| Missouri | 17.00 | 0.30 | 17.30 | Inspection & Load fees |
| Montana | 27.00 | 27.00 | ||
| Nebraska | 25.60 | 0.90 | 26.50 | Petroleum fee (5) |
| Nevada (1) | 23.00 | 0.81 | 23.81 | Inspection & cleanup fee |
| New Hampshire | 22.20 | 1.63 | 23.83 | Oil discharge cleanup fee |
| New Jersey | 10.50 | 4.00 | 14.50 | Petroleum fee |
| New Mexico | 17.00 | 1.88 | 18.88 | Petroleum loading fee |
| New York | 8.00 | 17.80 | 25.80 | Petroleum tax, sales tax additional |
| North Carolina | 37.50 | 0.25 | 37.75 | (4) Inspection tax |
| North Dakota | 23.00 | 23.00 | ||
| Ohio | 28.00 | 28.00 | ||
| Oklahoma | 16.00 | 1.00 | 17.00 | Environmental fee |
| Oregon (1) | 30.00 | 30.00 | ||
| Pennsylvania | 50.50 | 50.50 | Oil franchise tax | |
| Rhode Island | 32.00 | 1.00 | 33.00 | LUST tax |
| South Carolina | 16.00 | 0.75 | 16.75 | Inspection fee & LUST tax |
| South Dakota (1) | 22.00 | 2.00 | 24.00 | Inspection fee |
| Tennessee (1) | 20.00 | 1.40 | 21.40 | Petroleum Tax & Environmental Fee |
| Texas | 20.00 | 20.00 | ||
| Utah | 24.50 | 24.50 | ||
| Vermont (5) | 12.10 | 19.87 | 31.97 | Cleanup Fee & Transportation Fee |
| Virginia (1) | 16.20 | 16.20 | (6) | |
| Washington | 37.50 | 37.50 | 0.5% privilege tax | |
| West Virginia | 20.50 | 14.10 | 34.60 | Sales tax added to excise |
| Wisconsin | 30.90 | 2.00 | 32.90 | Petroleum Inspection Fee |
| Wyoming | 23.00 | 1.00 | 24.00 | License tax |
Notes:
Source: Compiled by Federation of Tax Administrators from various sources, January 2015. Site accessed September 29, 2015. http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/mf.pdf | ||||