Team Guglielmo, Belsito and Ackert Urge Tolland Motorists to Sign Statewide Petition to Fight July 1st Gas Tax Hike

Sen. Guglielmo and Reps. Belsito and Ackert at the Tolland Mobil on Merrow Road during the Axe the Gas Tax petition drive aimed at fighting the hike scheduled for July 1.

Hartford, CT –Senator Tony Guglielmo (R-Tolland) and Representatives Tim Ackert (R-Coventry) and Sam Belsito (R-Tolland) along with Republican legislators from across the state gathered signatures for a petition to fight increases in the state gas tax and diesel fuel tax scheduled for July 1st. Motorists can sign an online petition by visiting www.AxeTheGasTaxCT.com.

“We need to do all we can to spread the word about this increase and prevent this tax hike from taking place –that’s what this petition drive is all about,” said State Rep. Ackert (R-8th).

“A 16 percent tax increase on gasoline is unnecessary and highly unjustified. The price of gasoline in our state is already one of the highest in the nation, and it is driving our economy further away from recovery.” said State Rep. Sam Belsito (R-53rd).

The gas tax in Connecticut is already about 22 cents higher than in neighboring states like Massachusetts and the July 1st gas tax hike would raise prices at the pump another 4 cents per gallon.

“People are struggling to pay their bills and this is another added financial headache. If we can successfully stop this tax hike it will be a victory for the hard working people of Connecticut,” said Sen. Guglielmo (R-Tolland).

The tax set to increase (called the petroleum gross receipts tax) is a hidden state tax on gasoline that motorists pay above and beyond the state (25¢) and federal (18.4¢) excise taxes. This tax is a percentage of the wholesale price of gasoline and is scheduled to increase from 7% to 8.1% on July 1st (a 16% increase). According to the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association (CEMA), the average wholesale price of gasoline in Connecticut is currently $2.82/gallon and Connecticut state taxes on a gallon of gasoline total 45 cents.

At the same time, Connecticut’s Diesel Fuel Tax, which is based on the petroleum gross receipts tax rate, is scheduled to increase by 3.5 cents per gallon, which will increase trucking and transportation costs, causing a ripple effect that will increase consumer costs on everything from groceries and clothing, to construction, as well as other goods and services.

Legislative Republicans offered plans this legislative session in committee and in both the State Senate and State House of Representatives to eliminate the tax hike and they proposed several options to replace the lost revenue. None of which were accepted by the majority party.

The petition drive at the Tolland Mobil on Merrow Road garnered nearly fifty signatures in two hours. As of Tuesday, more than 12,000 people statewide had signed the online petition. The next step is to present the petition to the Governor in the hopes public pressure will enable him to call lawmakers back to Hartford for a special vote to repeal the tax hike.