(KIWA Staff Photo)Iowa (RI) — Senator Chuck Grassley says he’d vote to temporarily suspend federal taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel to provide relief for farmers and other drivers, but he believes oil companies could lower prices without government intervention.
The federal tax on gasoline is 18.4 cents per gallon, while the federal diesel tax is 24.4 cents per gallon. Grassley says suspending those taxes would have less impact than policies aimed at tying U.S. diesel prices more closely to domestic oil supplies.
Grassley also dismissed oil industry arguments that an embargo on U.S. diesel exports would lead American refiners to cut production and ultimately drive prices higher.
He says if the federal government can restrict exports of computer chips to China, it could also limit diesel exports to help farmers, truckers, and consumers.
The U.S. currently produces about 5.3 million barrels of diesel fuel per day. About two-thirds of that production remains in the country to meet domestic demand.
