Which State Pays Most In Gas Taxes?
While the current rate for federal gas tax purposes is 18.4 cents per gallon (24.4 cents per gallon for diesel), a rate that hasn’t changed since 1993, state gas taxes have much more volatility and range. In fact, the difference between the taxes paid at the pump in the state with the highest rate (New York) and those paid in the state with the lowest rate (Alaska) is more than 40 cents per gallon. If the average American drives 13,476 miles per year (as determined by the Federal Highway Administration) and if the average miles per gallon is 22.4 for passenger cars (as determined by the Department of Transportation), the difference in tax paid between states affects drivers by as much as $240.
Not sure where your state falls in that spectrum?
Here are the ten states that pay the most in state gas taxes:
These rates are current as of January 1, 2013. The number beside each state represents the total state gas taxes. Note that, for purposes of the list, state gas taxes include excise taxes, environmental fees, storage tank taxes, general sales tax, and other fees or taxes.
The complete list – as determined by the always informative Tax Foundation – is here.
Of course, at the pump, you’ll also tack on that 18.3 cents per gallon federal gas tax. Since tax is included in the price you actually pay, it looks like this:
Not sure where your state falls in that spectrum?
Here are the ten states that pay the most in state gas taxes:
- New York 50.6
- California 48.7
- Hawaii 47.1
- Connecticut 45.0
- Illinois 39.1
- Michigan 38.7
- Indiana 38.0
- North Carolina 37.8
- Washington 37.5
- Florida 35.5
- Alaska 8.0
- Wyoming 14.0
- New Jersey 14.5
- South Carolina 16.8
- Oklahoma 17.0
- Missouri 17.3
- Mississippi 18.8
- New Mexico 18.9
- Arizona 19.0
- New Hampshire 19.6
These rates are current as of January 1, 2013. The number beside each state represents the total state gas taxes. Note that, for purposes of the list, state gas taxes include excise taxes, environmental fees, storage tank taxes, general sales tax, and other fees or taxes.
The complete list – as determined by the always informative Tax Foundation – is here.
Of course, at the pump, you’ll also tack on that 18.3 cents per gallon federal gas tax. Since tax is included in the price you actually pay, it looks like this:
$3.49 (what I paid at the pump on yesterday in Pennsylvania) = $.183 in federal gas + $.323 in PA state taxes + 2.984 as the “price” of my gas
Total Total taxes for my gas in Pennsylvania represented about 15% of the price per gallon. Remember, however, that as the price of gas increases or decreases, the tax rates remain the same since they are generally flat per gallon taxes (if you live in one of the 7 states that impose a partial or full sales tax on gas, the math is a little different). As the price of gas increases, you would pay a smaller percentage as gas tax; conversely, as the price of gas decreases (as if this actually happens anymore), you pay a higher percentage as gas tax. Make sense?
