NC leaders aren’t showing interest in tax relief as gas prices rise. Here’s why
North Carolina leaders are showing little appetite for suspending the state’s gas tax as officials elsewhere push the idea to ease rising fuel costs.
Calls to temporarily pause gas taxes have gained traction in recent days as prices at the pump climb dramatically, largely driven by supply disruptions resulting from the war in Iran. In South Carolina, Attorney General Alan Wilson called last week for a 30-day suspension of the state’s 28-cent gas tax. President Donald Trump said he has also “thought about” suspending the federal gas tax, and urged states to suspend their taxes.
But in North Carolina, top leaders have offered little indication they would support such a step.
Gov. Josh Stein’s office did not directly answer whether he would support suspending the state’s gas tax despite multiple requests from The Charlotte Observer. A spokesperson for Stein pointed instead to broader economic pressures tied to rising fuel costs.
“North Carolinians are paying at the pump for a chaotic and costly war of choice without a clear strategy or exit plan. Rising gas prices makes it harder for people to get by, and higher diesel and fertilizer prices put further financial strain on farmers,” a statement to the Observer said.
The statement also said Stein is focused on “doing everything he can” to lower costs, but it did not address whether he would back eliminating or pausing the gas tax.
North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson, House Speaker Destin Hall, Senate leader Phil Berger, and some state representatives from Mecklenburg County did not respond to requests for comment.
Mecklenburg lawmakers not looking to cut state gas tax
Several Charlotte-area Democrats said they do not support suspending the gas tax, pointing to its role in funding transportation projects and arguing the move would create longer-term problems for the state. The gas tax is a key source of funding for road construction and maintenance across North Carolina, and lawmakers said eliminating it even temporarily could slow projects or worsen existing infrastructure needs.
In Mecklenburg County, gas prices average $3.92 per gallon as of Monday, according to AAA.
State Sen. Woodson Bradley, a Democrat whose district covers southeast Mecklenburg, said she’s heard from people across the state about the strain of higher gas prices but warned that suspending the tax could have ripple effects for infrastructure funding. She also criticized Republican lawmakers for failing to pass a state budget, arguing that has limited the state’s ability to respond more comprehensively to rising costs.
“We are at an impasse manufactured by the Republicans refusing to do their jobs, leaving us to try and patchwork solutions instead of thoughtful policymaking to lower costs for North Carolinians,” Bradley said.
Others had similar concerns.
State Rep. Terry Brown, House chief Democratic whip, said he supports exploring ways to ease the financial burden on families but does not believe suspending the gas tax is the right approach, especially as communities push for more investment in roads. Brown pointed to ongoing concerns in his district about road capacity and infrastructure needs, including efforts to expand NC 160 in the fast-growing Steele Creek area.
“Suspending the gas tax will just make it harder for projects that help our community to get done,” Brown said in a statement to the Observer. “We have to look for real long-lasting solutions to bring prices down, lower utility bills, keep more money in families pockets and combat the affordability crisis, not Band-Aids.”
State Sen. Caleb Theodros, a Democrat whose district covers west-central Mecklenburg County said fuel prices can largely be blamed on Trump’s “unpopular war,” in the Middle East, and he does not support shifting the financial burden for the war onto states.
“Asking states to suspend their own gas taxes shifts the burden of those federal decisions onto state budgets while undermining the transportation funding North Carolina relies on and providing only minimal, short-term relief to drivers,” Theodros told the Observer.
State Rep. Laura Budd, a Democrat whose district covers Southern Mecklenburg, also said she would not support cutting the state gas tax and said lawmakers should focus on more comprehensive solutions to affordability rather than what she described as short-term fixes.
“We’ll never help our neighbors with knee-jerk proposals in response to shortsighted policy decisions in the Trump White House,” Budd said.
This story was originally published April 7, 2026 at 5:00 AM.
