LANSING (WWJ/AP) -- Michigan lawmakers have voted to temporarily suspend the state's 27 cents-a-gallon gas tax... but that probably won't mean a discount at the pump.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer last week indicated that she was veto the Republican-sponsored legislation, saying it does not help Michiganders who are struggling the most.
The Associated Press reports the bill, which would also temporarily cut the state's diesel tax, was approved 24-14 on mostly party lines Tuesday in the GOP-controlled Senate after the House passed it last week. If signed by Whitmer, it would save drivers about $725 million by freezing the taxes from April through September.
Whitmer, a Democrat, said she does support halting the federal 18-cents-per-gallon gas tax and 24-cent diesel tax while calling for negotiations on permanent tax cuts for some retirement incomes and an increased Earned Income Tax Credit.
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This comes as the governor is working to make good on her campaign promise to "fix the damn roads" — an ambitious endeavor which relies largely upon state gas tax revenue.
Republicans backing the gas tax suspension have said that lost revenue would be "backfilled" with Rainy Day funds and federal dollars, although Democrats argued that the bill does not promise that.
As of Tuesday, AAA Michigan said gas prices in the state were averaging $4.238 a-gallon.
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