Georgia Governor Unlikely to Freeze Gas Sales Tax

ATLANTA -- Georgia Governor Nathan Deal said that he is unlikely to freeze the state's gasoline tax, reported WSBTV.com The tax is due to increase by 2.8 cents per gallon on May 1 due to a revenue department formula that will automatically begin charging distributors more next month. The extra tax could be passed on to consumers.

Deal said that he is worried about the possible effect a freeze could have on critical transportation projects such as road improvements. He also stated that if the state legislature did not approve a freeze, it would leave gas distributors tens of thousands of dollars in debt over unpaid sales tax.

"I certainly understand the pressure because of the rising gas prices, but the chance to waive small incremental increases would really be sort of small compared to the overall cost of a gallon of gasoline," said Deal.