SILVER SPRING, Md. — Gas stations in Maryland were swarmed Friday afternoon with holiday weekend drivers hoping to fill up up one last time before that state’s gas tax holiday expires at midnight Saturday.
Prices are predicted to jump at least 36 cents per gallon first thing Easter Sunday morning as a 30 day gas tax holiday passed to ease the fuel price shock caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine ends.
“We have to take the opportunity and do it right now — right away,” said driver Juan Reyes as he gassed up on $3.85 per gallon gas at a Shell station on New Hampshire Avenue in Hillendale.
Maryland was the first state in the nation to pass a gas tax holiday.
The price of gas in Maryland stayed well below the national average for the past 30 days, according to Patrick DeHaan, a spokesperson for GasBuddy.com.
“The Maryland's gas tax holiday was completely passed along by retailers, and prices fell even further than that, because of moderation in the price of oil," De Haan said.
De Haan said global crude oil prices dropped close to a $30 per barrel decline since the peak in early March.
Last week, Maryland’s Democratically controlled House of Delegates voted against a Republican amendment to extend the gas tax holiday.
Before the 82-47 vote, House Majority Leader Del. Eric Luedtke (D) of Montgomery County argued that future road and bridge funding covered by the gas tax would be hurt too badly.
But Comptroller Peter Franchot, who is running for governor as a Democrat, criticized his own party Friday for opposing Republican Gov. Larry Hogan.
“The rug is pulled out after 30 days when the governor wanted to extend it to 90 days — I wanted to extend it to 90 days — there's plenty of money to extend it for 90 days,” Franchot said. “The gas tax holiday will prematurely end for no reason other than political stuff.”
The office of Maryland’s House Democratic House Speaker Adrienne Jones did not respond to WUSA9’s request for comment.