Some say the suspension of the gas tax for the summer holiday is just a gimmick. Others think it’s a great relief. Prices on everything from gas to rice has significantly increased over the past few months, and this could be a nice break…right? I want to see just how much my family would be saving between Memorial Day (May 26th) and Labor Day (Sept 1st), and get an idea of what all this really means.

• Current Federal Gas Tax (per gal.): $ .183
• Days during proposed “Tax Holiday”: 100 (approx.)

OK, so let’s use my husband as an example, since he’s the one who does most of the driving. His car holds 15 gallons of gas. With normal use, he fills up about every 5 days. So….

• 100 days ÷ 5 = 20 fill-ups over the course of the tax holiday
• 15 gal/tank × 20 fill-ups = 300 gals used from Memorial Day to Labor Day
• 300 gals × $ .183 tax = $54.90 Total Savings
• $54.90 ÷ 100 days = $ .54/day Total Savings

WOW! You’d have to give up your daily gum chewing habit to save that kind of money! Well, if that hasn’t convinced you that something more drastic is needed, I’ll even add in our yearly trip to California and see if we can save a little bit more.

Now, we’re using my car…a gas guzzling Cadillac. On the plus-side, it does have a 20 gallon tank, so I still only need to fill up 6 times to complete a round-trip from Utah to California and back. So…

• 20 gal/tank × 6 fill-ups = 120 gals
• 120 gals × $ .183 tax = $21.96 Total Savings
• $54.90 + $21.96 = $76.86 Grand Total in Savings from Proposed Tax Holiday

Perhaps, having an extra three quarters jingling in your pocket every day is enough to get you excited, but not me. I’m looking for someone to step up and take control over these rising gas prices before we’re forced to ride our bikes to the beach for the summer. I’m not looking forward to trekking some 650 miles with a two-year-old on my back.