Lake County Gazette

State Rep. Chris Bos (R-Lake Zurich) recently announced that he has introduced legislation that would stop the gas tax increase scheduled for January. 

Bos said in a press release that last week he filed HB 5829, which would stop the gas tax increase scheduled to take place on Jan. 1. The gas tax increase was originally scheduled to take place in July as an annual increase introduced by Gov. J.B. Pritzker in 2019, at which time he also doubled the state's gas tax from 19 cents to 38 cents. The Pritzker administration allowed the July gas tax increase to be delayed by six months, but if it does take place in January, there will still be another increase in July 2023. Although Pritzker required gas stations to post notices stating that he had delayed the increase scheduled for July, Bos said he would not do the same.

“Illinois residents are no strangers to tax increases, but the weight of inflation partnered with increased taxes isn’t sustainable,” Bos said, according to the press release. “As a lawmaker, it’s my job to work toward viable solutions to our state’s biggest challenges and right now that’s the rising cost of living in Illinois. My legislation is an effort to provide relief at gas pumps across the state. I’m hopeful we can work on this during Veto Session next month so our communities are not hit even harder this winter as these cost continue to rise.”

As of Oct. 31, the average cost of a gallon of regular gas in Illinois is $4.147, up from $3.559 one year ago and higher than the national average of $3.762, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). In Lake County, gas prices average $4.063.

In his press release, Bos noted that a decrease in oil production is expected to cause gas prices to rise back up to almost $5 in the next several weeks.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics issued the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) Summary on Oct. 13, which found that prices increased by .4% in September, and the overall inflation rate stands at 8.2% for the last year. In the last year, the cost of food has increased by 11.2%, energy prices have risen by 19.8%, gasoline prices have risen by 18.2%, the cost of fuel oil has increased by 58.1%, the cost of new vehicles has risen by 9.4%, and the cost of transportation services has increased by 14.6%.