At a time of pervasive price increases for food and fuel, a few states have started introducing tax cuts to help lower the economic burden for their residents. Illinois, Virginia, and Oklahoma have all introduced notable changes to their structures.
According to USA Today, Illinois’ 1 percent tax on groceries will be suspended starting July 1, 2022 until June 30, 2023. This tax change applies to all food for human consumption that is consumed off the grocery store’s premises. Ready-to-eat food or drinks packed for immediate consumption will maintain their current state sales tax rate of 6.25 percent, and medicine, drug, and personal hygiene products will remain taxed at the current rate.
Virginians can expect a cut to their 1.5 percent sales tax on groceries and personal hygiene products, according to ABC 8 News; however, the change will not go into effect until January 1, 2023.
“It would be unfair to tell our retailers and all of our government agencies this goes into effect immediately and then expect that they would turn everything around,” delegate Mark Keam, Fairfax County Democrat, recently said. “It takes them a while to program their computers, make sure all their cash registers and their online sales systems are up and running. That’s why they asked for at least a few months.”
The Oklahoma House of Representatives recently voted to both suspend and eliminate sales tax on groceries, a rate currently set at 4.5 percent. The final decision rests on the Oklahoma senate who, if approved, will also decide whether the cuts will be set for two years, or permanently, according to Fox 23 News.
With gas prices also on the rise, President Biden has urged lawmakers to pause the federal gas tax of 18 cents per gallon for regular gas, and 24 cents per gallon for diesel through September.
"By suspending the 18-cent gas tax—federal gas tax for the next 90 days, we can bring down the price of gas and give families just a little bit of relief," Biden said in a recent speech. "I call on the companies to pass this along—every penny of this 18-cents reduction—to the consumers."
Fuel price increases have also escalated costs for grocery and ingredient transport, affecting much of the U.S. food industry. Biden implied that gas tax relief of this nature will help drive down prices for consumers.
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