Governor McKee’s Gas Tax Cut: Political Optics or Real Relief? Truckers Warn Tolls Will Hit Consumers Harder
As Governor Dan McKee touts a modest rollback in the state’s gasoline tax as part of his “Affordability for All” agenda ahead of reelection, the Rhode Island Trucking Association is calling the move little more than political window dressing — especially with plans to reinstate controversial truck-only tolls looming in 2027.
The governor has proposed repealing a two-cent-per-gallon gas tax increase approved by the General Assembly last year, which he estimates would return roughly $9 million annually to drivers and businesses. McKee highlighted the plan during a recent press event in Wakefield, framing it as targeted relief amid rising fuel costs.
But trucking industry leaders argue the gesture rings hollow when weighed against the broader financial pain Rhode Islanders could face from uncapped tolls on tractor-trailers.
“The Governor is leaning on affordability as a theme for his reelection, but truck tolls and affordability are incompatible,” said Chris Maxwell, President and CEO of the Rhode Island Trucking Association (RITA). “A token two-cent reduction in the fuel tax is ‘penny-wise and pound-foolish’ and inconsequential when compared to the pain all Rhode Islanders will feel if uncapped truck tolls are reinstated.”
The toll debate stems from RhodeWorks, the infrastructure funding program launched under former Governor Gina Raimondo. The original 2016 legislation included daily caps on tolls to shield small businesses and in-state operators from repeated hits. In 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit partially overturned a lower court ruling, greenlighting the resumption of tolls on tractor-trailers — but without those protective caps, which the court deemed unconstitutional for discriminating against out-of-state carriers.
State transportation officials have indicated toll collections could restart as early as the first quarter of 2027, pending upgrades to the gantry system.
RITA warns the impact will ripple far beyond the trucking industry. Trucks haul 88% of consumer goods and 98% of manufactured products in the state. Without caps, the program is projected to place a heavy burden — potentially as high as 94% — on the supply chain, ultimately landing on consumers through higher prices for everyday items.
“The McKee Tolls will not be kind to Rhode Island,” Maxwell added. “The math is simple: the Governor is giving back $9 million one-time with one hand while planning to take $40 million annually with the other.”
Critics of the toll reinstatement argue it effectively functions as a tax on commerce that gets passed along in the cost of goods, undercutting any short-term savings at the pump. Proponents, including state officials, have defended the program as necessary to fund critical highway and bridge repairs without broader tax hikes.
As the General Assembly reviews McKee’s FY 2027 budget proposal, the trucking association is urging lawmakers to reconsider the toll timeline and seek more equitable infrastructure funding solutions that avoid shifting costs onto businesses and families.
Ocean State drivers and consumers may soon discover whether the governor’s gas tax relief delivers meaningful help — or simply distracts from larger cost increases headed their way down the road.
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