Federal Gas Tax: A Break or A Brake?

The current discussion of a possible summer holiday on federal gasoline taxes is one that is has become extremely muddled.The reason is that advocates and opponents of a holiday tax break are each arguing their case from a different perspective. The range of arguments over a federal gasoline tax holiday is broad: costs vs. benefits, long run vs. short run, overall macroeconomic growth vs. family welfare. The result is a confusing jumble of analysis and policy prescrptions, with nary a market option among the suggestions.